
Russia has announced plans to set up a military force to protect its interests in the Arctic. In a document published on its national security council's website, Moscow says it expects the Arctic to become its main resource base by 2020.

Thousands of people are preparing to take part in a huge march for jobs, justice and climate ahead of a week of protests in London to mark the G20 summit amid anger at the £19 million cost of staging the conference.

Britain’s Home Secretary has agreed to announce a new policy on the right of Ghurkhas to settle in Britain within three weeks, the High Court was told. The news came as the Ghurkhas returned to court to enforce a legal victory they won at the Royal Courts of Justice in London last September.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Brazilian President Lula da Silva agreed to call on G-20 to provide 100 billion US dollars in trade credit, a quick completion of global trade talks and for countries breaking free-trade agreement to be named.

A controversial geo-engineering experiment that Greenpeace campaigned against has concluded, and researchers say their findings deal a major blow to the geo-engineering technique known as ocean fertilization.

Japanese Finance Ministry officials said the nation's exports saw a nearly 50% decline in February from the previous year, the country's sharpest slide in more than two decades.

Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, has cautioned against further significant government spending to stimulate the economy. Given the high levels of UK debt as a result of recent stimulus packages, Mr King questioned the wisdom of increasing debt by spending more.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said on Wednesday a discussion over China’s call for a new world currency is “absolutely legitimate” and is likely to take place in the coming months.

United Kingdom Prime Minister Gordon Brown has urged world leaders at next week's G20 summit to take action to reform the global banking system. The London summit must ensure strong growth and recovery, and particularly jobs in the world economy, he said.

An article in the latest edition of the UK national daily ‘The Guardian’ describes Gibraltar as “a miraculous survivor in these days of international financial turmoil and sweeping recession, thanks to a sinking pound and an economy that grows at a rate comparable to that of China.”