介绍:
Agenda set for China's legislative session
China to raise 2016 defense budget by 7-8 pct: spokesperson
Proposed bill not to restrict overseas NGOs in China: spokeswoman
Coal-rich Chinese province eyes shale gas exploitation
S. Korea, U.S. launch formal talks on deploying THAAD
Officials start evacuation for scuttled Indonesian vessel off Bali strait
2 policemen killed, 14 injured in PKK attack in SE Turkey
Turkey, Iran seek to mend ties through high-level visit
China's national legislators have elected a presidium and set the agenda for the legislature's annual session.
The session opens on Saturday and lasts 12 days.
Topping this year's schedule is the review of the draft of the 13th five-year national development plan.
It will mark priorities of China's economic and social development from 2016 to 2020.
Lawmakers will also examine the draft charity law, the first law to regulate charity activities in China.
In addition, there will be six regular reports to be submitted to the legislators, including the government work report to be delivered by Premier Li Keqiang at Saturday's opening meeting.
A spokesperson for China's top legislature has revealed what could be the country's smallest military budget increase in six years, as China feels the chill of rising economic headwinds.
Fu Ying was speaking at a press conference on the eve of the annual session of the National People's Congress.
"China's defense budget will maintain growth this year. However, the growth rate will be lower than previous years, and is expected to be between 7 percent and 8 percent. "
The exact figure will be released in a budget report during the upcoming session.
China's defense budget rose by 10.1 percent last year.
A growth rate within the range that Fu mentioned may be even lower than the number in 2010, when the figure stood at 7.5 percent.
A spokesperson for China's top legislature says a new bill to regulate overseas non-governmental organizations aims not at restricting them but with providing a better legal environment.
Fu Ying says the bill is still being amended, noting that lawmakers have extensively solicited opinions and suggestions from within and outside China.
Statistics show there are more than 7,000 overseas NGOs operating in China, mainly in sectors such as the environment, science, education and culture.
Authorities in Shanxi province are considering mass exploitation of shale gas reserves as China's biggest coal producing region looks to tackle its high pollution issue.
Geologists have estimated shale gas reserves of over 4.4 trillion cubic meters in the northern province.
Officials say further studies will be carried out to select sites for commercial exploration of the new energy source.
China has an estimated 26 trillion cubic meters of shale gas reserves, the largest in the world.
Known as the "sea of coal," Shanxi has produced more than 14 billion tonnes of coal over the past six decades, a quarter of the country's total output.
South Korea and the United States have officially launched a joint working group to discuss the possible deployment of an advanced anti-ballistic missile shield in the Northeast Asian country.
The two sides say the THAAD system will help defend against increasing security threats from North Korea.
The joint group is discussing the military effectiveness of the system should it be deployed, the appropriate sites for deployment, a timeline, as well as other issues including cost-sharing, safety and environmental impact.
China and Russia have both said the deployment threatens regional security and stability.
A rescue effort has saved at least 48 passengers after a boat used for ferrying passengers and heavy equipment sank in Indonesia between Bali and Java islands on Friday afternoon.
However, officials say at least 32 people have drowned.
The vessel left port from the island of Bali just before 1 o'clock in the afternoon and sank in Bali Strait about 15 minutes later.
The cause of the sinking has not been determined.
Turkish media say a car bomb in southeastern Turkey has killed two police officers and wounded 14 people including police and civilians.
Reports say the attack targeted a traffic police station as well as police lodgings in the town of Nusaybin, which borders Syria.
Turkey's security forces are battling Kurdish militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, in the town.
Southeast Turkey has seen its worst violence in two decades since a cease-fire between the government and the PKK collapsed in July 2015.
The prime minister of Turkey is scheduled to visit Iran as the two countries make an effort to promote ties and reduce conflict over policy differences related to Syria and Iraq.
Ahmet Davutoglu begins the two-day visit on Friday, just days before a new round of peace talks on Syria called by UN Syrian Envoy Staffan di Mistura.
Turkey has been supporting rebel forces in Syria and does not recognize the legitimacy of the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
Iran, along with Russia, has been backing Assad and supporting Syrian government forces against rebels and terror groups like the Islamic State.
Davutoglu's visit to Iran also aims to help Turkey tap into the Iranian market as sanctions against Tehran are lifted following the nuclear deal signed last year.
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