International

• Monday, March 16th 2009 - 08:56 UTC

  OPEC: no further measures until full compliance of agreed oil cuts

  

  Oil ministers from the 12 OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) meeting in the Austrian capital Vienna over the weekend decided to keep oil production at current levels.

• Monday, March 16th 2009 - 08:49 UTC

  Medieval document questions the “good” Robin Hood legend

  

  Scottish expert has uncovered a medieval document suggesting negative attitudes towards Robin Hood. The story of how Robin and his men stole from the rich to give to the poor has long been part of English folklore.

• Sunday, March 15th 2009 - 17:47 UTC

  Chavez offers bases for Russian long-range bombers

  

  A Russian general said on Saturday Venezuela has offered the use of its La Orchila island airfield for Russian strategic bombers on long-range flights.

• Saturday, March 14th 2009 - 09:44 UTC

  US and EU split over stimulus plans and banks

  

  United Kingdom Chancellor Alistair Darling has played down talk of rifts between the US and Europe ahead of the G20 summit. Finance ministers from leading countries are gathering in London to agree the agenda for the summit of world leaders next month.

• Saturday, March 14th 2009 - 09:38 UTC

  Tax havens agree to relax bank secrecy laws

  

  British Prime Minister Gordon Brown hailed announcement that Switzerland is relaxing key bank secrecy laws as “the beginning of the end of tax havens.”

• Saturday, March 14th 2009 - 07:36 UTC

  Spanish congressional consensus for talks on Gibraltar sovereignty

  

  Intense and at times fiercely debated discussions led to Spain’s governing party the PSOE convincing the PP opposition and other parties to join in a consensus motion on Spain’s approach to the Gibraltar question, it emerged this week according to the Gibraltar Chronicle.

• Saturday, March 14th 2009 - 07:26 UTC

  Lula da Silva, Biden and PM Brown confirmed for political summit in Chile

  

  Under the logo “A Progressive response to the global crisis” Chilean president Michelle Bachelet will host next March 27 and 28 a new Progressive Leaders summit to which top international leaders from Africa, Latinamerica, United states and Europe have confirmed their participation.

• Friday, March 13th 2009 - 06:25 UTC

  OPEC consensus for another oil production cut

  

  Venezuela will insist at this week end’s meeting in Vienna of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, that the cartel needs to impose more production cuts, an influential lawmaker said in Caracas.

• Friday, March 13th 2009 - 06:23 UTC

  Surging global population adds to water crisis warns UN

  

  The surging growth in global population, climate change, widespread mismanagement and increasing demand for energy have tightened the grip on the world’s evaporating water supplies, warned a new United Nations report released today.

• Friday, March 13th 2009 - 05:41 UTC

  Prince Charles tells Brazilian hosts: A hundred months to save the planet

  

  Britain's Prince Charles currently in Brazil on a South American tour warned on Thursday that mankind has 100 months or less to save the planet from a climate-caused disaster.