Report says S. Korean scientist Hwang used false data in 2004 paper
January 9, 2006A report issued Tuesday by a Seoul National University panel said disgraced South Korean scientist Hwang Woo Suk used false data in his 2004 Science paper, and that no genuine embryonic stem cell existed to support the research. However, Hwang's 2005 claim to have created the world's first cloned dog is genuine, the report said. ==Kyodo
N. Korea repeats call for U.S. to lift financial sanctions
January 9, 2006North Korea on Monday once again urged the United States to lift financial sanctions linked to the North's alleged illegal activities, calling them ''an obstacle'' for the six-party nuclear talks, according to the North's official media. ''The U.S. should lift the sanctions, an obstacle to the six-party talks, and come out for the talks, if it is truly interested in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and hopes for the progress of the talks,'' the Korean Central News Agency quoted a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying.
Chinese press ducking coverage of Japanese military budget
January 9, 2006The Chinese news media have declined to report the details of Japan's military spending despite an eight-month long information drive by the Japanese Embassy, an embassy official said Monday. Since May, 10 Chinese newspaper and magazine journalists have received copies of an 18-page, Chinese-language summary of Japan's military spending and attended briefings on the differences between Japan's and China's military spending, embassy spokesman Keiji Ide said.
Japan seeks more funds for China youth outreach
January 9, 2006The Japanese Foreign Ministry has requested extra funds to increase student visits and other activities to promote Japan to the skeptical youth of China, a Japanese Embassy spokesman in Beijing said Monday. In December, the ministry asked the Japanese Finance Ministry for the money as a supplementary budget item, spokesman Keiji Ide said. The Finance Ministry should decide by the end of March whether to allocate the funds.
China revises 2004 economic growth rate from 9.5% to 10.1%
January 9, 2006China said Monday it has revised the country's economic growth rate for 2004 from 9.5 percent to 10.1 percent. The new figure is based on changes to the gross domestic product estimate for 2004 announced in December, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement on its website.
Japan, China remain apart over gas row, agree on next talks
January 9, 2006Japan and China failed to bridge their differences over gas and oil exploration rights in the East China Sea on Monday, agreeing only to hold formal negotiations on the topic in late January or early February in Beijing, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said. In the one-day informal talks by their senior diplomats, the two countries also remained apart over the suicide of an official at the Japanese Consulate General in Shanghai, the latest addition to the countries' long list of problems, according to the official.