Miller won't contest Murkowski certification; pursues federal suit - CNN International

Murkowski won as a write-in candidate after losing GOP primaryMiller argues that Alaska law does not allow the counting of misspelled names on write-in ballotsMurkowski holds a 2,200-vote lead even when challenged votes are discountedMiller had until Monday to file an appeal

(CNN) -- Republican Senate candidate Joe Miller said late Sunday he is dropping his opposition to incumbent Lisa Murkowski being certified as winner in the Alaska Senate race, but will continue with a federal lawsuit.

"After careful consideration and seeking the counsel of people whose opinion I respect and trust, I have decided that the federal case must go forward. The integrity of the election is vital and ultimately the rule of law must be our standard," Miller said in a statement. "Nevertheless, I have also decided to withdraw our opposition to the certification of the election, ensuring that Alaska will have its full delegation seated when the 112th Congress convenes next month."

Last week, the Alaska Supreme Court ruled against Miller in his appeal, denying his claim that state law was not followed on counting write-in votes.

In the ruling, the Alaska Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the superior court, saying, "There are no remaining issues raised by Miller that prevent this election from being certified." At the time, a spokesman for Miller's campaign said they were "disappointed" with the decision.

"We are disappointed the Alaska Supreme Court has ignored the plain text of Alaska law and allowed the Division of Elections to effectively amend the state election code without even giving the public an opportunity for notice and comment," Miller spokesman Randy DeSoto said in a statement Wednesday.

The Alaska Division of Elections had already said that the state would move forward to ask the judge to lift the injunction on certifying the election unless the Miller campaign filed an appeal by Monday -- which it will now not do.

The Murkowski campaign anticipated further appeals by Miller.

"We ... anticipate that Joe (Miller) will continue to pursue his baseless claims in federal court until his money runs out," Murkowski spokesman Kevin Sweeney said in a statement last week.

After the election in November, Miller filed a challenge against the Division of Elections to ensure the state law, which calls for write-in votes to match the name of the candidate, was followed. He has argued that Alaska law does not allow the counting of misspelled names on write-in ballots.

However, the Division of Elections set guidelines before counting began that allowed for a voter's intent to be considered when determining whether to count a ballot for a write-in candidate.

Murkowski launched a write-in bid following her loss to Miller, a Tea Party favorite, in the state's August 24 Republican primary.

In the original superior court decisions, a judge ruled that Miller did not provide proof of election official fraud, or that "there would be a sufficient change to the election results if these claims were true."

The Associated Press called the race for Murkowski last month when she had a 10,328-vote lead over Miller, a figure that includes the 8,159 ballots contested by Miller observers. Not including those ballots, she has a 2,169-vote lead.

CNN's Steve Brusk contributed to this report

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Nine men in court charged with terror offences - The Guardian

Counter-terrorism police from forces in London, Cardiff, Stoke-on-Trent and Birmingham carried out last week's raids. Photograph: Darren Staples/Reuters

Nine men are due to appear in court in London today charged with conspiracy to cause explosions and other terrorism offences.

They are among 12 men arrested a week ago in raids by counter-terrorism police from forces in London, Cardiff, Stoke-on-Trent and Birmingham. Two men from Cardiff and one from London have since been released without charge, West Midlands police said.

The remaining nine will appear at City of Westminster magistrates court this morning. They are charged with conspiring to cause an explosion or explosions in the UK "of a nature likely to endanger life or cause serious injury to property" between 1 October and 20 November this year. They are also accused of engaging in conduct in preparation for acts of terrorism between 1 October and 20 December, including downloading and researching materials and methods, carrying out reconnaissance and agreeing potential targets, and igniting and testing incendiary material.

Those charged from Cardiff are Gurukanth Desai, 28, Omar Sharif Latif, 26, and Abdul Malik Miah, 24.

London residents Mohammed Moksudur Rahman Chowdhury, 20, and Shah Mohammed Lutfar Rahman, 28, are charged.

Also charged are Stoke-on-Trent residents Nazam Hussain, 25, Usman Khan, 19, Mohibur Rahman, 26, and Abul Bosher Mohammed Shahjahan, 26.

Sue Hemming, the head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) counter-terrorism division, said: "Lawyers from the CPS counter-terrorism division have been working with the police on this case from an early stage and were on hand to give advice while the men were interviewed.

"I have reviewed the evidence provided to me by the West Midlands counter-terrorism unit and I am satisfied there is sufficient for a realistic prospect of conviction, and it is in the public interest that these men should be charged with these offences."

Last week's raids came after several months of surveillance and monitoring by police and MI5 officers.

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Snowstorm coats East, frustrating holiday travel - BusinessWeek

By SARA KUGLER FRAZIER

NEW YORK

A powerful winter storm lay a snow blanket from the South to the Northeast on Sunday, turning roads slick, stranding thousands of airline, train and bus passengers and putting a chill in retailers' day-after-Christmas sales.

Up to 20 inches of snow were expected in some areas, including Philadelphia, where the Eagles-Vikings NFL game was canceled, and Boston, where an aquarium had to protect -- of all things -- penguin ice sculptures from the elements.

Snow started falling around New York City late Sunday morning, by which time nearly 1,000 flights out of the region's three major airports had already been canceled in anticipation of the storm. More cancellations were expected.

"We left the day after Christmas to avoid the Christmas craze. I guess that didn't work out so well," said Colleen James of Montclair, N.J. She, her husband, their two young children and their dachshund were at Newark Airport trying to reach family in Iowa, but their connecting flight to Chicago was delayed more than two and a half hours.

Her husband, Graham James, was resigning himself to postponing their trip a month. "Now we're worried about just driving home because of the crazy snow," Graham James said.

Some flights out of Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, D.C., Baltimore and the Carolinas also were canceled. Amtrak canceled train service from New York to Maine on Sunday evening, after doing the same earlier for several trains in Virginia.

Bus companies also canceled routes up and down the East Coast, affecting thousands of travelers.

Kate Lindquist, on her way home from New Hampshire to New York City, was greeted with a handwritten sign at a Boston bus station: "Sorry, we are closed today."

"To have this happen on a Sunday during a holiday weekend is incredibly frustrating," she told the AP in an e-mail.

The Northeast is getting the brunt of the storm. Forecasters issued a blizzard warning for New York City for Sunday and Monday, with a forecast of 11 to 16 inches of snow and strong winds that will reduce visibility to near zero at times. A blizzard warning was also in effect for Rhode Island and most of eastern Massachusetts including Boston, with forecasters predicting 15 to 20 inches of snow. A blizzard warning is issued when snow is accompanied by sustained winds or gusts over 35 mph.

As much as 18 inches could fall on the New Jersey shore with wind gusts over 40 mph.

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter declared a snow emergency as of 2 p.m. Sunday, and he urged residents to stay off the roads.

The NFL moved the Philadelphia Eagles' game against the Minnesota Vikings from Sunday night to Tuesday because of the blizzard. It's the third time this season snow has forced a change of plans for the Vikings. Two of their games this month needed to be relocated because the roof of their stadium collapsed.

In Boston, Mayor Thomas Menino declared a snow emergency that bans parking on all major streets, and the New England Aquarium bubble-wrapped its four 5-foot-tall penguin ice sculptures to protect them from the wind and snow.

More than 2,400 sanitation workers were working in 12-hour shifts to clear New York City's 6,000 miles of streets. Not that Mayor Michael Bloomberg wanted people to use them.

"I understand that a lot of families need to get home after a weekend away, but please don't get on the roads unless you absolutely have to," Bloomberg said.

In Rhode Island, emergency officials encouraged businesses to let employees report to work late Monday, saying road conditions for the early morning commute Monday would be treacherous.

The snow was easier to enjoy for people with no place to go. As the wind swirled snow through the doors of a Brooklyn supermarket, New Yorkers hurried to pick up a few staples before heading back home to hunker down.

"I'm seeing it as a great excuse to stay in and relax and drink tea," said Toni Gifford, who works in academics and has the week off.

"Love snowy days when I don't have to go anywhere. Staying in -- just me and my cozy new socks," author Neesha Meminger wrote on Twitter from her home in the Bronx.

She told the AP she's able to savor the moment because her children, ages 6 and 9, are on holiday break: "If this was during the school week, I would be cursing."

The weather deterred some people from hitting day-after-Christmas sales, but that appeared to be a relatively light blow for retailers coming off a strong shopping season.

"People will just wait a day to do exchanges and use their gift cards. It's no big deal," said Greg Maloney, CEO of the retail practice of Jones Lang LaSalle, which manages malls across the country.

The monster storm is the result of a low pressure system off the North Carolina coast and was strengthening as it moved northeast, according to the National Weather Service.

Travel misery began a day earlier in parts of the South, which was hit with a white Christmas for the record books. Columbia, S.C., had its first significant Christmas snow since weather records were first kept in 1887. Atlanta had just over an inch of snow -- the first measurable accumulation on Christmas Day since the 1880s.

The North Carolina Highway Patrol said late Saturday that most of the roads in and around Asheville were either covered or partially covered with snow and ice.

"We're busy," Ryan Dean of Dean's Wrecker Service in Raleigh, N.C., said Sunday. "We've been out since 3 in the morning pulling people out of the ditch."

The National Weather Service said 8.5 inches of snow fell in Franklinton, N.C., about 30 miles north of Raleigh, from Saturday through Sunday.

Diane Smith, 55, said her power was out for about four hours there Sunday morning, but she and her husband have a generator. Relatives, including two grandchildren, who live nearby came over for breakfast and to get warm before going home after power was restored.

"It's beautiful," Smith said. "As long as I have power, I love it."

------

Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Page Ivey in Columbia; Karen Hawkins in Chicago; Warren Levinson and Verena Dobnik in New York City; David Goodman in Detroit; Jacquelyn Martin and Norm Gomlak in Washington; Michelle Price in Phoenix; Dylan Lovan in Louisville; Ben Nuckols in Baltimore, Eric Tucker in Providence, R.I., and Mark Pratt in Boston.

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Cancún climate change conference: Russia will not renew Kyoto protocol - The Guardian

Chimneys billow smoke over St Petersburg. At the Cuncún climate change summit Russia said it would not renew its commitment to the Kyoto protocol beyond 2012. Photograph: Sergey Kulikov/AFP/Getty Images

The UN climate change conference in Cancún – and the future of the Kyoto protocol – was cast into doubt today after Russia said it would not renew its commitment to the treaty that has governed climate negotiations for more than a decade.

In a late-night plenary session, Russia's climate change envoy, Alexander Berditsky, said his country opposed a renewal of Kyoto beyond its 2012 end date.

"Russia will not participate in the second commitment period of the Kyoto protocol," he said in a prepared statement.

The announcement, delivered in what were supposed to be the final 24 hours of the summit, makes it even more unlikely negotiators will be able to produce a strong outcome at Cancún, environmental groups said.

After last year's failure at Copenhagen, a weak result – or outright collapse – of talks at Cancún would damage the credibility of the entire UN negotiating process, the energy secretary Chris Huhne warned.

"Next year people will say, well, we're not going to make any progress and we end up with a zombie conference where there won't be anybody at a senior enough level to take any serious decisions at all."

Negotiators were planning to meet through the night to try to resolve the difference. But Russia's announcement further cements the divide between rich and poor countries over the future of the agreement following a statement from Japan at the start of the talks that it too would not sign an extension of Kyoto.

Japan reiterated its opposition on Thursday night, with negotiator Akira Yamada saying a renewal of Kyoto was "not an appropriate way or an effective way or a fair way to tackle climate change".

Canada is also believed to oppose extending the Kyoto agreement.

Russia's statement had been much anticipated. As Berditsky noted: "Russia has repeatedly stated, including at the highest political level, that the adoption of commitments for the second commitment period under the Kyoto protocol as it stands now would be neither scientifically, economically or politically effective."

But the announcement so late in the talks risks overwhelming progress made elsewhere at Cancún on agreements to preserve tropical rainforests and on climate finance.

Instead, ministers spent much of Thursday trying to devise a strategy for overcoming the divide over the future of Kyoto.

Developing countries say Kyoto is essential as the only international agreement requiring industrialised countries to reduce their emissions. "A second commitment period is a must in the outcome," said Brazil's climate change negotiator, Luiz Figueiredo.

But some developing countries have also admitted they were open to a fudge – deferring the question of Kyoto's future to next year's climate summit in South Africa.

In addition, the EU climate commissioner, Connie Hedegaard, has also been circulating a proposal – backed by small island states – that would circumvent the issue of Kyoto.

Even without the fight over Kyoto, the UN summit is facing all-night negotiating tonight to try to produce even modest areas of agreement.

There were divisions over the ambition and governance of a green fund to help developing countries buy the technology they need to reduce their emissions and protect their people from rising seas and drought.

There was also a stand-off between China and America on the sensitive issue of monitoring and verifying emissions reductions.

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WikiLeaks cables, day 4: summary of today's key points - The Guardian

The US embassy in London. Photograph: Rex Feature


The Guardian
• Russia is a "virtual mafia state" with rampant corruption and scant separation between the activities of the government and organised crime. Vladimir Putin is accused of amassing "illicit proceeds" from his time in office, which various sources allege are hidden overseas. And he was likely to have known about the operation in London to murder the Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko, Washington's top diplomat in Europe alleged.
• British and US officials colluded to manoeuvre around a proposed ban on cluster bombs, allowing the US to keep the munitions on British territory, regardless of whether a treaty forbidding their use was implemented. Parliament was kept in the dark about the secret agreement, approved by then-foreign secretary David Miliband.
• US diplomats believed that the Sri Lankan president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, bore responsibility for a massacre last year that is the subject of a UN war crimes inquiry.
• Russia armed Georgian separatists in South Ossetia and Abkhazia and carried out a wave of "covert actions" to undermine Georgia in the runup to the 2008 Russian-Georgian war, according to US diplomats.
• President Dmitry Medvedev was described by US diplomats as a junior figure, who "plays Robin to Putin's Batman".
• Gas supplies to Ukranian and EU states are linked to the Russian mafia, according to the US ambassador in Kiev.
• Moscow's veteran mayor Yuri Luzhkov was accused by the US ambassador of sitting on top of a "pyramid of corruption" involving the Kremlin, Russia's police force, its security service, political parties and crime groups by the US ambassador.
• Miliband's campaign to champion aid and human rights during the Sri Lankan humanitarian crisis last year was largely motivated by a desire to win favour with Tamil voters in the UK, according to a Foreign Office official.
Der Spiegel
• The US is sceptical that Russian President Medvedev has much of a future, believing Putin to be "in the driver's seat".
• Having helped to build up Georgia's military capabilities, the US made last-ditch diplomatic attempts to try to prevent it going to war with Russia in 2008. Washington's envoy to the Caucasus warned Georgia that war would "cost it valuable support in Washington and European capitals", while publicly George W Bush and his secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, continued to give their unqualified support to Georgia.
• The US has long been trying to loosen Russia's grip on Ukraine, according to diplomatic cables. On the inauguration of the new Ukrainian president, Viktor Yanukovych, they sought to make him a US partner thereby striking a diplomatic blow against the Kremlin.
Le Monde
• The US embassy in Moscow criticised the IMF, the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for offering huge loans to Russia it felt were not justified.
El País
• One of the biggest objectives at the US embassy in Madrid over the past seven years has been trying to get the criminal case dropped against three US soldiers accused of the killing of a Spanish television cameraman in Baghdad. Telecinco cameraman José Couso was killed on 8 April 2003 during a tank shelling of the Hotel Palestine where he and other journalists were staying while they were covering the Iraq war. US diplomats held a host of meetings about the case with high-ranking members of the Spanish government.
New York Times
• The Russian prime minister, Putin, often did not show up at his office, according to rumours cited in a document titled Questioning Putin's Work Ethic.
• US diplomats warned of increasing distrust of the United States in Canada. They described "negative popular stereotyping" of Americans on Canadian TV. They also said Canadians "always carry a chip on their shoulder" in part because of a feeling that their country "is condemned to always play 'Robin' to the US 'Batman'".
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Wikileaks row: China wants Korean reunification, officials confirm - The Guardian

 Night dancing in Kim Il-Sung Square, Pyongyang, North Korea. The Guardian revealed today that senior figures in Beijing told their South Korean counterparts China was leaning towards acceptance of reunification. Photograph: Dan Chung
China supports the "independent and peaceful reunification of the Korean peninsula" and cannot afford to give the North Korean regime the impression it has a blank cheque to act any way it wants, Chinese officials based in Europe said today.
The officials, who asked not to be identified, spoke after the Guardian revealed that senior figures in Beijing, exasperated with North Korea behaving like a "spoiled child", had told their South Korean counterparts that China was leaning towards acceptance of reunification under Seoul's control.
China's moves to distance itself from the North Korean regime were revealed in the latest tranche of leaked US embassy cables obtained by Wikileaks and published yesterday by the Guardian and four international newspapers.
One Chinese official said today reunification was not going to happen overnight and China's first priority was to calm down the situation, restart a dialogue, and maintain stability in the region. But Beijing had always backed peaceful reunification as a longer term goal.
The officials admitted to a sense of frustration in Beijing over North Korea's recent actions, including its nuclear and missile tests – which China opposed – and last week's lethal artillery bombardment of a South Korean island.
A general discussion was continuing about the direction of North Korea policy, another official said. North Korea produced strong feelings among the Chinese leadership and public, and China had to be careful. Beijing wanted to maintain its friendship with Pyongyang. But it did not want to be led by the nose.
The officials expressed optimism that talks between the North and its regional interlocutors, South Korea, China and Japan, could be successfully restarted, despite Washington's dismissal of China's proposal as "PR activity".
South Korea might be tempted to indulge in tit-for-tat actions against the North, one official said. But a new war on the peninsula was unimaginable; it would be devastating for the two Koreas and for the region as a whole. Therefore China was trying to provide a steadying hand. If the current tense situation was allowed to escalate, North Korea was capable of taking radical actions.
The officials said the Chinese government was talking to the North on a regular basis; there were many channels that could be used. But the North was a proud nation and China could not ultimately control it, they said. Beijing told the North's leaders what it thought – but sometimes they behaved irrationally.
"We do not have an effective way to influence them. Sometimes when we try it only makes things worse," a senior Chinese diplomat said.
Referring to last week's artillery attack, the diplomat said it could be part of what North Korean leaders described was their strategy of "setting a fire under the Americans" in order to get their attention and win concessions.
There was growing evidence the Chinese public was running out of patience with the North's behaviour and this influenced the Chinese leadership's thinking, the diplomat said, adding that, in short, there was a limit to China's patience.
Officials described the Wikileaks disclosure of secret and classified US embassy cables relating to the Korean question as mischievous. When reading the diplomatic reports, they said, it was essential to distinguish between the personal opinions of those quoted and official government policy.
The Chinese foreign ministry spokesman noted the Wikileaks reports and urged the US to "appropriately resolve related issues" before declining further comment.
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Proposing pay freeze, Obama aims to seize initiative on economy - Los Angeles Times

 President Obama aimed to undercut Republicans, who had been preparing their own proposal to cut federal pay next year. (Pool Photo, Getty Images / November 29, 2010)
President Obama's proposal on Monday to freeze federal workers' pay was an unexpected announcement that represented the first in a series of White House moves to seize the initiative from Republicans on the economy.
The preemptive move was timed to precede a White House meeting Tuesday with congressional leaders on the subject of expiring George W. Bush-era tax cuts, and came just days before a final report from Obama's fiscal commission on how to shrink the federal deficit.
"The hard truth is that getting this deficit under control is going to require broad sacrifice," Obama said from the White House. "And that sacrifice must be shared by the employees of the federal government."
By proposing the two-year freeze, Obama sought to stake his own claim to the argument that government must make tough decisions. A senior administration official said Obama's proposal is part of a larger plan to draw Republicans into an overdue conversation about deficits.
The move would save about $5 billion over two years, the White House said — a substantial sum, though a mere sliver of the $1.3-trillion federal deficit.
Republicans gained dozens of seats in the House and Senate in part by targeting what they characterized as out-of-control federal spending.
Federal workers became a favorite campaign target of Republicans, who argued that the Washington payroll had swelled as private workers nationwide suffered job losses during the recession. Republicans have pressed for even steeper cuts to federal workers' pay.
"As the recent election made clear, Americans are fed up with a government that spends too much, borrows too much and grows too much," said Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.), the incoming House majority leader. "With so many Americans tightening their belts, Washington must do the same."
But Obama, by echoing a GOP theme in an effort to undercut Republicans, has angered many of his allies who complained that by cutting federal workers' pay, Obama was giving up something for nothing.
"No one is served by our government participating in a 'race to the bottom' in wages," said Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO. "The president talked about the need for shared sacrifice, but there's nothing shared about Wall Street and CEOs making record profits and bonuses while working people bear the brunt."
The freeze, which would not apply to military personnel or postal workers, would affect about 2 million employees. Congressional approval would be needed for the proposal to take effect.
Excluding military and postal workers, there are about 250,000 federal employees in the Washington area and 150,000 in California, which has the highest concentration outside Washington, according to Office of Personnel Management figures.
Republicans, who had been preparing their own plan to slash federal pay and the workforce next year, said the proposal was long overdue. But some of the president's allies chided him for taking a symbolic step that they said would do little to affect the trajectory of federal spending, but would harm household budgets.
Congress reconvenes this week for a lame-duck session to confront a series of crucial deadlines. The Bush-era tax cuts lapse at the end of the year, and unemployment benefits will be cut off starting Wednesday, leaving up to 2 million jobless Americans without aid through the holidays.
Lawmakers are at a stalemate over the tax cuts. Republicans want to extend them to all households, including those with incomes above $250,000 annually, despite the $700-billion additional cost.
In Tuesday's meeting with congressional leaders, Obama will continue to push for making permanent only the tax cuts on those households earning below $250,000 annually.
"We simply cannot afford to borrow $700 billion to extend the tax cuts of those who make $1 million or $1 billion a year, or make in excess of $250,000 a year," White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said. "We can't have an honest discussion about our debts and our deficits without understanding what those decisions mean in the short term and in the long term."
The pay cut proposal, along with Obama's embrace of earmark reform — another Republican priority to limit the special projects lawmakers designate for their home states, which is scheduled for a Senate vote Tuesday — is the kind of budget-cutting that deficit hawks see as more style than substance.
"Whether in earmark reform or freezing the pay of federal workers, the debate hasn't moved on to the big issues that need to be confronted," said Robert Bixby, executive director of the nonpartisan Concord Coalition, which advocates deficit reduction.
Even Obama's allies on Capitol Hill reacted with concern. Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), the House majority leader, delicately critiqued the president's proposal.
"Because meaningful deficit reduction cannot be achieved through a piecemeal approach to trimming federal spending, I am hopeful that the administration will propose a comprehensive and serious program for deficit reduction that recognizes the need for a comprehensive approach," he said.
The president froze salaries for all senior White House officials upon taking office. In last year's budget, he proposed extending that freeze to other top political appointees.
In the White House meeting on tax cuts, aides say they are not expecting agreement, but rather view the session as the first of several meetings on the subject.
In a telling change to the schedule, the get-together originally scheduled as a dinner is now set to be a more abbreviated business meeting in the morning.
"One of the most important things the president can do is send a message to the American people that he will not be the obstacle to bipartisan politics," said William Galston, a former Clinton administration official who is now a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "He wins by taking the first step."
lisa.mascaro@latimes.com
cparsons@latimes.com
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Cancún climate change summit: America plays tough - The Guardian

 US climate negotiator Jonathan Pershing speaks at a press conference at the UN summit in Cancún, Mexico. Photograph: Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty Images
America has adopted a tough all-or-nothing position at the Cancún climate change summit, fuelling speculation of a walk-out if developing countries do not meet its demands.
At the opening of the talks at Cancún, the US climate negotiator, Jonathan Pershing, made clear America wanted a "balanced package" from the summit.
That's diplomatic speak for a deal that would couple the core issues for the developing world – agreement on climate finance, technology, deforestation – with US demands for emissions actions from emerging economies and a verifiable system of accounting for those cuts.
In a briefing with foreign journalists in Washington, the chief climate envoy, Todd Stern, was blunt. "We're either going to see progress across the range of issues or we're not going to see much progress," said Stern. "We're not going to race forward on three issues and take a first step on other important ones. We're going to have to get them all moving at a similar pace."
In the run-up to the Cancún talks, Stern has said repeatedly that America will not budge from its insistence that fast-emerging economies such as India and China commit to reducing emissions and to an inspection process that will verify those actions.
The hard line – which some in Washington have seen as ritual diplomatic posturing – has fuelled speculation that the Obama administration could be prepared to walk out of the Cancún talks.
It is already under pressure for its green agenda from a new conservative Republican power bloc in Congress determined to block the powers of the Environmental Protection Agency to act on greenhouse gases and other sources of pollution, and defund programmes dealing with climate change. There is next to no chance Congress would take up cap-and-trade legislation or ratify any UN treaty.
The administration's weak domestic position, in turn, has cast doubts on its ability to deliver even the very modest 17% cut on 2005 emissions Obama agreed at the Copenhagen summit last year.
But a walk-out would wreck any lingering hopes that small progress in Cancún might put the UN negotiations process back on track after the debacle of Copenhagen.
However, Stern was insistent America will not move forward on climate finance without movement on its core issues. "We have heard a lot of talk this year about capturing the so-called low-hanging fruit by which countries who use that phrase often mean all the provisions dealing with financial and technology assistance, leaving the so-called hard issues of mitigation and transparency for sometime later," he told last week's foreign press briefing. "We are not doing that."
In a blog post, Michael Levi, an energy and environment fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, warned that the dynamics of Cancún could push America into a walk-out.
"There are decent odds that the United States will be presented with a final package that takes action on all sorts of things that developing countries want but doesn't have any clear wins for Washington," he wrote. "But I wouldn't be surprised to see the US reject such an outcome, even if it means walking away with nothing and being attacked for that."
The US has already drastically scaled down its presence at Cancún, compared with its participation at the Copenhagen climate change summit.
The Obama administration invested mightily in Copenhagen, seeing the summit as a chance to spotlight the changes in Washington after the exit of George Bush, who had pulled America out of the Kyoto protocols and blocked environmental measures at home.
Like other world leaders, Barack Obama made a personal appearance. But the administration also sent Hillary Clinton, the secretary of state, and eight other cabinet secretary and White House officials. America also sent outsize delegations of Democratic leaders in Congress.
But as Levi noted, the dynamics of this year's meeting are decidedly different. Developing countries, and some in Europe, see Cancún as a last chance to reach agreement on the building blocks of an eventual treaty – with or without the US.
However, the Obama administration – more than ever with hostile Republicans in Congress – cannot walk away empty-handed, Levi wrote.
"Rule number one for US climate negotiators has always been to make sure that what happens in the UN talks doesn't hurt prospects for domestic action. Headlines that say 'US gives money, technology to developing world; gets nothing in return' won't exactly fit that bill," he wrote.
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Women and men can use condoms to protect themselves from Aids, Vatican says - Telegraph.co.uk

The papacy has traditionally been seen as a job for life, with pontiffs expected to remain at the helm of the Church until death Photo: REUTERS
Pope Benedict XVI had said in a new book that the use of condoms by Catholics would be morally justifiable in "certain cases", citing as an example the responsibility of a male prostitute not to pass on the deadly disease to a client.
The 83-year-old pontiff's initial comment on condoms was contained in the book "Light of the World", extracts of which were published at the weekend, but they were so ambiguous that the Vatican was forced to yesterday [Tue] offer clarification and interpretation.
The Vatican's spokesman said that the Pope intended that the change of policy should apply to anybody with HIV/Aids, on the basis that preventing another person from being infected was the lesser of two evils, even it meant averting a possible pregnancy
"This is if you're a woman, a man, or a transsexual. We're at the same point. The point is it's a first step of taking responsibility, of avoiding passing a grave risk onto another," Father Federico Lombardi said.
The landmark shift appeared to indicate that the Vatican's previous policy was unrealistic and even irresponsible. Only last year, at the start of a trip to Africa, the pope said that the spread of Aids could not be prevented by condom use and that they could even "aggravate" the crisis.
The Catholic Church has long been criticised for refusing to sanction the use of condoms, particularly in Africa, where the virus has spread the virus to an estimated 22 million people.
Monsignor Jacques Suaudeau, an expert at the Vatican's bioethics advisory board, said Benedict was articulating the idea in Catholic doctrine that there are degrees of evil.
"Contraception is not the worst evil. The church does not see it as good, but the church does not see it as the worst," he said. "Abortion is far worse. Passing on HIV is criminal. That is absolute irresponsibility."
The Pope's words do not change the overall Catholic disapproval of contraception, but were nevertheless welcomed by liberal Catholics, Aids activists and health officials.
Michel Sidibé, the head of the UN agency for fighting Aids, said it was "a significant and positive step forward."
Elsewhere in the book, Benedict described the paedophile priest scandals which have hit the Catholic Church as "almost like the crater of a volcano, out of which suddenly a tremendous cloud of filth came, darkening and soiling everything."
He also said he would never have lifted the excommunication of a British bishop had he known that he was a Holocaust denier, conceding that a simple search on the internet by his aides would have disclosed the inflammatory views of Bishop Richard Williamson.
The Pope caused controversy in January last year when he lifted Williamson's excommunication shortly after the bishop claimed in a television interview that the Nazis did not use gas chambers and killed no more than 300,000 Jews.
Bishop Williamson is facing expulsion from his order. He was convicted in Germany of 'incitement' in April and fined 10,000 euros.
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Bolder climate deal needed to close & emissions gap U.N. says - CNN International

Negotiators will meet in Cancun, Mexico in late November to build on the Copenhagen Accord agreed last December.Governments must set in stone climate pledges made in Copenhagen, Steiner saidComes as UN releases a report saying government must do more to reduce emissionsReport finds that even if all pledges are met, temperatures will still rise above agreed levelsNegotiators meet in Cancun in late November for COP16

London, England (CNN) -- Governments must make bolder and more binding commitments to reduce carbon emissions, according to a new United Nations report.

The "Emission Gap Report" highlights the gap between pledges made and what's needed to avoid a dangerous rise in global temperatures.

Achim Steiner, executive director of the United Nations Environment Program, said negotiators must set in stone pledges made last year at the U.N. climate talks in Copenhagen, Denmark when they meet in Cancun, Mexico next week.

"This is not a matter of luxury choice that we can defer, but it is a matter of an ever narrower window of time in which action is feasible on a scale and compatible with also economic and technological transition paths," Steiner said.

"That's why we wanted to issue this report just before Cancun to remind the world that despite the struggles of Copenhagen, there is a climate path forward for the international community that it is feasible, but we have to accelerate it and there is a still a gap to meet the minimum objectives agreed in Copenhagen," he added.

"The ability to close that five gigaton gap is simply beyond question. We can do it
--Achim Steiner, U.N. Environment Program

A record 15,000 delegates converged on Copenhagen last December for the 15th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP15).

The talks carried high hopes for a binding global agreement to curb carbon emissions but in the end delivered a disappointing and loose set of voluntary actions named the "Copenhagen Accord."

Eighty countries responsible for 80 percent of the world's carbon emissions signed the accord agreeing, among other things, that the global temperature rise should be limited to two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

Average global surface temperatures have already increased by about 0.74 degrees Celsius over the past hundred years to 2005, according to the Fourth Assessment Report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The IPCC has warned that a failure to reduce carbon emissions could lead to the disappearance of sea ice by the end of the 21st century causing sea levels to rise, water shortages in semi-arid areas and an increasing risk of extinction for up to 30 percent of the world's species.

Next week, negotiators will meet in Cancun, Mexico for COP16, to try to close the political gap between commitments made by developed and developing nations to reduce carbon emissions.

However, the "Emissions Gap Report," released Tuesday, found that even if all nations meet all pledges made in the Copenhagen Accord, the world will be still be only 60 percent of the way towards keeping the global average temperature rise below two degrees Celsius.

The report, compiled by 30 of the world's leading climate researchers, quantified how many gigatons of carbon emissions could be cut if all nations kept pledges made in the Copenhagen Accord, and the corresponding likely rise in global average temperatures.

It started from a base of 48 gigatons produced by the world in 2009. The report found that if nothing is done to cut carbon emissions they will rise to 56 gigatons by 2020. That equates to a likely global average temperature increase of seven degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

To keep the average global temperature rise to two degrees Celsius the report found that carbon emissions must drop to 44 gigatons each year, ideally by 2020.

However, the report found that even if governments meet all the targets set out in the Copenhagen Accord, world carbon emissions would only drop to 49 gigatons.

The corresponding temperature rise would be around 2.5 degrees Celsius, higher than the two degree target.

"The ability to close that five gigaton gap is simply beyond question. We can do it," said Steiner. He added that it could be achieved by phasing out fossil fuel subsidies and by tightening up rules on carbon credits to discourage wasteful energy practices.

The executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has said Cancun can be a success if the parties compromise.

"They have to balance their expectations so that everyone can carry home a positive achievement while allowing others to do the same -- that's how multilateral agreements are made elsewhere and it is how it has to happen in climate, too," said Christiana Figueres.

The Cancun climate talks start on November 29 and end December 10.

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GDP report: Economic growth picks up steam - CNNMoney

By Annalyn Censky, staff reporterNovember 23, 2010: 9:26 AM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The U.S. recovery tugged along at a faster pace in the third quarter than originally reported, driven by stronger exports and spending, the government said Tuesday.

Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the economy, grew at an annual rate of 2.5% in the three months ending in September, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. That's a significant improvement over the 2% growth rate first reported for the period.

"We're headed in the right direction, and a good deal of the concern that was evident with the initial release has undoubtedly diminished," said Michael Schenk, senior economist with the Credit Union National Association. "But it doesn't really get us to where we need to be."

The government calculates GDP as a measure of goods and services produced in the United States. The number is often revised multiple times. This is the second reading for the quarter.

While the number is much better than the 1.7% growth reported in the second quarter, the rate is still considered weak for a recovery.

"I think most economists would agree that 2.5% is probably too low for robust job growth. It's about neutral," said Zach Pandl, an economist with Nomura Securities.

Consumer spending increased at a 2.8% pace, the best reading for that measure since the end of 2006, up from 2.6% initially reported. Exports were also revised upward to 6.3%, from 5%.

Those two points mark a bright spot in the report, as consumer spending and U.S. exports are engines of growth needed to drive the recovery forward.

Pandl expects the Fed's latest monetary stimulus plan, referred to as quantitative easing, will help spur stronger growth in the fourth quarter, but still not robust enough to totally diminish the need for the full $600 billion plan.

"This level of growth would still be considered unacceptable from the Fed's perspective," he said. "It's not fast enough to bring inflation back up and lower the unemployment rate. On the other hand, it suggests no reason for alarm."

The reading was slightly better than expected, as economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast growth of 2.4% for the third quarter. 

First Published: November 23, 2010: 8:43 AM ET

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New HIV drug gives hope for prevention - USA Today

A major study shows for the first time that a drug duo widely used to treat the AIDS virus can block HIV infection, researchers said Tuesday.The drugs tenofovir and emtricitabine, packaged as a once-daily pill and sold in drugstores as Truvada, reduced HIV infections by an average of 44% among gay and bisexual men who took the drug, compared with those taking a placebo. Men who reported being the most diligent about taking their pill each day reaped an even bigger benefit, reducing their risk by 73%.

"This is a huge step forward," says lead researcher Robert Grant, at the J. David Gladstone Institute at the University of California-San Francisco, a non-profit research foundation that carried out the study.

David Paltiel of Yale University says that his research shows that Truvada could be as cost-effective a prevention method as those used to combat heart disease diabetes and cancer, despite its $8,700 annual cost.

The findings have bred new enthusiasm in a field where, for years, optimism was rare. Over 30 years, HIV has infected 40 million people. But this year alone, researchers have demonstrated that a pill and a vaginal gel (containing a component of Truvada) can prevent HIV and shown, at least in concept, that a vaccine can work.

"This is a very exciting, dynamic time in HIV prevention research," says Alan Bernstein, head of the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise, a non-profit effort to accelerate vaccine research. "It couldn't come at a better time. There's clearly a growing realization that we're not going to be able to treat our way out of this epidemic.

Even with support from the Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, only about a third of people with HIV worldwide get treatment, Bernstein says.

Over the next two or three years, researchers hope to determine whether Truvada also works in heterosexuals and drug users and whether it can prevent infection if taken intermittently, hours before having sex.

Federal health officials cautioned that the jury is still out on whether the drug works in groups other than gay and bisexual men, adding that they've just begun analyzing the findings from today's study so they can craft prevention guidelines and put the approach to work in "real world" settings.

"It's no time for gay and bisexual men to throw away their condoms or abandon other ways to prevent HIV," says Kevin Fenton, director of HIV prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The HIV epidemic is still growing among gay and bisexual men, Fenton says, who now account for more than half of roughly 60,000 new HIV infections that occur nationwide each year. Gay and bisexual men are 44 times more likely to get HIV than other men, CDC statistics show.

A string of failures in HIV-prevention research — of 37 trials, only 6 have been successful, three of them involving male circumcision — prompted researchers to try to determine whether drugs capable of stopping HIV from multiplying could prevent infection, Grant says.

Truvada was chosen because it is highly effective, has relatively few side effects and is less likely to promote HIV resistance than other drugs. Since its approval in 2004, Truvada has become the world's top selling AIDS drug, with more than $2 billion in sales last year, according to IMS Health, a medical information company.

The new study involved 2,499 men and transgendered women in six countries, including the USA, who have sex with men. The participants were divided into two groups; half were given Truvada and half received a placebo, the researchers report online today in the New England Journal of Medicine. All of the volunteers were advised to use condoms and take other precautions to avoid getting sexually transmitted diseases.

"Everyone was told not to rely on this pill, because they might be getting a placebo," Grant says.

After slightly more than a year of treatment, 36 people who were getting Truvada became infected with HIV, compared with 64 infections among those getting a placebo.

An analysis of 34 of the 36 people in the Truvada group who got HIV found that they had very little of the drug in their blood or none at all, suggesting they weren't taking the drug as prescribed.

Those with measurable amounts of Truvada in their blood had 13-fold greater protection from infection, says Anthony Fauci, of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which sponsored the study.

"That translates into more than a 90% reduction in risk," Fauci says.

Fauci cautioned that HIV is far too widespread to yield to one new prevention approach.

Paltiel agreed. "This drug alone," he says, "isn't going to stop this epidemic,"

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New Palin book has GOP battle plan - CNN

Sarah Palin's new book, "America by Heart," is released A promotional book tour will take her through key states in 2012 racePalin's book takes aim at Obama and liberal Democrats' policiesBook offers personal perspective, but no detailed policies or proposals

(CNN) -- Sarah Palin has yet to formally declare she will run for president, but the book released Tuesday titled "America By Heart" is as clear a statement of intention as there could be.

Palin's 11-day, 13-state tour to promote the book begins Tuesday, and will take her through states that have early presidential caucuses and primaries, including Iowa and South Carolina.

A personal screed that lays out the former Alaska governor's values, faith and political views, the roughly 300-page book is a blueprint for the conservative battle plan against President Barack Obama's re-election in 2012.

Chapters with titles such as "America the Exceptional" and "Raising (small-r) Republicans" argues that Obama and liberal Democrats are threatening the freedom of individuals at home while harming America's standing in the world.

"If Democrats are driving the country toward socialism at a hundred miles per hour, while the Republicans are driving at only fifty, commonsense constitutional conservatives want to turn the car around," Palin wrote in the book's conclusion, titled "Commonsense Constitutional Conservatism."

"We want to get back to the basics that have made this country great -- the fundamental values of family, faith, and flag that I have talked about in this book," she continued.

The book attacks policies and legislation championed by Obama and congressional Democrats, such as the health care reform bill, energy reform proposals and the economic stimulus bill, while lamenting all things labeled liberal or progressive.

It offers no detailed policies or proposals and instead provides the personal perspective of the GOP vice presidential candidate in 2008 on religion, patriotism, family and what ails America.

Palin's main target is Obama, her likely adversary in 2012 if she runs for president and wins the Republican nomination.

Since her emergence on the national scene as the GOP vice presidential nominee in 2008, Palin has been arguably the country's most polarizing political figure. A recent CNN/Opinion Research Corporation found 49 percent of Americans have an unfavorable view of her. But that poll also found that nearly three-quarters of Republican voters view her favorably.

The book tour also comes on the heels of another Palin foray into the public consciousness: "Sarah Palin's Alaska," a reality TV show that follows the adventures of the former governor and her family in their home state, debuted November 14 on TLC.

The program, which showcases her as a rugged outdoorswoman, is not aimed at political junkies, but the scheduling is timely. It wraps up in mid-January when some potential GOP candidates will be deciding whether to run for president.

In her book, Palin levels blame at both major parties for what she calls "overspending and government growth that is robbing our children of their future," as well as a "Washington culture of entitlement" that has brought a "corrupt mind-set" to Congress.

In the end, though, she argues that the blame rests with Obama and his liberal allies.

"No wonder millions of Americans are up in arms (figuratively, of course), demanding relief from the 'change' Barack Obama and the left have thrust upon them against their will," Palin wrote.

"We have a president, perhaps for the first time since the founding of our republic, who expresses his belief that America is not the greatest earthly force for good the world has ever known," her book said. "Now I know that sounds a little overblown to many educated liberals, a little jingoistic. But so many of us do believe America is an exceptional force for good."

Palin criticizes Obama on both foreign and domestic policy, accusing the president of making an "apology tour" to foreign capitals for America's success in the world.

At home, she wrote, "this president's rejection of American exceptionalism has translated into a stark lack of faith in the American people."

"There's no other way to describe a governing philosophy that won't trust individual Americans to control their own health care, plan for their own retirement, or even spend their own money," Palin wrote.

On personal issues, Palin touches on the pregnancy of her unmarried, teenage daughter, Bristol, and subsequent birth of Bristol's son by boyfriend Levi Johnston. Her account never mentions Johnston by name, referring instead to the "new father" or "Tripp's father," but shows the continuing strain of a public rift with him.

"It was disgusting to watch as his fifteen minutes of fame were exploited by supposed adults taking advantage of a lost kid," Palin wrote, later adding: "Along with our sorrow, of course, was some justifiable anger as well. The lies told about our family on national television were outrageous."

CNN's Jillian Harding, Adam Aigner-Treworgy and Jim Acosta contributed to this report.

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Doctors question TSA's use of pat downs, body scans - CNN

A traveler undergoes a pat down at Denver's main airport. Doctors say they hope the TSA takes into account medical conditions.TSA says pat downs, full-body scans are necessary to prevent weapons from getting on planesTSA trying to balance safety concerns and travelers' right to privacyDoctors say extra scrutiny raises concerns for cancer patients, elderly, childrenThe process is evolving, and concerns are being taken into account, White House says

(CNN) -- Thomas Sawyer, a cancer survivor, has worn a urostomy bag for the past three years. Yet, he says, little could have prepared him for his recent airport pat down, when an officer broke the bag's seal and urine spilled out "onto my shirt and down my pants."

"I'm a good American. I know why we're doing this, and I understand it," Sawyer told CNN. "But this was extremely embarrassing, and it didn't have to happen. With educated TSA workers, it wouldn't have happened."

With the height of Thanksgiving holiday travel the next two days, the Transportation Security Administration is trying to strike a delicate balance between ensuring the safety of the traveling public and not invading people's privacy rights.

But the screening raises an array of questions from health-care professionals:

• Are TSA officers trained to deal with patients like Sawyer who may have medical conditions?

• What about the elderly and others with hip replacements and similar ailments?

• Will cancer patients have to take off wigs?

• How is the TSA dealing with pat downs of children?

• What about people with mental illness?

The TSA says it has taken all of these concerns into account -- that children are not to be separated from their parents if pat downs are deemed necessary and that travelers with medical conditions should be treated with "the dignity, respect and courtesy they deserve."

Watch: Cancer survivor accepts TSA apology

"Our program covers all categories of disabilities -- mobility, hearing, visual and hidden," the TSA says on its website. "As part of that program, we established a coalition of over 70 disability-related groups and organizations to help us understand the concerns of persons with disabilities and medical conditions."

Jonathan Bricker, a psychologist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Washington state, says he advises anyone traveling right now to come mentally prepared for the unexpected.

"Go in with an expectation that this is going to happen, and go in with the expectation that you're going to be the one singled out to go through a pat down," Bricker says.

By doing that, people "can take more control of the situation." He says people with medical conditions should also carry notes from their doctors.

If a tense situation does arise while being screened, passengers should think about the big picture, he says. "There is a larger purpose to this trip that has nothing to do with the TSA and nothing to do with the government. And the purpose is: You're visiting people you love."

The TSA has said the ramped-up use of pat downs and full-body scanning is necessary to prevent weapons and explosives from getting aboard planes.

The White House on Monday said the process is evolving and that the government is taking into account the public's concerns. "The evolution of the security will be done with the input of those who go through the security," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said.

Recent polls have shown most Americans support the measures, and a periphery glance at airports nationwide shows that the vast majority of travelers are dealing well with the extra scrutiny, even if it makes them uneasy at times.

Dr. Gina Villani, the head of oncology at The Brooklyn Hospital Center, says the extra scrutiny raises concerns for cancer patients, who could have metallic dishes for chemo placed under their skin, external catheters or other necessary medical devices on their bodies.

"You can imagine during a pat down, you're feeling this piece of metal under somebody's skin. If you don't know what it is, then it's going to create a lot of problems for people," she said.

Doctors must be more aware of when their patients are traveling and write notes explaining their conditions, she says. Most of the time, though, "patients only think about it after they've had a terrible experience."

A doctor's note also carries a demoralizing stigma. "You want to go on vacation and forget you have cancer," Villani says. "It's just one more reminder of how different you are from the rest of the population."

Another area of concern is the pat down of children. Craig Fabrikant, a psychologist at Hackensack University Medical Center, has simple advice for the TSA: Have officers trained to deal with children on shift at all times, and always have the parent or guardian undergo a pat down first, in front of the child.

"Why not let the child see the parent go through it, that it's no big deal, that it's fine," Fabrikant says.

He says it's simple and practical advice, but he's doubtful any of it will be used. After all, he says, it's big government.

"Not only does it not use common sense, it doesn't move that quickly."

To the agency's credit, TSA administrator John Pistole called Sawyer to apologize Monday after he learned of the incident. The two had a cordial conversation, and Sawyer even shared some advice.

"He asked me what I thought," Sawyer said. "So I talked to him -- that I really don't believe that they've been trained as well as [they could] to handle medical conditions."

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World condemns deadly N. Korean artillery attack - CNN International

S. Korean President Lee Myung-bak -- pictured talking at the Seoul G-20 summit -- said the provocation was like an invasion.South Korea threatens to punish North Korea "through action," not wordsThe United States calls the shelling "belligerent action"Japan, Indonesia, Russia and China also criticize the shelling

(CNN) -- Nations reacted swiftly Tuesday in condemning a North Korean artillery attack that South Korea said killed two marines and wounded 15 soldiers and civilians.

The strongest reaction came from South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, who ordered his military to punish North Korea "through action," not just words, the official Yonhap news agency said.

"The provocation this time can be regarded as an invasion of South Korean territory," Lee said during a visit to the headquarters of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in central Seoul. "In particular, indiscriminate attacks on civilians are a grave matter."

The United States also offered quick comment, with the White House saying it "strongly condemns" the "belligerent action" by North Korea.

Pentagon spokesman Col. Dave Lapan said Defense Secretary Robert Gates was scheduled to speak with his South Korean counterpart Tuesday morning.

"Obviously we're in close contact with U.S. forces, Korea and our allies there in monitoring the situation," Lapan said.

U.S. forces in the area have taken no additional measures, he said.

"Right now it is too soon," Lapan said, adding, "At this point it is premature to say we are considering any action on this.

"Any incidents like this we view with concern. They certainly increase tensions on the (Korean) Peninsula."

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan's Cabinet is to meet Tuesday night to discuss the regional situation.

"The artillery attack carried out by North Korea today was unpardonable and the Japanese government strongly condemns North Korea," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku said in a statement.

"This provocation by North Korea compromises the peace and security of not only South Korea, but also the entire region of North East Asia, including Japan," the official said. "Japan demands North Korea to stop such action immediately. Based on prime minister's orders, Japan will take appropriate measures in close coordination with [the] U.S. and South Korea, as well as other related countries."

Indonesian Foreign Minister R.M. Marty M. Natalegawa also expressed his nation's "deep concern."

"Indonesia calls on both sides to immediately cease hostilities, exercise maximum restraint and avoid further escalation of tension," Natalegawa said.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said China had taken note and expressed its concern.

"Relevant facts need to be verified and we hope both parties make more contributions to the stability of the peninsula," he said.

Russia's Interfax news agency said Russia condemned North Korea's artillery shelling, pointing out that "those who initiated the attack on a South Korean island in the northern part of the inter-Korean maritime border line assumed enormous responsibility."

CNN's Charley Keyes contributed to this report.

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Jawbone did not belong to Natalee Holloway: Aruban officials - New York Daily News

A jawbone suspected to belong to Natalee Holloway does not belong to the missing Alabama teen, officials say.

The jawbone discovered on a beach in the Caribbean did not belong to Natalee Holloway, officials said on Tuesday.

The Aruban prosecutor's office examined the remains, which experts believe belonged to a young woman, but revealed that an analysis of dental records concluded the bone is not from the missing Alabama teen.

"It could be excluded that the investigated bone material and molar came from Natalee Holloway," prosecutors said, and the true identity of the person whose jawbone it is remains unknown.

Holloway's family had submitted the dental records over the weekend after speculation the human remains could be from their daughter.

The bone, which included one intact molar, was found by tourists on Nov. 12.

Speculation about 18-year-old Holloway's fate has been fueled by false starts and dead ends since she vanished in 2005.

Dutch poker-playing playboy Joran Van der Sloot has long been considered a suspect in her disappearance, but has never been charged. He is now in a Peruvian prison for allegedly killing a young woman in Lima.

With News Wire Services

msheridan@nydailynews.com; or follow him at Twitter.com/NYDNSheridan

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