3/6 International Herald Tribune - World News, Analysis, and Global Opinions

Beckham to stay at AC Milan, reports say March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am David Beckham will remain at AC Milan for the rest of the season after the Italian club reached an agreement with the Los Angeles Galaxy, British news reports said Friday. Airplane food leads to long legal battle March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am What began in 2006 as a simple question - chicken or beef? - evolved into a legal issue that landed in the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan. Wary of Republicans, but not walking away March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am President Barack Obama is right to value bipartisanship, even if he doesn't manage to win a single Republican vote - and even if he doesn't need any to enact his legislative program. Seoul warns North Korea to withdraw airline threat March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am To North Korean warnings aimed at civilian airlines flying in the region during joint U.S. and South Korea military exercises, Seoul said that the North should "immediately withdraw the military threat." Paul Krugman: The big dither March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am When it comes to dealing with banks, the Obama administration is dithering. And the result could be an economy that sputters along for a very long time. We've built these walls before, alas March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am U.S. protectionism is bad economics and even worse foreign policy. David Brooks: White House response March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am The Obama administration argues that the budget isn't some grand transformation of America. It's not the Russian Revolution. Kyrgyzstan vote denies U.S.-led coalition use of base March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am Kyrgyz lawmakers voted overwhelmingly Friday to suspend an agreement on the use of an air base on its territory by U.S.-led coalition forces fighting in Afghanistan. In south Korea, drinks are on the maple tree March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am For centuries, southern Korean villagers have been drinking the sap of the gorosoe, or "tree good for the bones." Earlier date suggested for horse domestication March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am Bones and artifacts indicate a date of around 3500 BC, a millennium earlier than previously thought. Truce in Pakistan may just mean leeway for Taliban March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am An accord between militants and the Pakistani Army seems to have allowed the Taliban free rein in Swat. 651,000 U.S. jobs reported lost in February March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am The unemployment rate rose to 8.1% last month. More than 4.4 million people have now lost their jobs since the recession began in December 2007. UN panel says Sudan expulsion of aid groups is 'deplorable' March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am A UN panel said that the move, in a dispute with the International Criminal Court, represented a "grievous dereliction" of Sudan's duty to protect its own people. Stocks in Europe fluctuate March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am European stocks fluctuated Friday; higher metals prices lifted raw-material producers, but fears on the economy weighed on other stocks. Germany's leader in hot seat over GM aid request March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am Whether Angela Merkel will grant public financing to Opel, a storied German brand that GM bought 80 years ago, has become a highly politicized question. U.S. vows to reinvigorate ties with Europe March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am Receiving a jubilant welcome at a meeting at the European Parliament in Brussels, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham on Friday described Europe as the "essential partner" for the United States. Despite outcry, Gandhi items sell for $1.8 million March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am After days of controversy, Mohandas Gandhi's possessions were sold to an Indian liquor and airline magnate. As new trial looms, a Russian martyr appears ready to deal March 6, 2009 at 8:16 am Shortly before his dispatch to a Siberian prison in 2005, Mikhail Khodorkovsky seemed willing to take on a martyr's mantle for political freedom in Russia. With his business empire destroyed and his vast fortune gone, he vowed to continue his fight against then-President Vladimir Putin from his prison cell. Police pledge results 'soon' in cricket attack investigation March 6, 2009 at 7:04 am Pakistan said it was making progress in the investigation of the attack this week on Sri Lanka's cricket team, as suspicion settled on home-grown militants. Asian markets follow Wall Street lower March 6, 2009 at 3:12 am Major markets across Asia were lower on Friday as traders remained unable to identify "any green shoots of recovery." Quiet layoffs sting workers without notice March 5, 2009 at 10:54 pm Labor experts say the U.S. government law requiring warning of certain kinds of layoffs should be overhauled to cover smaller job cuts. Downturn humbling blue-chip stocks, once Dow's pride March 5, 2009 at 9:35 pm Once considered safe investments, household names like GE and GM are trading for pocket change. Gandhi belongings sell for $1.8 million over protests March 5, 2009 at 4:32 pm After intense protests from the Indian government and press, Mohandas Gandhi's eyeglasses and some other belongings were sold Thursday afternoon for $1.8 million after last-minute attempts to halt the auction of the items. Grisly death in U.S. becomes an international mystery March 5, 2009 at 4:32 pm In a city known for its love of noirish stories and international visitors, the case of Hugues de la Plaza stands as a baffling collision of the two. 5 officers killed by bomb in Ingushetia March 5, 2009 at 4:32 pm Several others were wounded when the police officers were trying to defuse the device in the restive region near Chechnya, according to investigators. Afghan summit could bring U.S. and Iran to table March 5, 2009 at 4:32 pm The U.S. has proposed to include Iran in a conference on Afghanistan, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said at a meeting, marked by NATO's resumption of high-level ties with Russia. Sudan leader defies arrest order on war crimes charges March 5, 2009 at 1:58 pm One day after judges at the International Criminal Court ordered his arrest, President Omar Hassan al-Bashir of Sudan told a crowd of thousands in his country that "we are not succumbing." Beijing moves to deepen ties to Taiwan March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Prime Minister Wen Jiabao of China called again Thursday for closer political and economic relations with Taiwan, but he offered few specifics on resolving the two sides' differences. Carbon neutral on a shoestring March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm An eco-conscious restoration in Barcelona, a city that has long prized the new and glossy, amounts to a countercultural effort. Jeff Jacoby: One hand giveth March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Once you've jettisoned the 'old morality,' good and evil are just a matter of opinion. No crime more brutal March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Women weave the fabric of our societies. Violence against them is an attack on all of us. Nicholas D. Kristof: Wanted president March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Omar Hassan al-Bashir's of Sudan is now testing the international community. China promises spending, but it might not be new March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm In a speech to the legislature, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao did not explicitly announce any new stimulus spending beyond what was committed in November. Footprints of pied noirs reach deep into France March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm In the courtyard of an ancient convent here, the Wall of the Disappeared lists the names of about 2,700 "pieds noirs" - black feet, as the white French colonists in Algeria were called. Britain re-establishes ties with Hezbollah March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Britain is re-establishing contact with the political wing of the militant group Hezbollah following the formation of a unity government in Lebanon, the British government said Thursday. Squeezed by oil drop, Iraq budget is passed March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm The Iraqi Parliament passed a $58.6 billion budget Thursday after agreeing to sharp cuts amid falling oil prices. Obama vows to end health care stalemate March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm The president said that "special interests" and "industry lobbying" had blocked improvements in the U.S. health care system for decades, but he vowed to end the stalemate this year. U.S. proposes including Iran in conference on Afghanistan March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made the proposal at a NATO meeting in Brussels, where foreign ministers also agreed to resume high-level relations with Russia. Horse domestication dates to 3500 B.C., scientists say March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Archaeologists say a pastoral people on the Kazakh steppes appear to have been the first to domesticate, bridle and perhaps ride horses. GM raises further doubt over its survival March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm General Motors, which has borrowed $13.4 billion from the U.S. government and is seeking billions more, acknowledged in its annual report that its survival was in "substantial doubt." The (very) scripted president March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Presidents have been using teleprompters for more than half a century, but none relied on them as extensively as Barack Obama has so far. Bank of England and ECB cut interest rates to record lows March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm The British central bank announced steps to pump cash into the economy by buying assets. Ukraine averts new shutoff of Russian gas March 5, 2009 at 1:43 pm Ukraine's energy company paid its February bill for Russian gas in full, hours after Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned that Russia would halt supplies if payment was not made by Saturday. Russia developing anti-satellite weapons, official says March 5, 2009 at 9:40 am A deputy defense minister, General Valentin Popovkin, said Russia continued to oppose an arms race in space but would respond to moves made by other countries, according to Russian news reports. Wall St. follows European shares lower March 5, 2009 at 9:24 am U.S. stocks fell as retailers reported another round of disappointing sales, and General Motors raised new questions about its viability. Australia extends ban on short-selling of financial stocks March 5, 2009 at 8:19 am The extension, until May 31, comes after regulators in the United States and Britain concluded that such bans only made matters worse. <b>Breakingviews.com</b>: China to hold stimulus line March 5, 2009 at 8:12 am China does not need to supersize its stimulus - even if many people had hoped it would. Stress already taking toll on Obama - just ask his barber March 5, 2009 at 8:10 am It happens to them all, of course. But less than two months into his administration, President Barack Obama is going gray. China bankruptcies create cracks in global supply chain March 5, 2009 at 8:04 am China's hopes for a speedy export recovery from the global crisis could be undermined by the weakest links in its powerful supply chain - smaller firms too damaged by the downturn and credit crisis to get goods to market. Ford announces plan to cut $10.4 billion in debt March 5, 2009 at 7:54 am The automaker said it would give cash and stock to debt holders as part of a revamping of its balance sheet.