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President Hu urges good start for 11th Five-Year plan 
 
 

Top Chinese leaders Hu Jintao (C), Wu Bangguo (4th R), Wen Jiabao (4th L), Jia Qinglin (3rd R), Zeng Qinghong (3rd L), Huang Ju (2nd R), Wu Guanzheng (2nd L), Li Changchun (1st R) and Luo Gan (1st L) attend the New Year tea party hosted by the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Beijing, on Jan. 1, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

    BEIJING, Jan. 1 (Xinhuanet) -- The year 2006 marks the start of China's 11th five-year period (2006-2010) for economic and social development and this year's work is vital to China's development, Chinese President Hu Jintao said Sunday.

    Hu said at the New Year tea party hosted by the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference that China will continue to take the "scientific concept of development" as the guideline for overall economic and social development and make a good start for China's 11th five-year (2006-2010) program for economic and social development.

Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) shakes hands with a participant during the New Year tea party hosted by the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in Beijing, on Jan. 1, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

    China will attach more importance to the expansion of domestic demand, advance rural development, strengthen independent innovation capability and improve its economic structure in a bid to build an energy-efficient and environment-friendly society, Hu stressed.

    China will expand socialist democracy, improve its legal system, promote ideological and ethical progress and deepen the reform of the cultural sector, Hu said.

    China will continue promoting social harmony, work hard to address problems closely related to people's life, increase employment, enhance the social security system, improve health service, strengthen workplace safety, upgrade social management and maintain social stability in the new year, he said.

    Hu noted enhancing the Chinese Communist Party's governing capability is key to economic and social development.
 

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Russia cuts down gas supply to Ukraine 

    Russian gas giant Gazprom cut down natural gas supply to Ukraine and accused Kiev of siphoning off gas going through Ukraine to European clients on Sunday after Kiev shrugged off Moscow's demand to more than quadruple the gas price.

    Gazprom began lowering pressure in the pipelines to Ukraine at 9:40 a.m. (0640 GMT) and has cut down gas exports to Ukraine by 120 million cubic meters a day, Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kupriyanov was quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as saying.

    The company also accused Ukraine of tapping gas intended for European clients as Russia continued to supply 360 million cubic meters a day to Europe via Ukrainian territory.

    Instances of Ukraine siphoning off Russian gas were recorded and details will be available on Monday, Kupriyanov said.

    But Ukraine denied the allegation.

    "We have not consumed a single cubic meter of Russian gas," Ukrainian Prime Minister Yuriy Yekhanurov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying.     

    MARKET PRICE

    Gazprom's cutback capped a bitter months-long dispute between the two countries over the gas price.

    Ukraine was buying Russian gas at 50 U.S. dollars per 1,000 cubic meters over the past year, but Gazprom has asked Ukraine to pay 230 dollars, saying the price hike was needed to conform to world gas price levels.

    Late Saturday, President Vladimir Putin approved a three-month freeze on the gas price for Ukraine, ordering Gazprom to supply gas at last year's price for the first quarter of 2006 if Ukraine accepts a price hike starting in the second quarter.

    Gazprom said shortly after the mid-night deadline on the offer expired that Ukraine formally refused the offer.

    "After a meeting with the Russian president, Gazprom's chairman sent a signed contract for gas supply and transit in 2006 to Ukraine's oil and gas company Naftogaz Ukrainy," Kupriyanov said. "The official word from Ukraine was they cannot sign it."

    Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko reiterated his position on Sunday that his country is prepared to pay the market price but 230 dollars per 1,000 cubic meters is unacceptable.

    Following the collapse of talks, the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Ukraine of deliberately blocking progress in negotiations on gas deliveries.

    "Our impression is that the Ukrainian authorities do not feel confident and have decided to deliberately disrupt the negotiating process with Russia," the ministry said.     

    EUROPE JITTERS

    Poland's gas monopoly PGNiG said on Sunday its natural gas supply has been affected by Russia's move to halt gas deliveries to Ukraine.

    "Today at 11:00 am (1000 GMT), PGNiG was informed by the National Gas Directorate of a fall in pressure at the connection point at the Polish-Ukrainian border at Drozdowicze," PGNiG said in a statement.

    "This indicates a fall in supplies originating in Ukraine and is a consequence of the decision by Russia's Gazprom to restrict deliveries of Russian gas to Ukraine," which could affect 14 percent of Poland's total natural gas volume, the statement said.

    Gazprom provides about half the gas consumed in the European Union (EU) and some 80 percent of that amount is sent through pipelines that cross Ukraine.

    EU energy officials are set to convene an emergency session on Wednesday to discuss the gas supply situation of the 25-nation bloc.

    At the same time, Russia sought to calm the Europeans over a feared disruption of gas flow and urged Ukraine to observe its obligations in transiting gas for Europe.

    "Russia will rigorously fulfill all of its agreements and contracts on natural gas delivery that Russia signed with EU partners and other European countries," the Foreign Ministry said.

    "We hope Ukraine will ... guarantee the uninterrupted transit of natural gas intended for EU countries via its territory," it said.
 

 

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Play set to entertain over new year 
 
   A stage play featuring the journey of young dramatists to find meaning in their creative work will premiere at Chang'an Grand Theater on Thursday.

    Entitled Look Over Our Happy Life, the new play reveals the young drama devotees' ideals and their struggles in a stressful and competitive modern life.

    The story starts with Hu and Die's ambition to create a "real artistic play with deep meaning." However, the producer Shan persuades them to work on a commercial show to add glamour to the New Year season.

    When they begin to rehearse, weird things happen one after another: a hurricane strikes the city, the theater closes down, a gas explosion causes heavy casualties, a mysterious man joins the crew and so on.

    The crew then face further trials and tribulations as they have to battle deceit, snobbishness and other bad traits of human nature.

    The story of Hu and Die mirrors that of Shi Zhan, director of the new play, and his friends.

    "Does entertainment mean everything to life? Is it the only reason we create a play to amuse an audience? No. The play answers such questions and we hope the audience can understand this," said the young director Shi.

    But it does not mean that Look Over Our Happy Life is a heavy play. The show is filled with dark humor and makes fun of headline news and public figures from last year such as the Super Girls competitors and the famous controversial Internet figure Sister Furong.

    Three popular TV stars including Suo Ni, Gu Yang and Wang Fang will give guest performances in the show, briefing the top-10 headlines of 2005 in an original way.

    Look Over Our Happy Life is the first of the theatrical shows in this year's Happy-New-Year theatrical programme, a tradition that started four years ago to lure people out of their homes.

    The first ever Happy New Year drama was created by a group of students at the Central Academy of Drama. The comedy, entitled Cui Hua expands on the lyrics of a hit pop song in 2001 and enjoyed tremendous success as the play featured a couple of hot topics from that year.

    Ever since then, student productions have kick-started the Happy New Year dramas. In the years following the start of the programme, the same cast performed an updated version of Cui Hua, alongside other similar comedies.

    Very much like the festival movies, they are funny, rich in holiday spirit and the performers make every effort to amuse their audience.

    However, the crew has decided to change the direction slightly this year. "Since we have now all left school and have gained more life experience, we have found that entertaining plays should be more serious and deep with a greater emphasis on social problems," said Shi Zhan, who performed the first edition of Cui Hua and worked as assistant director of the third edition. Enditem

    (Source: China Daily)
 
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Lawyer held hostage in US 
 
   A lawyer was held hostage in the southeastern U.S. state of Georgia on Monday and local authorities were negotiating for his release, local media reported.

    The attorney was held hostage by a couple claiming to have a bomb in his office in Statesboro, Georgia, and the incident prompted city officials to cancel a planned parade to mark the Martin Luther King Day.

    "The individuals have indicated that they are very upset with some legal issues from the recent past and want to get those issues resolved," City Manager George Wood said in a written statement.

    The nature of the legal issues in question was unclear.

    Hostage negotiators were in contact with the couple, who indicated they had an improvised explosive device, Wood said.

    The couple took over the lawyer's office about 9:15 a.m. local time and let two people leave shortly afterward, news reports said. Police cordoned off the area around the office.

    Statesboro, a city of 22,000, was about 362 km southeast of Atlanta, the state capital.
 

 

 

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