Japan is planning to increase its defense budget this year for the first time in 11 years, the Defense Ministry's revised budget request showed on Friday, amid a bitter territorial dispute with China.

• January 11, 2013

Russian and U.S. diplomats plan to hold a meeting with the international mediator for Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, on Friday in Geneva, Interfax news agency cited Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov as saying on Wednesday.

• January 11, 2013

Lithuania supports Georgia's political course on European and Euro-Atlantic integration, the European Club president under the Lithuanian Parliament Petras Auštrevičius said today.

• January 11, 2013

Iran today has put forward some preconditions for the future talks regarding country's nuclear program, Mehr agency reported.

• January 9, 2013

Kyrgyzstan's economy depends on the situation in Russia, Kazakhstan and China, the Kyrgyz National Bank's report on 'Stability of the financial sector of the Kyrgyz Republic', published on its website said, KyrTAG reported today.

• January 9, 2013

The lower house of Tajikistan’s parliament ratified an agreement on the country’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) on Wednesday, January 9 concluding Dushanbe's drive to join the trade body, RIA Novosti reported.

• January 9, 2013

The National Assembly (NA) of Viet Nam pays great attention to the co-operation the country shares with Russia in the energy sector and is constantly working to create favourable conditions for Russian enterprises to increase their investment in Viet Nam , according to NA Vice Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

• January 8, 2013

Turkey plans to acquire new oil fields in Libya at the Fizan block, the Sabah newspaper quotes Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz as saying on Monday.

• January 8, 2013