Iran nuclear talks unproductive
Officials from six world powers and Iran have ‘long and intensive discussions’ in Kazakhstan, but don’t get far on the nuclear issue, an EU official says.
By Paul Richter, Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON – The latest round of international negotiations over Iran’s disputed nuclear program concluded Saturday with no sign of progress and the future of the fitful diplomatic effort uncertain.
Officials from Iran and the six world powers had “long and intensive discussions” in the two-day session in Kazakhstan, but ended “far apart on the substance,” Catherine Ashton, the European Union foreign policy chief, said in Almaty.
The group didn’t schedule another meeting, as they usually have done in the past to show that diplomacy would continue with at least low-level conversations. Officials also said the two sides did not narrow their differences in the final minutes, as often happens.
NORTH KOREA
Diplomats stay put despite North Korean warning to leave
NORTH KOREA
Staff at foreign embassies in Pyongyang appear to have decided to remain there, at least for now, after a stern warning from North Korea. Pyongyang says it cannot guarantee the safety of diplomats if a war breaks out.
Specifically, the North Korean authorities told foreign embassies that they could only vouch for their safety until this coming Wednesday, amid speculation that the country was preparing to carry out a missile test.
On Saturday, though, diplomats from a number of European countries with embassies in Pyongyang said they had no immediate plans to evacuate staff.
Long road ahead for CAR’s shaky leadership
Without a Nelson Mandela of its own, expectations in the Central African Republic of the new crew in power, under Michel Djotodia, are low.
06 APR 2013 13:38 – DAVID L SMITH
Presidents of the Central African Republic (CAR) have a bad track record. Perhaps Emperor Jean-Bedel Bokassa only appeared to be the worst because of the amount of media attention he received.
People in the streets of Bangui hesitate to pronounce on whether they believe “self-proclaimed president Michel Djotodia” – as most people refer to him – will be any better than exiled and ousted president François Bozizé. A common sentiment is that their “troubles” are not over.
Are Sharia councils failing vulnerable women?
By Jane Corbin
BBC PanoramaBBC Panorama has uncovered fresh evidence of how some Sharia councils in Britain may be putting Muslim women “at risk” by pressuring them to stay in abusive marriages.
In a small terraced house in east London, a woman and her husband argue before an Islamic scholar who sits on a dais above them in a room that looks and feels like a court.
This is Leyton Islamic Sharia Council, and Dr Suhaib Hasan will decide if the woman can have a divorce. Her husband is refusing to grant her one and the couple have been coming here for a year.
Venezuela’s interim President Maduro addresses a topic Chávez largely avoided – crime
Chávez increasingly engaged in citizen security initiatives starting in the mid-2000s. But he often skirted discussing crime, an issue that plagues Venezuela.
By Rebecca Hanson, WOLA
Differentiating his campaign from those of his predecessor, Nicolás Maduro has made crime and violence in the country a major talking point so far. Roberto Briceño and others have suggested that the Interim President, unable to hide behind a charismatic personality, has been forced to take on the issue in a way that his predecessor was not. However, these comments are not totally accurate, in that the Hugo Chávez administration, since the mid-2000s, was increasingly engaged in citizen security initiatives, especially in lower-class areas of Caracas.
Hollywood’s China syndrome: Plots and characters changed to suit huge new audience
Asian giant is now the second-biggest box-office market – so producers are altering movies to make them more appealing to film-goers there
TIM WALKER SUNDAY 07 APRIL 2013
It’s a very far cry from the days of Charlie Chan movies. Hollywood is now in full, panting pursuit of the Chinese film market, the world’s second largest, and it’s prepared to alter scripts, recast baddies, and transplant entire productions to win the business.
Paramount Pictures signed the latest in a lengthening list of deals between the American and Chinese film industries last week. In order to produce the fourth instalment of its blockbuster Transformers franchise, the Hollywood studio is buddying up with two Beijing-based businesses, one of which, China Movie Channel, is owned and operated by the Chinese State Radio, Film and Television Administration. As part of the agreement, laid out in a press release, the Chinese firms will assist with “selection of filming sites within China, theatrical promotion and possible post-production activities in China, as well as casting of Chinese actors and actresses”.
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