U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the U.S. is planning to consult with its partners on how to send a strong message to Iran.

The comments come in response to the alleged assassination attempt on the Saudi ambassador in the United States.

Clinton says any further measures may "further isolate" Iran in the international community.

The US Justice Department has charged two men in connection with a plot to kill the Saudi ambassador.

One of the two, who is not in custody, is a member of Iran's al-Quds brigade, which is a secretive arm of the Iranian military which is accused of supporting and training terrorists.

The pair are accused of trying to hire an undercover agent to assassinate Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the US using explosives.

The Iranian government is denying the allegation, saying the story is a "prefabricated scenario."

 

 

China currency bill passes U.S. Senate

The U.S. Senate has now passed its controversial legislation connected to China's currency.

The Senate bill, which is designed to press China to let its currency rise, will now be sent to the US House of Representatives.

House leaders have already expressed their dissatisfaction with the Senate bill, meaning it's not likely to become law.

The bill calls for tariffs on imports from countries which deliberately undervalue their currencies.

China has warned that the bill could seriously affect the country's currency reforms and lead to a trade war between the two economies.

 

 

U.S. Senate kills Obama's jobs plan

The U.S. Senate has defeated President Barack Obama's jobs plan.

In the procedural vote, both Republicans and some Democrats have raised objections to both stimulus spending and a tax on the rich.

The 447-billion-dollars bill will have to go back to committee to either be re-tooled or scrapped.

Obama put forward his jobs plan in September to try to tackle the near double digit unemployment and to spur the sluggish US economy.

The whole jobs package includes measures including payroll tax cuts for employers and employees, new investment in infrastructure projects, as well as a tax increase on million-dollar earners.

Republicans are strongly opposed to increasing taxes.

 

 

12 Chinese confirmed dead on Mekong River: FM spokesman

China's Foreign Ministry now says that 12 Chinese citizens are dead, and one remains missing, following last week's attack on two ships in Thailand.

The statement follows the identification of the bodies pulled from the Mekong River.

Around 50 family members of the victims are now gathered on Yunnan's border areas, waiting for permission to head to Thailand to identify the bodies.

The Chinese sailors were killed last week following an attack by suspected pirates.

 

 

China, Russia pledge to further boost bilateral ties, energy cooperation highlights

China and Russia have now reached a critical agreement on oil pricing.

The agreement has come following meetings between Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Premier Wen Jiabao here in Beijing.

At the same time, Putin says Russia and China are nearing a deal when it comes to the pricing of natural gas.

Energy pricing is one of the key issues under discussion between Putin and Chinese leaders this week in Beijing.

Putin arrived in China yesterday as part of the two country's regularly-scheduled meetings.

Putin is set to meet with President Hu Jintao later this morning.

He also has time blocked off to meet with leading Chinese lawmaker Wu Bangguo today as well.

 

 

Israeli cabinet approves prisoner swap deal

The Israeli cabinet has approved a prisoner exchange with Hamas.

With only three of the 29 members of the Israeli cabinet voting against the plan, the agreement paves the way for the eventual release of Gilad Shalit.

The Israeli soldier has been held for some five years by the Islamic Resistance Movement.

In exchange, the Israeli side will release just over a thousand Palestinian prisoners.

Around three hundred of them are believed to be high-priority prisoners, many of whom are serving life sentences for their role in attacks on Israel.

 

 

Polling in Liberia ends peacefully

Security personnel and elections officials both say that voting in Liberia has gone off very smoothly.

The polling for both the presidential and legislative elections is now over.

Voters in the West African country have voted to elect both a president and 88 lawmakers.

Incumbent President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, the first woman elected as the head of state in Africa, is up against 15 other candidates.

The results of the vote are expected in two weeks.

 

 

Grounded cargo ship captain charged in New Zealand court

The captain of the stricken cargo ship, grounded off the coast of New Zealand, has now been formally charged.

The 44-year old man from the Philippines, whose name hasn't been revealed, could face up to a year in jail if eventually convicted.

He's been remanded into custody until his next court appearance.

The charges come after the cargo ship became grounded on a reef in New Zealand's territorial waters last week.

So far about 40 tonnes of oil have leaked from the striken ship.

Around 70 cargo containers, potenitally carrying environmentally damaging materials, have also fallen into the sea.