Last week, Libya's main Islamic militant opposition force, the Fighting Islamist Group (FIG), announced that they would temporarily suspend armed action against the Khaddafi regime.

The threat of conflict between Israel and Syria, downplayed only weeks ago, is once again on the rise.

Belarus security chiefs denied any connection with a memo leaked recently, allegedly from the Chief of Operational and Combat Training of Internal Troops, which detailed elaborate plans for the provocation and violent suppression of mass demonstrations which took place last weekend.

Turkey has moved beyond its internal reaction to the foreign policy debacle of Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan's recent Libyan visit, in which Erbakan failed to respond as he was dressed down by Libyan leader Moammar Khaddafi.

Washington is trying to maintain its role as sole mediator in the Israeli-Palestinian talks over Hebron. State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns warned Europe yesterday that a "mini United Nations" would be an unwelcome addition to the sensitive talks.

The US Helms-Burton law — which places sanctions on foreign firms doing business in Cuba while using resources confiscated from Americans by Castro — has caused an unexpected rift in Europe. The EU is trying to develop a set of counter-sanctions against the US.

Beijing is taking more seriously the threat posed by Moslem separatists in China's northwestern Xinjiang province.

China is moving away from its traditional role as an ally of North Korea and is taking on the role of regional peace-broker. Beijing's relations with Pyongyang have been deteriorating since the death of Kim Il-Sung, and China is reportedly uncertain of the stability of Kim Jong-Il's regime.

Fears that the Islamic fundamentalist opposition in eastern Libya, now reinforced by former Afghan War volunteers, may force a partition of the country — and a loss to Tripoli of 90 percent of Libya's oil fields — have driven Libyan leader Moammar Khaddafi to seek a dialogue with more moderate and secular reform-oriented opposition groups.

The extremely strong showing by Joerg Haider's far right wing Freedom Party in Sunday's elections has sent tremors through the EU. Haider is a vigorous opponent of European unification and the 28% vote his party won has made it the second largest party in Austria — barely 2% behind the leading Social Democrats.