China is holding many of the keys needed to unlock complicated United Nations climate negotiations as developing countries move to the centre in the fight against global warming.

• December 7, 2010

Estonian prime minister Andrus Ansip confirmed at the Baltic states and Polish heads of governments meeting on Sunday that Estonia is very much interested in participating in the Lithuanian nuclear power plant project, LETA/Delfi reports.

• December 7, 2010

Heavy rain in the Balkans has killed three people, forced the evacuation of around 20 000 from inundated areas and caused more than 340-million euros in damage, officials said on Monday.

• December 7, 2010

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was due in Poland Monday for the highest-level visit in nine years, as Moscow moves to boost cooperation with its western neighbour amid fast-thawing ties.

• December 6, 2010

Kyrgyzstan's new parliament launched a second attempt to build a coalition government on Saturday, seeking to avoid the need for repeat elections in the volatile Central Asian state.

• December 4, 2010

Authorities declared a state of emergency in three Balkan nations on Thursday — Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro — after heavy rain caused some of the worst flooding in over 100 years.

• December 3, 2010

Russia announced Wednesday that it had created the world's first international atomic fuel bank as part of a global effort to curb the spread of nuclear arms.

• December 2, 2010

In a surprise victory for President Obama's campaign to secure nuclear material worldwide, the government of Belarus announced Wednesday that it will give up its stock of highly enriched uranium, a critical component of nuclear weapons.

• December 2, 2010