
US secretary of state to visit China quake area
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plans to visit the earthquake-devastated region of China at the end of a round-the-world trip next week.
State Department spokesman Tom Casey on Thursday said that the secretary will meet with Chinese government officials and representatives of aid organisations in the quake-damaged city of Chengdu en route to Beijing on June 29.
She will be the highest-ranking American to inspect damage from the May 12 earthquake that ravaged mountainous Sichuan province and killed almost 70,000 people.
The Beijing visit will be Rice's last stop on a June 23-30 tour that will take her to Germany, Japan and South Korea earlier.
In Berlin, the State Department said, Rice will attend an international conference to support Palestinian security and rule of law. She also will meet there with German and European officials.
From there, Rice flies to Kyoto, Japan, for a ministerial meeting of the Group of Eight industrial nations for discussions on health, disease prevention and open markets. The G-8 summit will be at Lake Toya, Japan.
Separately, Rice also will join her counterparts from Japan and Australia for a discussion of global issues and cooperation in East and South Asia and the Middle East, the State Department said.
In Seoul on June 28-29, Rice will consult with Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan and other Korea officials. The department said discussions will include economic issues, coordination of the six-party anti-nuclear talks with North Korea, alliance issues and regional cooperation.

Jailed Navalny calls on supporters to protest after court jails him for 30 days

US lawmakers aim to curtail face recognition as technology IDs Capitol attackers

Trump orders assessment of security risks of China made drones in US govt fleet

Russia ignores appeals, sends Alexei Navalny to prison

Xi Jinping, PM Modi expected for 'virtual' Davos in era of pandemic

Biden names Rohit Chopra as director of consumer protection bureau

Pak EC suspends membership of 154 lawmakers over failure to submit asset details

FBI probes tip that woman stole laptop from Pelosi’s office to sell to Russia

Pandemic response probe team says WHO, China could have acted faster
- The panel also criticised WHO for dragging its feet at the start of the crisis, pointing out that the UN health agency had not convened its emergency committee until January 22, 2020.

China calls Pompeo 'Mr. Liar'; dismisses charge against Wuhan’s bio-lab

US Capitol lockdown lifted after fire in homeless camp brought under control
- The Capitol Police in a statement said the lockdown was lifted and the fire nearby was contained.

Donald Trump to issue 100 pardons, to leave for Florida before inauguration

Pak PM Imran pitches for border markets with Afghanistan, Iran

Biden aims for unifying speech at daunting moment for US
