News from Asia: 4/2/2007

These articles were written by CNN.

Myanmar allows foreign media into new capital.
NAY PYI TAW, Myanmar (Reuters) -- Myanmar's secretive military government has allowed foreign journalists into its new capital for the first time since it quit the leafy colonial-era Yangon in October 2005.

"As far as I know, visas were granted to everyone who applied for them this time, including those who used to be on the blacklist," an Information Ministry official said on Monday.

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China, Russia urge Iran to play ball.
MOSCOW, Russia (AP) -- The presidents of Russia and China have called on Iran to fulfill the U.N. Security Council's resolutions over its disputed nuclear program.

Vladimir Putin and Hu Jintao also said Monday in a joint statement that their countries -- permanent, veto-wielding Security Council members -- were ready to "search for a comprehensive, long-term and mutually acceptable solution to the Iranian nuclear problem."

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Bank threatens to sue over NK funds.
HONG KONG, China (AP) -- A majority foreign-owned North Korean bank has threatened legal action if money it holds in a Macau bank is transferred to China, a report said Tuesday.

Such a move threatens to derail a U.S.-North Korean deal that was crucial in getting the North to agree to start shutting down its nuclear program.

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Japan deploys missile near Tokyo.
IRUMA, Japan (Reuters) -- Japan trucked its first ballistic missile interceptors to an air force base north of Tokyo on Friday in an effort to beef up its defenses against its unpredictable neighbor North Korea.

The deployment of Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) launchers, capable of shooting down incoming missiles in the final stage of flight as they near their target, was sparked by Pyongyang's firing of a ballistic missile in 1998 that flew over Japan.

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