Washington  - US stocks dropped Monday after US banking giant Citigroup announced a massive job cut, extending a steady decline over the last two weeks amid concerns of a deepening recession.

Citigroup said Monday that it was eliminating about 53,000 jobs from its international workforce and cutting costs by 20 per cent after suffering huge losses in the global financial crisis.

Washington  - US President George W Bush on Monday telephoned Libyan leader Moamer Gaddafi in a sign of warmer ties following an agreement to compensate victims of terrorism.

"The two leaders discussed that this agreement should help to bring a painful chapter in the history between our two countries closer to closure," Gordon Johndroe, a White House spokesman, said.

The US government confirmed earlier this month that 1.5 billion dollars had been transferred by Libya into a fund to compensate victims or their families for terrorist attacks.

San Jose  - Costa Rican President Oscar Arias and Chinese leader Hu Jintao agreed Monday in San Jose to launch talks towards a free-trade agreement between the two nations.

The heads of state met in the framework of Hu's visit to Costa Rica, the first that a Chinese leader has made to a Central American country.

Paris  - The European Union Council Presidency condemned on Monday in Paris the "increase of clashes in Georgia," expressing its "concern over the security of the international observers."

Putting observers in danger cannot be accepted, the French-led presidency said, calling on all sides of the dispute in the South Caucasus to hold the agreement on a ceasefire.

Athens  - Riot police clashed with demonstrators outside the US embassy in Athens on Monday during an annual march commemorating the 35th anniversary of a student uprising against the military dictatorship that once ruled Greece.

Some 100 youths wearing masks broke away from a peaceful march of more than 15,000 people through downtown Athens to mark the anniversary of the student uprising against the dictatorship and hurled Molotov cocktails, rocks and sticks at police outside the embassy.

Madrid  - Bernd Schuster is to continue as coach of troubled football club Real Madrid - for the time being.

Pedja Mijatovic, the club's sporting director, announced on Monday evening that Schuster still enjoys his confidence, despite recent results.

"My confidence in the coach has not changed since the beginning of the season," Mijatovic told the packed press conference at the Estadio Bernabeu.