• The US spy plane which caused a diplomatic standoff went home. The plane's return removed an impediment to improving US-China relations. Thursday Jiang Zemin and Bush talked on the phone exchanging views on Sino-US relations for the first time since Bush's assuming office.

• China and the World Trade Organization (WTO) have made significant progress towards wrapping up Beijing's 15-year quest for membership, and now aim to pull out the stops so WTO ministers can formally approve Beijing's entry at a November conference in Qatar.

• China and Japan failed to resolve their trade disputes after negotiators concluded their two-day talks in Beijing Wednesday. Both sides agreed to have more talks as early as possible.

• A Russian plane crashed killing all aboard on a Tuesday evening flight from the Urals city of Yekaterinburg to Vladivostok in Russia's far east as it approached the city of Irkutsk for a scheduled stop. Among the casualties were 12 Chinese nationals. Search teams found one of the "black box" flight recorders on Wednesday.

• Facing an international tribunal at The Hague, Yugoslavia's former president, Slobodan Milosevic, told the court he did not recognize its authority and refused to plead. Milosevic's extradition resulted the federal prime minister resigning. On Wednesday, Serbia's ruling coalition agreed on "basic principles" for a New Yugoslav government.

(CIIC 07/08/2001)