Beijing

G7 foreign ministers on April 10 began two days of talks in Hiroshima, with John Kerry's visit to the atom-bombed city -- the first-ever by a US secretary of state -- overshadowing the broader agenda.
 

Nearly a third of the business of the law firm at the center of the Panama Papers scandal came from its offices in Hong Kong and China, reports said April 7, with the Asian giant assailed by corruption and capital flight.

Istanbul Atatürk Airport, which is operated by TAV Airports, became in 2015the 11th largest airport worldwide by providing service to 61.8 million passengers over the course of the year, the company said in a written statement on April 6. 

The number of known executions worldwide went up by more than 50 percent last year to at least 1,634, the highest figure recorded since 1989, Amnesty International said on April 6.
 
The surge was largely fuelled by Iran, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, the London-based human rights organisation said in its annual report on death sentences and executions worldwide.
 

Ethiopian-Turkish middle and long distance runner Elvan Abeylegesse has been banned from sports for two years by the Turkish Athletics Federation (TAF) for using a banned substance.

Japan has conveyed its concern to Moscow over possible Russian plans to build a naval base on a western Pacific island chain, part of which are claimed by Tokyo, a top Japanese government spokesman said on March 28, the latest in a long-running territorial spat. 

While many international conferences in Turkey are being canceled due to recent terrorist attacks, the 19th Eurasian Economic Summit will go ahead as planned in Istanbul from April 5 to 7. In addition to terrorism and migration issues, climate change will also be debated by participants from a region rich in fossil fuels. 

Spying on the US is a service to China, state-run media said on March 24, singing the praises of a man who confessed to hacking American defence contractors on Beijing's behalf.

Chinese national Su Bin, 50, pleaded guilty to stealing trade secrets from the companies, including plans for transport planes and fighter jets.

Authorities in China's capital will extend leave from work for new mothers and fathers, state media reported on March 25, in what appeared to be the latest incentive to encourage families to have more children.

The world's largest economy faces a shrinking labour force and ageing population, meaning it could be the first country in the world to age before it first gets rich. 

Hong Kong bookseller Lee Bo who disappeared from the city and surfaced in mainland China has returned, police said on March 24, the latest twist in a case that has provoked anger over China's interference in the city.