Representatives from 163 countries were to launch a weeklong, United Nations-led meeting on the nuts-and-bolts of an international agreement to replace the 1997 Kyoto global warming pact after its first phase expires in 2012. Delegates are racing to rein in greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, which are blamed for the rise in global temperatures. Scientists say emissions need to be reduced to avoid the worst effects of warming, which they say COULD lead to drought, floods, higher sea levels and worsening storms.

The process, however, has been fraught with disagreements over which countries should take the lead to reduce greenhouse gases by as much as half by 2050. China has argued that developed countries must take the lead in reducing pollution because their unrestrained emissions over the past century contributed significantly to global warming.

Monsignor Vittorio Formenti, who compiled the Vatican's newly-released 2008 yearbook of statistics, said Muslims made up 19.2 percent of the world's population and Catholics 17.4 percent. "For the first time in history we are no longer at the top: the Muslims have overtaken us," Formenti told Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano in an interview, saying the data referred to 2006.

He said that if all Christian groups were considered, including Orthodox churches, Anglicans and Protestants, then Christians made up 33 percent of the world's population -- or about 2 billion people. The Vatican recently put the number of Catholics in the world at 1.13 billion people. It did not provide a figure for Muslims, generally estimated at around 1.3 billion.

They include protectionism, defence, immigration, EU integration, Turkey and the EU budget. Gordon Brown yesterday said however that he and the French President "share the same vision of Europe".

Con Coughlin has a comment piece in the Telegraph, arguing that THE UK SHOULD REMAIN SCEPTICAL OVER ANY EXTRA FRENCH DEPLOYMENT TO AFGHANISTAN, as there is no suggestion these troops would actually be involved in combat operations, leaving the real fighting to the British, US, Danish, Canadian and Dutch troops already in the south of the country.

NOTING THAT THE FRENCH PRESIDENT MADE SIMILAR RHETORICAL PLEDGES ON HIS VISIT TO WASHINGTON LAST YEAR, without any concrete results, Coughlin concludes that "those who have dealt with Mr Sarkozy before on these issues have found that THE HEADLINE-GRABBING PROMISES HE MAKES DURING HIGH-PROFILE MEETINGS WITH FOREIGN LEADERS IN REALITY DON'T AMOUNT TO VERY MUCH."

The president said that every other European leader was grateful to Mr Brown for not blocking the replacement to the EU constitution. In return the Prime Minister signed Britain up to moves to create common EU immigration standards and cooperate on defence and nuclear policy. At the conclusion of yesterday's France-UK summit, the French president vowed to continue his charm offensive designed to draw Britain into deeper engagement in the EU.

For his part Mr Brown upgraded to formidable the entente that Mr Sarkozy had previously improved from cordiale to amicale. He said: "We believe that, working together, France and Britain can be an even greater force for good so, if you like, this will be the entente formidable."

An article in the paper notes that Britain has always in the past been against the idea of Europe having its own autonomous planning and operational centre outside NATO. However, it notes, "The British now seem to be more inclined to accept the idea of giving the EU a new 'operational headquarters' in Brussels."

The article also notes that "In order to appease London, Paris intends to only gradually ask for positions of responsibility within NATO. The post of deputy 'saceur' (number two in the allied forces in Europe) is therefore still with the British. And they remain very attached to their de facto status as America's first lieutenant within NATO."

He said that the allegations include FAKING AN MEP'S PLACE OF RESIDENCE to boost allowances, FAKING SIGNATURES TO QUALIFY FOR DAILY ATTENDANCE ALLOWANCES and faking meetings to create attendance lists. On secretarial allowances, Van Buitenen said that irregular practices went beyond the scope of the internal audit: KICKBACK PAYMENTS WERE MADE to MEP's by service providers to win a contract. Van Buitenen concluded: "THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS ROTTEN."

The EU is proposing that all citizens have their fingerprints taken when registering for passports and that their details be stored on a system in Brussels. The plan would apply to children as young as 6. Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini's office responded, saying, "Creating big databases poses data-protection challenges, nobody will deny it. However, precisely because we are aware of those challenges we will do everything that is needed to address them ... and ensure that we are taking duly into consideration all legitimate data protection concerns."

It describes the squabbles in Belgium over language and ethnicity as "an awful warning. A POLITICAL UNION HATCHED TOGETHER BY A FRACTIOUS ELITE, AND ANSWERABLE ONLY TO ITSELF, IS NOT A MODEL FOR ANYBODY TO FOLLOW."

With households now producing record amounts of recyclable waste, private companies employed by councils to process Britain's rubbish are unable to cope. Instead, they sell the waste to developing countries who use it to manufacture new products

Environmental campaigners said the millions of miles clocked up by "waste ships" would generate huge levels of carbon emissions while critics are demanding to know why councils are employing increasingly aggressive methods to meet Government targets on recycling if they can't deal with current levels.

Turkey is the most popular destination, taking 2.4million tons of metal, 260 tons of plastic and 13 tons of paper. China is next with 1.9million tons of paper, 390,000 tons of metal and 78,000 tons of plastic. Other bizarre destinations for British rubbish include Ghana, Vietnam and Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. Campaigners are worried as EU rules do not force companies to check that waste is recycled on arrival.

The Netherlands has the highest rate of home births in the western world at 30 percent, only 10 percent of women in labour are given pain relief and caesareans are relatively rare. In contrast, about a third of babies are born by caesarean in the United States and about 20 percent in Britain, while only a tiny fraction of women have home births.

Midwives who assist home births can even be prosecuted in some U.S. states.

The disclosure that Germany is to stay away from the games' opening ceremonies in August could encourage PRESIDENT NICOLAS SARKOZY OF FRANCE TO JOIN IN A GESTURE OF DEFIANCE AND COMPLICATE GORDON BROWN'S DETERMINATION TO ATTEND THE OLYMPICS. Brown is to meet the Tibetan spiritual leader when he visits Britain in May, but is determined to be in Beijing. "We are fully engaged in supporting the Olympics," said David Miliband, the foreign secretary. "We want to see it as a success, and I think it's right that the prime minister represents us."

China had hoped to use the games to highlight its economic development and growing openness. But it is increasingly proving an opportunity FOR CRITICS TO BASH CHINA'S ONE-PARTY POLITICAL SYSTEM, HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES, TREATMENT OF MINORITIES AND TIGHTLY CONTROLLED MEDIA. The EU foreign ministers are to discuss the China quandary at lunch in Slovenia today, with calls being made for a common European position.

"WE DON'T SUPPORT A BOYCOTT AND DON'T INTEND TO BOYCOTT THE OPENING OF THE GAMES," A BRITISH FOREIGN OFFICE SPOKESMAN SAID. "None of the 27 [EU states] are calling for a boycott yet." The French foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, has described the boycott proposal as "interesting", while Sarkozy this week hedged his bets and said his attendance depended on China's conduct.

His platform is vague, promising a "national authority" to rescue Zimbabwe from 80% unemployment and an annual inflation rate of more than 100,000% - symptoms of an economic collapse that has prompted as much as one quarter of the 13 million population to leave the country. But what, and whom, Makoni stands for are mere details; THE MOST SIGNIFICANT FACT IS THAT HE IS RUNNING AGAINST MUGABE.

"OUR VOTES MUST GO TOGETHER WITH GUNS," Mugabe said in 1976, according to biographer Martin Meredith. "After all, any vote we shall have, shall have been the product of the gun. The gun which produces the vote should remain its security officer - its guarantor." What's more, even if Mugabe were to lose, ZIMBABWE'S ARMY COMMANDER, GENERAL CONSTANTINE CHIWENGA, HAS VOWED THAT THE ARMY WILL KEEP HIM IN POWER.

Zimbabwe's ambassador to South Africa, Simon Khaya Moyo, complained in February that the West believes "the only election that can be free and fair in Zimbabwe is one in which President Mugabe is defeated," and there is some truth to that. The world will not re-engage with Zimbabwe as long as Mugabe presides over what is widely viewed as a corrupt dictatorship.

Update - HARARE (Reuters) - ZIMBABWE'S OPPOSITION CLAIMED VICTORY on Sunday based on early results from an election in which it is trying to unseat President Robert Mugabe after 28 years of power and end an economic collapse.

Companies with a lot of debt on their balance sheets could face increasing difficulty getting access to funds to expand or simply maintain their operations, WHICH WOULD ENABLE RIVALS WITH STRONGER BALANCE SHEETS LIKE WAL-MART STORES INC AND HOME DEPOT INC TO SCOOP UP MARKET SHARE. "Companies like Wal-Mart or Home Depot have strong balance sheets and can weather the storm. So, as the weaker contenders close stores, they'll be in a good position to grab that market share and increase their brand awareness," said Fred Dickson, director of retail research at D.A. Davidson & Co.

The tough economic backdrop, which makes consumers more reluctant to spend, coupled with rising cost pressures, has already prompted A NUMBER OF RETAILERS TO CLOSE STORES, AND MORE ARE LIKELY TO FOLLOW. "Many of our competitors are having substantial struggles and some are struggling to stay alive," Howard Lester, chief executive of upscale home goods retailer Williams-Sonoma Inc, said on an earnings conference call on Thursday.

"While we're sorry it's happening for them, we are seeing that as an opportunity for us to gain share. And CONSUMERS MAY BE MORE CONSCIOUS OF AVOIDING COMPANIES THAT APPEAR TO BE FACING FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES or losing business," Dickson said. "Companies on a losing streak could find it tough to turn the tide," he said.

Over the past several days, the North has lashed out at the new conservative government in Seoul and its ally the United States by test-firing missiles, expelling South Korean officials at a joint factory park in the North and threatening to slow down a nuclear disarmament deal.

"The Korean People's Army (KPA) will counter any slightest move of the south side for 'pre-emptive attack' with more rapid and more powerful pre-emptive attack of its own mode," the North's KCNA news agency quoted one of its military officials as saying.

The new chairman of the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff last week said the South would hit North Korea's nuclear weapon base to disable it if the North attacks but had no plans for a pre-emptive strike, according to the Defence Ministry. The South's Defence Ministry said it would decide whether to respond in the next few days to a North Korean threat also made in the dispatch to cut back on inter-Korean military talks.

The increase came after Egypt, a leading exporter, imposed a formal ban on selling rice abroad to keep local prices down, and the Philippines announced plans for a major purchase of the grain in the international market to boost supplies. Global rice stocks are at their lowest since 1976. On Friday the Indian government imposed further restrictions on the exports of rice to combat rising local inflation, with traders warning that the new regime would de facto stop all India's non-basmati rice sales.

"I HAVE NO IDEA HOW IMPORTING COUNTRIES WILL GET RICE, "said Chookiat Ophaswongse, president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association. He forecast that prices would rise further.

The Philippines, the world's largest buyer of the grain, said on Thursday it wanted to purchase 500,000 tonnes after it failed to buy a similar amount earlier this month. It is struggling to import 1.8m-2.1m tonnes to cover a production shortfall and on Thursday confirmed it would tap emergency stocks maintained by Vietnam and Thailand.