In its first direct comment on reports that emerged over a week ago of US surveillance of the internet, China called on US authorities to provide the 'necessary explanation', reports Reuters.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Hua Chunying, said on Monday:

The prospect of agreement on how to end the war in Syria looked grim at the G8 summit as Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin remained stiff in their diplomatic pleasantries.

Russian president Putin said:

"Of course, our opinions do not coincide. But all of us have the intention to stop the violence in Syria, to stop the growth of victims, and to solve the situation peacefully, including by bringing the parties to the negotiations table in Geneva."

Speaking after meeting, Obama said:

Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc has threatened military force to disperse the protests in Instanbul.

Arinc told the BBC:

"When a societal event breaks out in a region, our governors are responsible for restoring order and security. In such a case, they deploy firstly police forces, then gendarmeries. If the incidents become widespread, armed forces might be also called on the governor's order to establish peace."

Observers reacted with scepticism, with one blogger writing:

 


As the first red-headed U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power will cut a distinctive figure in the organization’s staid meeting rooms and endless cocktail receptions. But she will also stand out in ways that go well beyond appearance. By virtue of her youth, professional background, philosophical commitments, and direct personal style, Power has the potential to be a uniquely effective U.S. envoy. By raising the UN’s visibility and cache, and by doubling down on its role as a force for human rights and the mediation of violent conflict, Power could be just what the United Nations needs to help galvanize it for the twenty-first century.

The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that international pressure on Iran to stop its nuclear programme must continue, after reformist Hassan Rouhani was elected president.

"The international community should not fall into wishful thinking and be tempted to ease pressure on Iran to stop its nuclear programme,

"Iran will be judged on its actions. If it insists on continuing to develop its nuclear programme the answer needs to be clear - stopping its nuclear programme by any means."

North Korea’s governing body proposed nuclear and security talks with the United States in an appeal sent just days after calling off talks with rival South Korea.

The Obama administration responded by stating that it was willing to accept North Korea’s proposal of talks, President Barack Obama’s chief of staff,Denis McDonough, stated,

Speaking at a rally on Sunday of tens of thousands of government supporters on Sunday in Istanbul, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that it was his "duty" to evict the protesters from Istanbul Park.

Asserting that the two week protest had been manipulated by "terrorists", Erdogan rejected accusations of authoritarianism.

The Tamil Guardian's Ismail Okan Ukav was at a pro-government rally in Ankara on Saturday and sent us these photographs:

Hassan Rouhani, the sole reformist candidate in Iran’s presidential election, has won the presidential elections according to state-run Press TV.

The cleric and former nuclear negotiator with western powers enjoyed a surge in support the last week of campaign.

At the UN Special Committee on Decolonisation on Wednesday, UN member states reiterated their support for the Saharawi's people's right to self-determination, including representatives from Venezuela, Ecuador, Nicaragua and Cuba.

Xavier Lasso from Ecuador said his country supported the 'legitimate aspiration of the Saharawi people' and called for an end to the "military occupation of this non-autonomous territory".

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has dismissed assertions made by the US that Syria has used chemical weapons against rebels.

Lavrov said it made "no sense" for President Assad, who also denies the claims, to use chemical weapons as "the regime has not been driven into a corner".

The US meanwhile has decided to keep Patriot missiles and F-16s in Jordan, after recent training exercises. Lavrov criticised the decision, saying that any attempt to use the F-16s to impose a no-fly zone over Syria would violate international law.