Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi says China will step up cooepration with African countries in safeguarding regional security.

Wang Yi made the remark in Djibouti, on the second leg of his African tour.

The top Chinese diplomat says since 2008, China has dispatched 16 batches of naval forces to the region to strenthen marine safety.

He says China has become an active partner in promoting security in African, and will contribute more in the future.

 

Antarctic ships escape from ice trap

Chinese icebreaker Xuelong has managed to sheer through the Antarctic pack ice.

The ship has been trapped in Antarctic waters after moving in to help rescue over 50-people trapped on a Russian ship.

Meanwhile, the Russian ship, Akademik Shokalskiy, has also broken free from Antarctic ice where it had been stranded since Christmas Eve.

On Thursday, the Xue Long's helicopter ferried 52 passengers from the stranded Russian ship to an Australian vessel.

The Xue Long then became stuck itself on Friday.

 

Syrian chemical weapons transfer initiated

The first batch of chemical weapon materials has been shipped out from Syria.

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons confirms a Danish vessel loaded with the first batch of chemical weapon material is to transfer them to locations outside its territory for destruction.

The vessel has now left the port of Lattakia for international waters. 

It is escorted by naval forces from the China, Denmark, Norway and Russia.

The chemical weapons will be taken to a port in Italy where they will be loaded onto a U.S.-owned cargo ship to be destroyed in international waters.

 

South Sudan government rejects rebel calls for detainees release

South Sudan's government has rejected rebel calls for an immediate release of detainees after the two sides began talks in Ethiopia.

Some members of the South Sudanese government delegation have returned to the capital Juba for consultations with President Salva Kiir.

At least 1 thousand people in the war-torn country have been killed and an estimated 200-thousand others have fled their homes.

Over 23 thousand refugees have now entered neighboring Uganda.

 

U.S., South Korea vow to face DPRK threat

Top diplomats from the United States and South Korea have vowed to face any threat or provocation by North Korea.

US Secretary of State John Kerry has met with his South Korean counterpart Yun Byung-Se in Washington, as the Pentagon is sending more troops to South Korea.

Kerry reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to defending its ally and urged Pyongyang to denuclearize.

The Pentagon has announced it would send 800 soldiers to South Korea on Feb. 1, in support of the U.S. forces already stationed there.

 

Record freeze extends to eastern United States, at least nine dead

At least 9 deaths have been reported across the United States connected with a brutal blast of arctic air.

The polar air mass has brought dangerously low temperatures now seen in decades in the eastern North America.

Chicago saw the temperature plunge to -27C on Monday, the lowest ever seen on that date.

About half of the US population has been placed under a wind chill warning or cold weather advisory.

Air, rail and road travel remain snarled by high, freezing wind, and residents have been warned to stay indoors to avoid frostbite.

 

7 killed in fire on train in western India

At least seven people, including one woman, have been charred to death in a major fire on an express train in western India.

Police say the fire engulfed three coaches of the train while the passengers were all sleeping.

Several others have been injured and sent to a local hospital in the state of Maharashtra.

 

4 killed in UK helicopter crash

Four people were killed when a US air force helicopter crashed during a training exercise in eastern England.

The aircraft, a Pave Hawk military helicopter, came down in Cley in north Norfolk during a low-level training mission.

The U.S. Air Force has a base in the nearby town of Lakenheath in Suffolk.

 

Former New York police and firemen in 9/11 disability fraud

Dozens of former US emergency service workers have been arrested in a fraud investigation involving federal disability benefits.

New York prosecutors say 72 police officers, eight firefighters and five corrections officers are among those charged.

Some reportedly falsely claimed disabling conditions arising from the September 11 terrorist attacks.

The fraud is believed to have cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

 

China to allow full foreign ownership in telecom services in Shanghai FTZ

China is opening up some telecom and internet services to foreign ownership in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone. 

Five areas, including call centres and home internet access, will be open to full foreign ownership.

Online data and dealing analysis services will allow a foreign ownership of no more than 55 percent. 

The move is another step in opening up the country's telecom sector as China has already committed under the WTO.