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/ 11 February 2008

East Timor president ‘out of danger’

East Timor President Jose Ramos-Horta is "out of danger" and "recovering" following treatment in Australia after being shot in the stomach by rebels, the speaker of the country’s Parliament said on Monday. "According to the information we have, the president has been operated on and the bullet that was in his lung has been removed," Fernando de Araujo said.

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/ 8 December 2007

EU, African leaders seek new era

Leaders of Europe and Africa opened a landmark summit on Saturday designed to forge a new partnership of equals, but with strains showing over trade and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe’s presence. ”We are here … to write a new page in the history of Europe and Africa,” Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates said in an inaugural address.

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/ 25 November 2007

Mozambique takes control of Cahora Bassa

Mozambique will finally take control this week of the biggest dam in sub-Saharan Africa, which had remained in Portuguese hands for more than three decades after the former colonial power’s departure. ”We are finally going to be able to use the dam to satisfy the energy needs of our country,” said President Armando Guebuza.

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/ 19 October 2007

Relief as EU leaders strike treaty deal

European Union leaders voiced relief at clinching a deal on Friday on a treaty to reform the 27-nation bloc’s institutions, replacing a defunct constitution and ending a two-year crisis of confidence in Europe’s future. ”It’s an important page in the history of Europe,” Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates said on arriving to chair the second day of an EU summit.

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/ 23 September 2007

‘Tall and black’ vs ‘white and colonial’

”Mugabe stands very tall and black,” boasted Herald columnist Nathaniel Manheru in Zimbabwe on Saturday. ”Brown stands white and colonial.” It was a reminder of the intensity of the diplomatic row that has erupted over British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s decision to boycott a Europe-Africa summit if Mugabe shows up.

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/ 21 September 2007

Gordon Brown or Robert Mugabe?

Gordon Brown or Robert Mugabe? One won’t go to a summit between Europe and Africa in December, but the Portuguese hosts say the potential rewards of closer ties between the two continents outweigh the antagonism between the leaders of Britain and Zimbabwe.