A two-week standoff between China and Japan over a boat collision has once again underlined the communist state's penchant for bullying its neighbors, and might have done more harm than good for the emergence of China as the leader in the region over the long term.

• October 13, 2010

Bulgaria invites Chinese investment as the country offers the lowest taxes within the European Union, a senior Bulgarian official said Monday.

• October 12, 2010

Five parties have passed the 5- percent threshold at the Kyrgyz parliamentary election, according to the final data obtained through the Central Election Commission 's automated vote count system till late Monday.

• October 12, 2010

Iran says late October or early November would be a good time for nuclear talks with the six world powers, and claims it has put an end to Western espionage against its atomic facilities

• October 11, 2010

Five parties passed the threshold on Monday to win seats in Kyrgyzstan's new parliament after a landmark election aimed at shifting the strategic Central Asian nation away from failed authoritarian rule.

• October 11, 2010

The military alliance that 61 years ago identified its core mission as to "promote stability and well-being in the North Atlantic area" is now embroiled in the tenth year of a war in Afghanistan launched by its dominant member, the United States.

• October 11, 2010

Turkmen President Gurbangulu Berdimuhammedov has appointed Dovlet Mommayev a new head manager of the state concern "Turkmengas" by his decree.

• October 9, 2010

While Eastern Europe and Central Asia are emerging from the worst global recession since the 1930s, recovery has been weak, with a jobless rebound in some nations and uneven growth from country to country, the World Bank said

• October 9, 2010