Foreign Ministry
latest news & developmentsChina ‘quake lake’ fears force new evacuation
China has evacuated more than 150 000 people living below a swollen lake formed by this month’s devastating earthquake amid fears it could burst and trigger massive flooding,…
SA’s stature battered by migrant killings
South Africa’s aspirations to lead the continent are being shredded by the xenophobic mobs who have hacked, shot and beaten to death at least 42 African migrants in the land…
UN chief presses case in Burma for more aid
United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon flew to Burma on Thursday to press the ruling generals to allow a full-blown international aid effort for 2,4-million people left destitute by…
China to probe builders after collapses in quake
China vowed on Wednesday to deal severely with anyone found responsible for shoddy state building work, as parents demanded to know why last week’s quake destroyed so many…
China denies weapons shipped to Zimbabwe
China on Wednesday denied that a Chinese ship carrying arms to Zimbabwe had managed to get its cargo to the landlocked African nation, saying the ship and the weapons were on…
China mourns earthquake victims
From tent cities in stricken Sichuan province to Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, sirens wailed and millions of Chinese stood for three minutes on Monday to mourn tens of thousands…
Dalai Lama attacks China at start of Western tour
The Dalai Lama accused China of ”suppression” and demanded autonomy for Tibet as he arrived Thursday in Germany to start a Western tour ahead of the Beijing Olympics. ”The…
China quake death toll rises to at least 20 000
The death toll from China’s massive earthquake rose to at least 20 000 on Thursday as rescuers struggled to help survivors and hopes faded for a further 25 000 buried under…
SADC: Zim not yet ready for fair vote
Conditions are neither safe nor fair yet for a run-off election in Zimbabwe in which the opposition hopes to unseat President Robert Mugabe, the Southern African Development…
China’s Olympic year of celebration turns to tragedy
A devastating earthquake is the latest in a series of disasters and controversies that have turned what China had hoped would be an Olympic year of celebration into one of…
Add Darfur rebels to terror list, Sudan urges world
Sudan on Wednesday urged the international community to list the Darfur rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) as a terrorist group, after its lightning weekend assault on the…
UN agency suspends Burma flights after seizure
The United Nations food agency suspended aid flights to cyclone-struck Burma on Friday after the military government seized two deliveries at Rangoon airport, apparently…
Burma says no need for foreign aid distribution
Burma will accept foreign aid but distribute relief itself, an official newspaper said on Friday, after a disaster rescue team from Qatar that arrived in Rangoon on an aid flight…
French diplomats lament tarnished image in Africa
France needs to improve its tarnished image across Africa where it was once a powerful colonial power but now competes with countries like China for influence, according to a…
Dalai Lama welcomes Chinese offer for talks
The Dalai Lama on Friday welcomed China’s offer to meet his envoy for talks after weeks of protests over Tibet and repeated calls from the exiled spiritual leader for dialogue…