Russia, China veto Syria draft resolution
Russia and China on Saturday vetoed an Arab-European draft resolution on Syria backing an Arab League plan which demands a regime change in the Middle East country, the second time since October 2011.
The draft resolution, tabled by Morocco and backed by the United States and European powers, received 13 votes in favor.
China has voiced its regrets that Russia's "reasonable" revision proposal on a Syria draft resolution was not taken into account.
Li Baodong, the Chinese permanent representative to the UN, said to push through a vote when parties are still seriously divided over the issue will not help maintain the unity and authority of the Security Council, or help resolve the issue.

Iran asks OPEC not to compensate for market shortage if it embargoed

伊朗要求如果其禁运欧佩克不要补充市场
Iran has asked member states of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) not to compensate for the market shortage if the European Union (EU) puts an oil embargo on Iran.
In a letter forwarded to Iraq which is holding the rotating presidency of the OPEC, Iran asked the OPEC members to respect other members' interests and obligations and not to increase their output in a compensation for the West's oil embargo on Iran.
Iran also called on Saudi Arabia to abide by the agreements in the OPEC and do not raise its products if the allies of the West do not want to buy Iran's oil.
Iran's Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi says Iran will definitely stop its oil exports to certain European countries.

DPRK denounces planned U.S.-South Korean military exercises

朝鲜强烈谴责美韩军演
North Korea has criticized joint military exercises to be held by U.S. and South Korea, saying the manuevers were no more than "bluffing" under the growing might of North Korea's "Military First" policy.
North Korea says in a statement the projected saber-rattling assumes a more dangerous nature as it is set to take place after the U.S. made a shift in its military strategy to attaching importance to Asia, and the Lee Myung Bak group is making desperate efforts to seek a way out of the crisis in the run-up to elections,"
It was reported that the exercises will be held from the end of February to late April with more than 200,000 troops and huge inventories of cutting-edge military hardware.

Chinese Vice Premier urges development of SOEs
Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang urged local governments to soundly implement policies introduced by the central government to boost state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
During his visit to local bases of the SOEs in central Hubei Province, Zhang Dejiang
reiterated that the SOEs should strengthen strategic plans and awareness of potential dangers, encouraging SOEs to expand both domestic and international cooperation.
He also urged SOEs to continue structure reform with more investment in innovation and to make efforts to solve the problems in management mechanism in order to make progress.

13 dead in SW China colliery explosion
Two miners injured in a colliery gas explosion Friday in southwest China's Sichuan province died on the way to hospital, bringing the death toll from the accident to 13.
Local authorities say treatment is being given to eight other people injured in the blast, four of whom are in a critical condition.
By noon on Saturday, one person was still missing and rescue work was continuing.
The accident happened Friday at Diaoyutai Coal Mine in Junlian county, in the city of Yibin.
Its cause is under investigation.

Cadmium pollution cleanup measures safe, effective: experts

专家称镉污染处理措施有效
Experts say the measures adopted to bring down cadmium concentration levels following a toxic spill in a river of south China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region are safe and effective.
The water quality of the Liujiang River, a source of drinking water for local residents, is up to national standard, according to data released by the emergency headquarters handling the incident.
Neutralizers designed to gather the matter and ease its removal have been placed in the waterway, and agents designed for dilution in water discharged from upriver dams.
Police officers have been mobilized to join in the cleanup work and the ongoing efforts are expected to run until the end of February.

Cold front to sweep China
Despite a recent weather rebound in most parts of China, temperatures will drop by up to 14 degrees Celsius in some regions over the next three days according to the country's meteorological authority .
With a cold front sweeping most parts of the country, temperatures will decrease by more than six degrees Celsius in central and eastern China and the parts north of the Huaihe River, and even by 12 to 14 degrees in some areas.
Rain and snow will fall in south China and northern parts of the country, including Xinjiang, Qinghai and Heilongjiang provinces, from Saturday night to Sunday.