State broadcaster CCTV made no mention of the failed April 13 launch in its report on Hu’s meeting Monday with Workers’ Party international relations chief Kim Yong Il at the Great Hall of the People in the heart of Beijing.

Hu sent his congratulations to North Korea’s young new leader Kim Jong Un on his assuming the title of Workers’ Party first secretary and said strengthening ties with North Korea was a key priority for China’s ruling communists.

“We will carry on this tradition … boost strategic communication and coordination on key international issues and work for peace and stability on the Korean peninsula,” CCTV quoted Hu, who also leads the Chinese Communist Party, as saying.

Kim Jong Un concurred in a statement carried late Monday by the official Korean Central News Agency. “It is the steadfast stand of our party and government to invariably develop the traditional DPRK-China friendship provided and cultivated by the leaders of elder generations of the two countries,” the statement said.

The high-profile reception for Kim’s envoy illustrates how Beijing is determined to maintain strong ties with its communist neighbor despite exasperation over its provocations against the South and Pyongyang’s refusal to embark on economic reforms that would reduce its dependency on foreign aid.

China is the North’s biggest diplomatic ally and source of economic assistance, and it has opposed new U.N. economic sanctions over Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile programs. However, Beijing has signed on to previous rounds of sanctions and did nothing to block U.N. condemnation of the launch of the Unha-3 long-range rocket that exploded shortly after liftoff.

Washington, Seoul and others called the launch a cover for testing long-range missile technology. North Korea said the launch was meant to put a satellite into orbit. The U.S. suspended food aid to North Korea after the failed launch.

Indications that North Korea is digging a tunnel in preparation for a third nuclear test pose a new threat to stable relations.

Hu’s meeting with Kim came as North Korea’s military said Monday it will launch “special actions” soon meant to wipe out conservative South Korean President Lee Myung-bak’s administration.

The army statement carried by state media said the actions would last 3 to 4 minutes and be carried out “by unprecedented peculiar means and methods of our own style.” It gave no more details.

North Korea has issued a steady stream of harsh criticism of Lee and his government. Pyongyang says Lee insulted the North’s recent celebrations of the birth centennial of national founder Kim Il Sung. New York times

The commentary in China’s Liberation Army Daily falls short of a formal government statement, but marks the harshest high-level warning yet from Beijing about tensions with the Philippines over disputed seas where both countries have recently sent ships to assert their claims.

This week American and Filipino troops launched a fortnight of annual naval drills amid the stand-off between Beijing and Manila, who have accused each other of encroaching on sovereign seas near the Scarborough Shoal, west of a former U.S. navy base at Subic Bay.

The joint exercises are held in different seas around the Philippines; the leg that takes place in the South China Sea area starts on Monday.

“Anyone with clear eyes saw long ago that behind these drills is reflected a mentality that will lead the South China Sea issue down a fork in the road towards military confrontation and resolution through armed force,” said the commentary in the Chinese paper, which is the chief mouthpiece of the People’s Liberation Army.

“Through this kind of meddling and intervention, the United States will only stir up the entire South China Sea situation towards increasing chaos, and this will inevitably have a massive impact on regional peace and stability.”

Up to now, China has chided the Philippines over the dispute about the uninhabited shoal known in the Philippines as the Panatag Shoal and which China calls Huangyan, about 124 nautical miles off the main Philippine island of Luzon.

China has territorial disputes with the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan in the South China Sea, which could be rich in oil and gas and is spanned by busy shipping lanes.

REGIONAL TENSIONS

Beijing has sought to resolve the disputes one-on-one but there is worry among its neighbours over what some see as growing Chinese assertiveness in staking claims over the seas and various islands, reefs and shoals.

In past patches of regional tension over disputed seas, hawkish Chinese military voices have also emerged, only to be later reined in by the government, and the same could be true this time.

Since late 2010, China has sought to cool tensions with the United States over regional disputes, trade and currency policies, human rights and other contentious issues. Especially with the ruling Chinese Party preoccupied with a leadership succession late in 2012, Beijing has stressed its hopes for steady relations throughout this year.

Nonetheless, experts have said that China remains wary of U.S. military intentions across the Asia-Pacific, especially in the wake of the Obama administration’s vows to “pivot” to the region, reinvigorating diplomatic and security ties with allies.

The Liberation Army Daily commentary echoed that wariness.

“The U.S. strategy of returning to the Asia-Pacific carries the implication of a shift in military focus, and there is no better strategic opening than China’s sovereignty disputes with the Philippines and other countries in the South China Sea,” said the newspaper.

“The United States’ intention of trying to draw more countries into stirring up the situation in the South China Sea is being brandished to the full,” it said. By Chris Buckley, Euronews

As the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea (DPRK) heralds an imminent rocket launch from the Tongchang-ri site, its neighbours anxiously await the fallout.

While the North says the send-off is merely to put a civilian satellite into space, the country’s adversaries have denounced what they describe as provocation by Pyongyang.

The reclusive communist site has for years been planning festivities – including the missile test – surrounding the 100th birthday on April 15, 2012, of founding president Kim Il-sung. Other activities for the centenary include: an Arirang mass games spectacle in which more than 100,000 people perform a highly co-ordinated gymnastic and theatrical show; dedication of construction projects such as the 330-metre-high Ryugyong Hotel, which was begun in 1987; and the completion of the country’s largest-ever hydroelectric dam.

Meanwhile, the DPRK recently finished commemorating the death of the “Dear Leader” Kim Jong-il while transitioning rule to his young son Kim Jong-un.

Juche, meaning “self-reliance” in Korean, is the name of the country’s official ideology, which combines Stalinist political principles, Confucian social values and ethnic Korean nationalism.

North Korea uses a Juche calendar whose year one is 1912, when Kim Il-sung was born. So, 2012 is considered Juche 101.

To understand the motivating factors behind North Korea’s celebrations, Al Jazeera’s Ben Piven spoke with Charles Armstrong, a history professor and Director of the Centre for Korean Research at Columbia University, Leon Sigal, Director of the Northeast Asia Cooperative Security Project, and Thomas Gold, a sociology professor at the University of California, Berkeley’s Institute of East Asian Studies.

Ben Piven: What can the new leader of North Korea achieve by following through with highly anticipated birthday celebrations for his grandfather, Kim Il-sung?

Charles Armstrong: This has been in the works for a while and it would have been impossible for North Korea not to hold the launch after building up the event for so long. They are very proud of the 1998 “satellite” that celebrated Kim Jong-il’s accession to the throne, even though most outside observers believe the launch failed. This [2012 launch] signifies Kim Jong-un’s accession to power and his loyalty to the memory of his father and grandfather.

Leon Sigal: He will be carrying out the wishes of his late father. If the test-launch and nuclear test succeed, he’ll improve North Korea’s capabilities.

Thomas Gold: We need to ask first who the intended audience is. For the local elite, it is to stress the continuation of the Kim Il-sung bloodline and all that that implies, especially the continuation of privileges.

For the rest, probably same old same old – don’t get your hopes up, if you ever did. For foreign audiences, it is also a statement of continuation of the line, and don’t think because he studied abroad as a youth his thinking deviates from his predecessors’. His focus is showing that the DPRK is resolute in maintaining the Juche line and all that that implies. Kim Jung-un can achieve the sense at home and abroad that things are under control.

BP: You’ve visited North Korea in your capacity as academics. What will be the single most impressive aspect of the massive centenary festivities – Ryugyong Hotel, Arirang Games, Huichon Power Station, or something else entirely?

Armstrong: The near-completion of Ryugyong [a 105-story hotel whose construction was halted in the mid-90's] is impressive. When I last went in June 2011, there was a lot of construction in the Mansudae area near Kim Il-sung’s giant bronze statue. In general, the appearance of construction and traffic was striking and something not seen at this scale in Pyongyang for two decades.

Sigal: The obvious signs of economic revival from the low-point of the mid-nineties, at least in Pyongyang.

Gold: For all of the planned hoopla and mass events, I think the most impressive aspect is the fact that this regime has survived this long and continues to attract the world’s attention. That is the message. Local people will be told that this is because of its strength and the resolute determination of its unified leadership and citizens to maintain the Juche line and not be beholden to or at the beck and call of outsiders, even if the reality – which most of them are unaware of – is very different.

This message is especially aimed at the US and Japan but China as well. The message shows that the DPRK enjoys great leverage, presented as “prestige” or “respect”, around the region and world, and must be consulted on important issues of the day (without indicating the real reasons). The events will demonstrate that the sacrifices that the Korean people make are well worth it. And the whole world, friends and enemies alike, are paying attention to what is going on in the DPRK, and are impressed with the continuity.

For students of social psychology, the DPRK’s sense of “presentation of self” is endlessly fascinating. What its leaders think is the impression they are giving versus what observers take away, and do the leaders care that there is such a large gap?

BP: For political analysts, there is a lot of debate about whether the North will successfully push the West to send promised food aid. Is this international drama a distraction during the Juche 101 party?

Armstrong: The North Koreans would like food aid of course but they will have the party regardless. It’s unfortunate that the US has cut off food aid because of the announced rocket launch, as the US has long said humanitarian assistance should not be linked to politics.

Sigal: For the North this has never been about food aid, but about the relationship with the US. That may be changing.

Gold: I think it is part and parcel of it – another display of the North’s leverage. But how it is actually presented to the citizens? [It's unlikely average North Koreans will think] the elite is starving you into submission to preserve its privileges which are inextricably linked to the survival of the Kim dynasty. But that is a different matter. I can’t see the West not sending some aid.

BP: As Americans who have cultivated decent relations with various people in Pyongyang, do you think there is increased scope for understanding and outreach during the April 2012 period?

Armstrong: I believe it’s critical that we try but things are going to be rocky for the next little while. Once the excitement over the 100th anniversary dies down we can hopefully return to constructive dialogue.

Sigal: Absolutely not. The test-launch undercuts all those in United States who sought an improvement in relations.

Gold: I wouldn’t bet on it. Foreigners who attend these events may try to probe what “people” think of KJU or the DPRK itself – even though the only ones they meet will be officials, overt or covert, and carefully vetted citizens. But the Koreans won’t reveal their true thoughts, which might actually not differ from the official line at all.

I think the official handlers will be very preachy and arrogant. On the other hand, visitors who are capable of keeping a cool head and are willing to say what they honestly think about the place  – will certainly be listened to, even if not responded to with anything but dogma.

BP: Since you also have a keen awareness of how the Chinese government plays a role in Northeast Asia, will Beijing be as happy to honour this Communist legend’s birth anniversary?

Armstrong: The Chinese are concerned but there’s not much they can do about it. Publicly they praise Kim Il-sung and his achievements. Privately they are unhappy with the direction his son took the country and are waiting to see how the grandson does.

Sigal: The leadership in Beijing must be very unhappy with the test-launch and will respond in a measured way to show its unhappiness.

Gold: “As happy” as what? Beijing sees DPRK as a throwback to its own lawless Mao era, a wild card and unnecessary nuisance on its border. But nonetheless it does provide leverage to the Chinese and is a buffer against US forces in the South.

So there will be the usual verbiage about “lips and teeth” but a lot of nose-holding and eye-rolling behind the scenes. The Chinese have been trying to cultivate a more “rational” successor generation for years, and this will not stop. They don’t want people who see China as a model to get in trouble for being seen as too close to Beijing – and therefore as “iffy” by Pyongyang.

BP: Once the fireworks are over, how will the North Korean people appraise the three-generation legacy of the Kim dynasty?

Armstrong: It’s always hard to say what ordinary Koreans are really thinking, but I imagine they will be impressed by their country’s display of technological prowess and military strength, while wondering when they will see the promised prosperity of the slogan “Powerful and Prosperous Country 2012″.

Sigal: There is no way of knowing.

Gold:  Let’s not forget that the North Korean people are not a monolith. The regime divides them into three groups based on how trustworthy they are perceived to be. The “privileged” group living in Pyongyang and rewarded by the regime will thank their stars that the young Kim seems committed to carrying on life as they have known it, so their bets are as secure as possible in such a random and arbitrary place.

Those labelled “hostile”, if they are treated to extra rations and a bit of time off for the celebrations, won’t see much change on the horizon. Those in the middle will soldier on, tying to prove their fealty.

We have very little knowledge of what North Koreans think in any case, particularly outside of the capital. No one has spotted DPRK’s Gorbachev yet, have they? Al Jazeera

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned that Kofi Annan represented the last chance for avoiding a civil war in Syria and offered the UN-Arab League envoy Moscow’s full support.

“This may be the last chance for Syria to avoid a protracted and bloody civil war,” Russian agencies quoted Medvedev as telling Annan at a meeting on Sunday, adding that Russia would provide “full support at any level” for his mission.

Medvedev’s warning came as US President Barack Obama pledged to send “non-lethal” aid to the Syrian rebels in the most overt show of US support for the rebels to date.

The decision seems certain to irritate Russia following its fierce condemnation of the West’s calls on President Bashar al-Assad to step down.

Obama said at talks with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of a nuclear security summit in Seoul that they agreed “there should be a process” of transition to a “legitimate government” in Syria.

A top US national security official said the delivery of medical aid and other urgent supplies would top the agenda of a “Friends of Syria” meeting scheduled for April 1 in Istanbul.

Both Russia and China have used their veto rights as permanent members of the UN Security Council to block efforts to condemn Assad.

Annan, the former UN chief, will be carrying with him Assad’s answer to a peace plan under which Syria could begin a “political transition” to a representative government, with no specifically defined role for Assad.

The initiative calls for Assad to withdraw troops and heavy weapons from protest hubs, a daily two-hour humanitarian ceasefire, access to all areas affected by the fighting and a UN-supervised halt to all clashes.

Homs targeted

Blasts meanwhile once again rocked Syria’s flashpoint city of Homs as the regime pressed on with its assault on protest hubs while the rebels countered by attacking a military base in Damascus province.

Opposition activists said at least 21 people were killed in several districts in Syria on Sunday morning.

Activists in Homs reported heavy shelling of al-Khaldiyeh, al-Hamidiyeh and other old neighbourhoods in the city in an attempt by the government to regain control of pockets of armed resistance.

A large number of  al-Qusair residents in Homs reportedly fled their homes into neighbouring villages after their town was heavily bombarded by artillery fire.

In the southern town of Nawa, the Local Co-ordination Committees (LCC) activist network said “tanks have entered the main streets, and heavy gunfire by regime forces is reported”.

Nawa is in Deraa province, where the popular uprising against President Bashar al-Assad’s rule erupted in March 2011.

Elsewhere in the country on Sunday, near the northern border with Turkey, rockets were fired into the town of Aazaz as helicopters flew overhead, according to activists.

LCC said opposition fighters of the Free Syrian Army blocked a highway used by the military for reinforcements and supplies to Aazaz, which has been the scene of fierce clashes for the past few weeks.

The state news agency SANA said an “armed terrorist group” attacked a gas pipeline in the eastern province of Deir ez-Zor. Several such attacks have caused explosions in Deir ez-Zor and Homs provinces.

At least eight people were reportedly killed across Syria on Sunday, activist said.

‘Human shield’

Human Rights Watch (HRW) said government forces in Idlib had resorted to using civilians as human shields to protect themselves from attacks by opposition fighters.

Citing witnesses and YouTube videos, the US-based rights group accused the army and pro-government militia known as shabiha of forcing people to march in front of them as they advanced on opposition-controlled towns in the province.

“By using civilians as human shields, the Syrian army is showing blatant disregard for their safety,” Ole Solvang, HRW emergencies researcher, said in a statement.

“The Syrian army should immediately stop this abhorrent practice.”

The tactic had reportedly been used in the towns of Al-Janudyah, Kafr Nabl, Kafr Ruma and Ayn Laruz. Al Jazeera

After depleting his ammunitions, the pilot flew to Turkey, a country that already hosts Syrian army defectors. Head of the opposition Free Syrian Army (FSA), Colonel Riad al-Asaad, is currently residing in Turkey.

A member of the Syrian National Council (SNC) confirmed that the defected pilot has reached Turkey, and said that President Bashar al-Assad’s regime has become incapable in controlling the army. Fearing an attack against the presidential palace, the army is sending military pilots without ammunitions, the SNC member added.

Friday clashes, demos

Meanwhile, Syrian forces bombed towns and clashed with rebels in several regions as activists said thousands staged anti-regime protests.

Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators turned out Friday in the hot spots of anti-regime revolt across Syria, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

At least 33 people were killed in violence nationwide, the Britain-based group said: 17 civilians, 13 soldiers and three army deserters.

Nine civilians died in districts in Homs hit by gunfire and rockets, it reported.

At least three deserters and a civilians were reported killed in fighting between regime forces and army deserters in Aazaz in the northern province of Aleppo near the Turkish border, the Observatory and activists said.

“Troops are bombing and helicopters flying overhead,” activist Mohammed Halabi told AFP in Beirut by telephone from the province. The fighting had been going on since midday Thursday, he said.

Aazaz, strategically positioned on the road to neighboring Turkey, is a supply route for FSA rebels.

Fierce clashes also erupted mid-afternoon between soldiers and deserters in the villages of Haritan and Anadan, between Aleppo and Aazaz, Halabi said. The Observatory said two civilians were killed in Anadan.

Troops shelled the two villages after deserters attacked a convoy of tanks headed for Aazaz, the activist said.

U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan was to travel this weekend to Moscow and Beijing, the two countries that have blocked Security Council action against Syria over the crackdown.

But he had no immediate plans to return to Damascus.

In related story, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano moved Friday to allow Syrians in the United States to stay beyond their visas and avoid the risk of returning to their violence-torn country.

Napolitano said in a statement that, “in light of deteriorating conditions in Syria,” the Department of Homeland Security will be designating Syria temporary protected status (TPS) for Syrians currently in the United States. Al Arabiya News

Most major European and Asian equity markets rose, bolstered by a 1.7 percent jump in the Dow Jones industrial average Tuesday. Markets in China and Taiwan were closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.

Investors were cheered by signs the U.S. economy may be improving. On Tuesday. Kraft Foods Inc. and apparel retailer Abercrombie & Fitch reported earnings that beat expectations, while drugmaker Merck & Co. said profits jumped. UK banking giant Barclays also reported soaring profits.

Traders will be eyeing reports on housing starts, jobless claims and inflation later this week for more evidence the U.S. economy is rebounding strongly from last year’s recession.

Markets also got a boost from news European officials are working with Greece to control its debt crisis. European Union leaders on Tuesday gave Greece one month to prove it can cut its fiscal deficit.

Concerns about rising debt burdens in Greece, Portugal and Spain have undermined investor confidence during the last few weeks.

As trading got underway in Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.7 percent, Germany’s DAX index gained 0.9 percent, and France’s CAC-40 added 1.2 percent.

Earlier in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average jumped 272.58 points, or 2.7 percent, at 10,306.83 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index climbed 265.32, or 1.3 percent, to 20,534.01.

South Korea’s Kospi gained 26.38, or 1.7 percent, to 1,627.43 while Singapore added 1.3 percent and India 1.3 percent. Australia’s benchmark advanced 2.1 percent.

In the U.S. on Tuesday, the Dow rose 169.67, or 1.7 percent, to 10,268.81. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 19.36, or 1.8 percent, to 1,094.87, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 30.66, or 1.4 percent, to 2,214.19.

Oil prices extended gains above $77 a barrel in Asia amid expectations a growing U.S. economy will fuel increased crude demand.

Benchmark crude for March delivery was up 52 cents at $77.53 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $2.88 to settle at $77.01 on Tuesday.

In currencies, the dollar rose to 90.54 yen from 90.14 yen. The euro fell to $1.3752 from $1.3764. By Alex Kennedy, Philadelphia Daily News

These happen to be the worst years as far as the poverty situation in the country is concerned, data reveals.

The Federal Bureau of Statistics data updated for the Centre for Poverty Reduction and Social Policy Development (CPRSPD), Planning and Development Division, shared with The News indicates an upswing in the headcount poverty ratio for 2008-09.

The steep increase in the prices of petroleum products, electricity and natural gas as well as food items (especially flour, sugar and meat) began in 2007, while the situation worsened in 2008 with global increase in POL and commodity prices.

The financial meltdown followed as industry could not cope with the rising energy prices triggered sharp slowdown in growth and high inflation.

This situation impacted Pakistan’s economy generally and the poor households particularly, as the report indicates.

The government is yet to make this report public after its preparation is formalized and the relevant officials in high places approve its launch.

The News obtained salient figures from this report revealing that the increase in food and energy prices since late 2007 compelled the government to launch a household income and expenditure survey for assessment of poverty increase and vulnerability of the countryside and city-slum majority.

Survey to make such assessment got delayed for inexplicable reasons but the reports based on a 5-year old assessment got regularly updated for the federal cabinet’s appraisal.

The updated Planning Commission’s Interim Report based on 2004-05 poverty head count number of 23.9 percent put the increase in poverty at around 6 percent for the year 2008-09. The newly updated figures say this ratio must go as high as 29.9 percent.

The World Bank’s Task Force on Food Security had put the ratio at 29.2 percent in 2004-05, 33.8 percent in 2007-08 and 36.1 percent in 2008-09. Such estimates placed 62 million people of the country Below the Poverty Line (BPL) in 2008-09.

The new assessments say at least 20 million people might have joined the previous headcount on BPL population.

The poverty increase situation thus stood as follows: 22.3 percent of the population in 2005-06 to between 30-35 percent in 2008-09; now this population is beyond 40 percent.

The data is explained in a manner that the increase in BPL population in the rural areas is more tragic as people lost their small holdings to inflation and overall expenditure per family unit increased by more than 20 percent in the past 3 years.

Though the increase of inflation-hit population in the urban areas remained more pronounced, the net impact was far lower than in the rural areas.

More than 50 percent of the urban workforce underwent decrease in actual wages viz a viz inflation.

The high food prices undermined the government efforts for poverty reduction as food price hike severely eroded poor households’ purchasing power.

This situation indicates a serious risk of massive school dropouts at primary levels while fresh enrolments would also be on the decline.

The poorest households are compelled to spend more than 78 percent of incomes on food and other most essential expenditure, while health and education are tragically compromised areas. By Ikram Hoti, The News International

The gunmen arrived in a convoy of up to seven 4x4s, according to local reports. While some gunmen closed off surrounding streets, others burst into the party and started shooting to kill.

There were conflicting reports as to whether the victims were celebrating victory in a local American Football championship, or had gathered to watch a boxing match. It was unclear last night as to why they were targeted, but it was immediately assumed the attack was by one of the drug trafficking gangs struggling for supremacy in the city.

“The men were well-armed. They went into the house and shot at everyone, you could hear the gunfire all around,” a neighbour said.

Army spokesman Enrique Torres said the dead were from 15 to 20 years old, and an additional 17 party-goers were wounded, some critically. “They were about 15 men, they closed off the surrounding streets and began shooting at the house as they moved inside,” he said.

Witnesses of the slaughter told the Associated Press they thought those behind the attack were acting on false information.

“It must have been a huge mistake,” said Martha Lujan, who lives nearby.

Ciudad Juárez is just across the US border from El Paso in Texas, and is the bloodiest front in the turf wars raging around Mexico, which intensified following a government offensive launched three years ago. More than 16,000 have died since in related violence. Last year, more than 2,000 people were killed in Juárez, about a third of the national total.

The city has also had Mexico’s heaviest military presence, with 10,000 soldiers patrolling the streets for most of last year. Last month the government announced it was reducing the number of soldiers present and increasing the number of federal police officers in the city. The killing has continued regardless.

Most victims in Juárez die in ones or twos, often small-time dealers associated with one gang and killed by a rival gang. But the ­arbitrariness of much of the ­violence has been underlined by a growing number of deaths with no apparent link to the ­underworld. There have also been periodic massacres, such as two attacks on drug rehabilitation clinics in September last year which left 28 dead.

Another witness to yesterday’s massacre, who only gave his first name, Hector, because he feared retaliation, said he was just outside when the gunfire broke out. He said the party was an innocuous gathering of friends targeted in error. “I think there was some confusion,” he said. “We’re seeking justice.”

The ongoing drug feuds in Juárez are said to be caused by the Sinaloa cartel trying to out-muscle the Juárez cartel at one of the most important points for smuggling drugs into the US. In the 1990s, the Juárez cartel was the most powerful trafficker, but in recent years its influence has waned. The Sinaloa cartel is led by Mexico’s most infamous trafficker of the moment, Joaquin El Chapo Guzman.

In other drug violence elsewhere yesterday, 20 gunmen attacked a police station in the Pacific port city of Lázaro Cárdenas with grenades and assault rifles, killing a police officer and a mother and her son who were in the building to pay a fine.

Further north, in the city of Navolato, the bodies of three women and two men were found in their vehicle, which was riddled with bulletholes. By Jo Tuckman. The Guardian

The rise, compared to a year earlier, breaks a 13-month decline in trade as a result of the global downturn.

Xinhua said total exports for 2009 were $1.2tn (£749bn), but total foreign trade over the year was down 13.9%.

Correspondents say the figures will lead to new demands from China’s competitors that it revalue the yuan.

Last year saw a continuing decrease in China’s trade as the global economic downturn led to a fall in demand for its products.

But in the last few weeks of the year, there was a far greater rise than forecasters had expected, with foreign exports reaching $130.7bn, up 17.7% on the previous December.

China’s General Administration of Customs (GAC) said exports overall in the year were $1.2tn, down 16% from in 2008, while imports were 11.2% down from a year earlier at $1.01tn.

The politically sensitive total trade surplus was down 34.2% to $196.1bn.

The figures suggests China will surpass Germany’s export total for the whole of 2009, although this will not be confirmed until Germany’s full-year data is published in February.

Yuan demand

A spokesman for GAC said the increase was “an important turning point” for the country.

“It is safe to say now that Chinese exporters have come right through the period of weakness,” Xinhua quoted statistician Huang Guohua as saying.

The BBC’s Chris Hogg in Shanghai says many of China’s producers are low-cost manufacturers who assemble equipment such as i-Pods using foreign components.

The latest figures are being seen as an indication that those manufacturers have proved resilient in the downturn and are benefitting as their customers restock, says our correspondent.

But the figures are likely to lead to renewed complaints from China’s trading competitors that its currency is undervalued, he added.

Led by the US, they say it is unfair that China has been able to make its good cheaper by keeping the yuan weak, but Prime Minister Wen Jiabao has said China “will not yield” to foreign demands that it revalue the currency.

Beijing has long said that it will not allow the yuan to trade freely until its domestic economy was strong enough to pick up any resulting decline in exports.

The slowing decline in Chinese trade has also been taken as a sign that the country’s stimulus package is working.

Beijing raised tax rebates on exports several times in 2009, increased tax refunds and improved export credit insurance. BBC News

Medvedev said the new missiles would be developed in full accordance with arms agreements made with the United States. “Of course, we will develop new systems, including delivery systems, that is, missiles,” Medvedev said in an end-of-year interview with state-controlled television channels.

“This process will be continued, and our nuclear shield will always be efficient and sufficient to protect our national interests,” Medvedev said.

The Kremlin chief said Russia and the United States were close to a new deal on reducing vast Cold War arsenals of nuclear weapons, adding that he had “trustworthy relations” with US President Barack Obama. Zeenews