Google Inc is road-testing cars that steer, stop and start without a human driver, the company says.

The goal is to "help prevent traffic accidents, free up people's time and reduce carbon emissions" through ride sharing and "the new 'highway trains of tomorrow,"' project leader Sebastian Thrun wrote Saturday on Google's corporate blog.

The cars are never unmanned, Thrun wrote. He said a backup driver is always behind the wheel to monitor the software.

It...

A vessel with 12 sailors on board sank in the Black Sea near city of Kerch due to storm, Crimea's Emergency Ministry said Monday; Kazinform refers to China Daily.

Eight of the sailors were rescued and taken to hospital, according to the ministry. The crew included ten Russians and two Ukrainians.

"The cargo ship under Mongol flag gave the SOS on Sunday night during a strong storm," the ministry said, adding that the vessel was carrying metal.

Two Ukrainian and one ...

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has confirmed that talks with the Taliban have been going on for "quite some time" to end the fighting in the war-ravaged Central Asian state.

"We have been talking to the Taliban as countryman to countryman," Karzai told CNN.

"Not as a regular official contact with the Taliban with a fixed address but rather unofficial personal contacts have been going on for quite some time," he went on in an interview to air in full lat...

Russia will come back to the world grain market as a leader in the foreseeable future, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said at a Sunday meeting dedicated to the Agriculture and Processing Industry Day.

"Our harvest and reserves fully meet the domestic grain demand. I am confident that Russia will return to the world grain market in the foreseeable future, and it will be a leader," he said.

The Russian government suspended grain exports in early August due to severe drought ...

Issues of cooperation development between Kazakhstan and the Council of Europe as well as preparation to the OSCE Summit scheduled for December 1-2 in Astana were discussed at a meeting of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Kazakhstan to Belgium, Luxemburg, Head of Missions to the European Union and NATO Yerik Utembayev with Thorbjørn Jagland, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

The Head of the Kazakh diplomatic mission emphasized the necessity of promotion...

An earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale jolted off Alaska's Andreanof Islands late Thursday, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The quake, which hit at 0326 GMT, was centered some 100 km east-southeast of Adak, one of the Andreanof Islands that make up part of Alaska's Aleutian Islands, with a depth of 20.6 km.

Source: KAZINFORM

Two of the 16 Russians arrested for cyber crimes in the United States have pleaded guilty of money laundering and were sentenced to prison terms and fines, according to Russian Vice-Consul in New York Alexander Otchainov.

He told Tass on Thursday Anton Yuferitsin was sentenced to 10 months in prison and a fine of 38.413 dollars yet in June. Another accused, Alexander Sorokin, was sentenced to six months and a fine of 100 dollars. Sorokin, who was released on bail, did not appear in court ...

The Embassy of Kazakhstan in Bishkek received a letter from the State Directorate of Kyrgyzstan on Rehabilitation and Development of Osh and Jalal-Abad cities last week. The press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan informs.

The letter confirmed that Kyrgyz side received all the construction materials that had been sent by Kazakhstan as humanitarian aid.

'On behalf of the Kyrgyz Government and all Kyrgyz people we express deep gratitude to the Government of Kaz...

Russia's Soyuz TMA-M spacecraft blasted off on Friday for the International Space Station (ISS) from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan.

The spacecraft has three crewmembers on board who are Russian cosmonauts Alexander Kaleri and Oleg Skripochka and U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly.

The docking of the spacecraft with the ISS is scheduled for October 10 at 4:02 Moscow time (0:02 GMT).

Soyuz TMA-M is a new model and was designed to replace Soyuz TMA spacecraft currently in

...

Over 100,000 people have applied to be volunteers for the London 2012 Games, revealed the London Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) on Wednesday.

LOCOG is looking for up to 70,000 volunteers for the London 2012 Games and there have been more than 100,000 people applying to be a Games Maker volunteer at the halfway point in the six week application window.

LOCOG chairman Sebastian Coe said, "We are thrilled with the response we've had so far ...

Geologists have discovered a large reserve of rare earths, which are vital for production of many high-tech products ranging from iPods to hybrid cars, in Central China's Hubei province, local authorities confirmed Thursday; Kazinform refers to China Daily.

The newly-found deposit sits at the foot of Mt. Laoyin in Longba Township of Zhuxi County, in Shiyan City, a spokesman with the Hubei Provincial Land and Resources Department said.

"Geologists are investigating the make-up,...

Estonia's president inaugurated on Wednesday a monument to the Estonian soldiers who have died while serving as part of the international force in Afghanistan, the president's office announced.

Toomas Hendrik Ilves unveiled the memorial during a visit to Camp Bastion in Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan, where the Estonian military contingent is based.

"We remember and mourn all the brave Estonian troops who have fallen in Afghanistan for the sake of the security of loc...

Ukraine's government has approved a dress code for its employees and visitors, local media reported Wednesday.

"Prescriptions were introduced in order to improve discipline and business style among the government's employees," according to Cabinet's statement posted on its website.

In particular, all staff members have been recommended to have at least three business suits and prohibited to come to the office in the same clothes for two consecutive days.

Employees ...

Within the framework of a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg a Kazakh delegation headed by Vice Speaker of Senate Alexander Sudin and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Belgium and Luxembourg Yerik Utembayev has met with PACE President Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Secretary General of the Assembly Mateo Sorinas.

The issues of bilateral cooperation and prospects of development of further relations between the Kazakh Parlia...

Hungary says it will cost tens of millions of dollars and take at least a year to clean up the damage caused by a spill of industrial toxic red sludge.

Emergency workers are trying to stop the spill, from an alumina plant, from flowing into major waterways, including the River Danube.

A state of emergency has been declared in three western counties after the chemical waste burst from a reservoir.

Four people are known to have died, and 120 were injured. Six more are missing....

The European Union (EU) on Tuesday launched free trade negotiations with Malaysia, aiming to open business opportunities worth billions of euros for both sides.

The negotiations were officially launched by European Commission President Jose Manual Barroso and Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak on the sidelines of the eighth Asia- Europe Meeting (ASEM), which wrapped up here on Tuesday.

EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said he expected an agreement to "provide Malaysia...

Australian behavioral scientists on Tuesday ruled out the theory that happiness is linked solely to genetics, in a study viewed as a breakthrough in psychological research.

The results of a 25-year study on 60,000 Germans showed long- term happiness is determined by lifestyle decisions including choice of partner, employment and religion.

According to ABC News, study leader and Associate Professor at the University of Melbourne of Australia, Bruce Headey, said the study turns the l...

U.S. President Barack Obama told Congress that there is no need for major changes in current Afghan strategy, according to a letter released by the White House on Monday.

"We are continuing to implement the policy as described in December and do not believe further adjustments are required at this time," Obama said in the letter sent to the Senate and House of Representatives regarding a report to Congress on Afghanistan-Pakistan policy.

"As the Congress continues

...

The scientific community does not expect the end of the world in 2012 as predicted by the Mayan Prophecy, although increased solar activity may harm satellites and endanger astronauts, a Russian doctor of physical and mathematical sciences said on Monday.

"The solar exposure on near-Earth space will increase, causing perturbations in the atmosphere, which will break space apparatus," Vladimir Kuznetsov who works for the Institute of Earth magnetism, Ionosphere and Radio waves

...

The FBI and law enforcement agencies in Ukraine, the Netherlands and Britain are tracking down international cyber criminals who stole $70 million by using malicious software that captured passwords and account numbers to log onto online bank accounts.

At a press briefing on Friday, the FBI said Operation Trident Breach began in May 2009 when agents in Omaha, Nebraska, were alerted to some of the stolen money, which was flowing in bulk payments to 46 bank accounts around the United States...

A Japanese researcher who discovered how to make stem cells from ordinary skin cells and avoid the ethical quandaries of making them from human eggs could be a candidate for the medicine award when the 2010 Nobel Prize announcements kick off on Monday, experts said. Kazinform refers to China Daily.

Several prominent Nobel guessers have pointed to Kyoto University Professor Shinya Yamanaka as a potential winner of the coveted award.

Yamanaka in 2007 discovered how to tinker with hum...

Former Moscow mayor Yury Luzhkov, axed by President Dmitry Medvedev last week, has no intention of leaving politics, he said in an interview.

However, Luzhkov told the Moscow-based The New Times magazine that he had no intention of forming a political party.

"I am going to form my own political movement," he told the magazine.

He did not rule out that the organization could be linked to the Russian Movement for Democratic Reform organization, created in 1991.
...

Gunmen attacked tankers in Islamabad on Monday transporting fuel to coalition troops in Afghanistan, police said, a move likely to delay the reopening of a supply route through Pakistan. Kazinform refers to China Daily.

"There were at least 12 men carrying arms. They first opened fire and killed three guards and then set tankers on fire," senior police officer Mirwaiz Niaz told Reuters. Thirteen tankers were burned, he said.

Pakistan will re-open a supply route for coa

...

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will meet with senior United Russia officials on Friday to discuss possible candidates for the vacant post of mayor of Moscow, the premier's spokesman said.

"Putin will hold talks on possible candidates for Moscow mayor," Dmitry Peskov said, adding that the final list would be forwarded to President Dmitry Medvedev.

According to the law, the list of the candidates should be presented to the president within 14 days after the previous ...

Tens of thousands protest in Brussels over austerity measures

BRUSSELS. September 30. KAZINFORM Tens of thousands of workers marched through streets in Brussels on Wednesday to protest the budget-slashing plans taken by many European governments to rein in deficits.

The demonstration, organized by the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), could be the biggest one in Brussels in decades. The organizer expected 100,000 workers would participate, however, the ex...

The first part of a three-part Review Conference ahead of the OSCE Summit in the field of humanitarian dimension has been started in Warsaw today.

As reported earlier, on August 3, 2010 the OSCE Ministerial Council decided to hold OSCE Summit in Astana on December 1-2.  It was also decided to hold the three-part review conference ahead of the Summit: the first part in Warsaw on September 30 - October 8, 2010; the second and third parts in Vienna on October 18-26 and in Astana on Nove...

A blast in the building of the Vladimir Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine in Kiev Wednesday night killed two people and left one more person injured, Kiev police officials said; Kazinform refers to Itar-Tass.

The blast, which according to preliminary reports was caused by household gas, occurred at around 19:00 hours.

At the time of reporting, policemen and firefighters were working at the site of the accident.

Source: KAZINFORM...

The Belarusian deputy foreign minister has called for the easing of requirements for accession to the World Trade Organization.

Addressing the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Sergei Aleinik said negotiations on the accession of some 30 countries, including Belarus, to the world trade club had been held for more than a decade, but the results were minor.

"Is in normal?" the Belarusian official asked world diplomats at the UN headquarters in New York. "It is equal to d...

An earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale struck off the coast in New Zealand North Island ' s Bay of Plenty region on Wednesday afternoon.

It hit 90 km north of White Island, 230 km east of Auckland at 5.14 p.m. (04:14 GMT) at a depth of 280 km, New Zealand's Institute of Geological and Nuclear (GNS) Science said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties or damages.

The deep earthquake was widely felt across the North Island.

The Hawaii-base Pacific Tsuna...

The youngest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has been appointed to two key party posts, in a move widely seen as part of a gradual transfer of power.

State media said Kim Jong-un was named vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission of the ruling Workers' Party, which is holding a rare meeting.

He was also appointed to the party's central committee. Earlier, the younger Mr Kim was made a four-star general.

His father was re-elected as leader but is thought to be ...