Geneva - An art house in Lucerne, Switzerland, will auction off this summer the doctorate diploma issued to Albert Einstein from the school of mathematics and natural sciences at Zurich University, Swiss media reported Saturday.

His dissertation was entitled A New Determination of Molecular Dimensions and he received his PhD in 1906 at the age of 26. Einstein went on to win the Nobel Prize in Physics for his discoveries in photoelectric effects, which he started while at Zurich.

Geneva - The multilateral approach of the new United States administration offers a chance for making "real progress" in efforts for global disarmament, the Russian foreign minister said Saturday.

"The arrival of the new US administration and President Obama changes the situation because now the questions of multilateral disarmament has become a priority, which was not seen under the previous administration," Sergey Lavrov told reporters in Geneva.

Geneva  - US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to "reset" the relationship between the two countries and start work on negotiating a new nuclear arms reduction treaty.

"We are hopeful that this first meeting will lead to others and improve our ability to work together on a range of matters significant to our two countries and the world," Clinton said after the dinner meeting in Geneva.

Geneva - US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met with the Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey in Geneva and discussed the ongoing tax fraud investigation into UBS and the Russia-Georgia conflict.

Calmy-Rey told reporters after the meeting that she said to Clinton that the US should not put more pressure on Switzerland regarding UBS, but that the Swiss would work more closely with Washington to find avenues to share information.

She also confirmed that Switzerland's embassies in Georgia and Russia now housed interest offices of each of those countries. The interest offices started work on Thursday.

Moscow and Tbilisi cut diplomatic ties following the conflict between the countries last summer.

Geneva - The former Honda Formula One team could make a return in the 2009 season in some guise, it emerged Thursday.

Chief Executive Nick Fry confirmed at the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) meeting in Geneva that an announcement either way would be made very soon.

"I can't say any more at this stage," said Fry.

Geneva - The Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) revealed its plans Thursday to ensure all F1 teams make it through the global economic crisis safely and can participate in the sport until the end of the 2012 season.

Among the proposals presented at a press conference in Geneva is a new points-scoring system whereby the points for a race win would rise from 10 to 12, with nine points for second and seven for third.

Positions four to eight would continue to score in the current 5- 4-3-2-1 manner.