Chinese government

China made its boldest overseas takeover move when state-owned ChemChina agreed a $43 billion bid for Swiss seeds and pesticides group Syngenta on Feb. 3, aiming to improve domestic food production.

China has summoned the U.S. envoy to protest Washington's sale of warships to Taiwan, as part of a massive $1.8 billion arms package, Beijing said on Dec. 17.

China vowed on Nov. 19 to bring to justice those responsible for killing one of its citizens after the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) said it had executed a Chinese captive, the only known Chinese hostage to have been held by the group.

Twelve Nobel Peace Prize winners have called on British Prime Minister David Cameron to call publicly for the release of their fellow laureate, Liu Xiaobo, and his wife Liu Xia during  Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to London this week. 

At least five police officers have been stabbed to death by separatists in a knife attack at a coal mine in China's violence-prone far western region of Xinjiang, U.S.-based Radio Free Asia reported on Sept.23.

The incident happened on Sept.18 at the Sogan colliery in Aksu, the report said, citing police from the area. Dozens were also injured, it said. 

China opposes Internet attacks and wants to work with the United States in cyberspace but will defend its interests, a senior Chinese official said on Sept. 17 after U.S. President Barack Obama warned of a forceful response to Beijing over hacking.

A key suspect in last month's bombing at a Bangkok shrine that killed 20 people has fled to Turkey, Thai police said on Sept. 14.

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic has said that Serbia is preparing projects for the upcoming summit of China and 16 countries of central and eastern Europe.

Not even 10 percent of the USD 10 billion that the Chinese government had set aside for cooperation with southeastern European countries had been employed for projects, he told China's Xinhua agency in an interview.

Nikolic arrives in China, set to attend military parade

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic has arrived in China for a state visit.

He will attend a military parade marking the 70th anniversary of victory over fascism in Beijing on September 3, the president's office said on Sunday.

You know how it is with buses? You wait ages for one, far longer than seems reasonable - and then three arrive all at once. Financial crises are a bit like that too.