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SHANGRI-LA, China (Reuters) - Excusing himself from the banquet table, Liao Chunlei stood up, wine glass in hand, and belted out a traditional folk song with colleagues as his face turned red with drink.

BUENAVENTURA, Colombia (Reuters) - Colombians who thought they had seen everything in the war on drugs were treated to something new this year: cocaine smuggling in a submarine.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday approved three candidates to fill spots on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, clearing the way for a vote by the full Senate.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said on Wednesday his top choice for running mate would be someone who would offer sound advice and "tell me where he or she thinks I'm wrong."

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday passed a bill authorizing funding for the World Bank and African Development Bank, congressional officials said.

WASHINGTON/GENEVA (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush believes the Iran nuclear issue can be solved diplomatically and that U.S. allies including Israel favor the same approach, the White House said on Wednesday.

GENEVA (Reuters) - HIV/AIDS infection rates are growing among intravenous drug users, prostitutes and gay men around the globe but they are often viewed as outcasts and refused treatment, according to a report issued on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A White House-backed spy bill to protect telecommunication companies from billions of dollars in possible privacy lawsuits passed a Senate test vote on Wednesday and headed toward final congressional approval.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama said on Wednesday the international community must do more try to help resolve Zimbabwe's political crisis and to pressure President Robert Mugabe who is clinging to power.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico City's top prosecutor on Wednesday said a senior police officer's decision to seal the exit of a crowded disco during a raid last week caused a dozen people to die.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senior executives from a range of businesses, including Boeing Co, Ford Motor Co, and JPMorgan Chase & Co, met on Wednesday with Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Experts who advise presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama on East Asia say U.S. policy there hinges on resolution of the Iraq crisis, but disagree on how to go about that.

BELGRADE (Reuters) - Serbia elected a former ally of late autocrat Slobodan Milosevic to the post of speaker of parliament late on Wednesday, paving the way for a new pro-European coalition government to be sworn in within a week.

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate John McCain on Wednesday sought to reassure supporters in the face of some polls showing a widening lead for Democrat Barack Obama ahead of the November election.

WASHINGTON/GENEVA (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush believes the Iran nuclear issue can be solved diplomatically and that U.S. allies including Israel favor the same approach, the White House said on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON/GENEVA (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush believes the Iran nuclear issue can be solved diplomatically and that U.S. allies including Israel favor the same approach, the White House said on Wednesday.

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (Reuters) - Breaking with years of secrecy, Mexico's drug gangs are battling it out in public with audacious hit-lists and threats on banners strung up on streets as drug murders soar out of control.

GAZA (Reuters) - Israel kept its border crossings with the Gaza Strip shut on Wednesday, saying it was in response to a Palestinian rocket salvo that breached an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire.

NIAMEY (Reuters) - Tuareg-led rebels in Niger handed over four French hostages to the Red Cross on Wednesday after three days in captivity.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a bill that would protect about 25 million taxpayers from paying a tax that originally was meant for only the very wealthy.