Geneva - Rwandan President Paul Kagame criticized on Wednesday the decision to arrest his aide, Rose Kabuye, earlier this week, saying it was a violation of his nation's sovereignty.

"If we are to believe that any village judge in France can indict someone from Rwanda, then I assume the reverse is also true," Kagame told reporters, adding that the international justice system needed to be "harmonized."

Kagame was speaking at a press conference of the International Telecommunication Union on cybersecurity and climate change in Geneva.

Belgrade - Serbian bishops on Wednesday asked their ailing Patriarch Pavle to remain at the helm of the Serbian Orthodox Church, effectively turning down his plea to be relieved of his duties.

The Serbian bishops' conference, the Sabor, formally issued its request to Pavle after marathon sessions Tuesday and Wednesday.

Frankfurt  - Union leaders said Wednesday they reached agreement with employers on a pay deal for 3.6 million workers in Germany's engineering industry.

The breakthrough came during marathon talks lasting more than 24 hours and averted the threat of an all-out nationwide strike.

Moscow - The Russian Finance Ministry on Wednesday cut its oil forecast to 50 dollars per barrel for next year as the global financial crisis drags down demand for the country's largest export.

"This is substantially lower than what has been fixed in the budget," Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin told lawmakers in a televised meeting. The federal budget was pegged to a price of oil of 95 dollars for 2009, one of the world's highest forecasts among oil exporting countries.

Vienna - Austrian telecommunications provider Telekom Austria AG said Wednesday its third-quarter net profits had dropped by 6.2 per cent to 163 million euros
(207 million dollars), mainly due to higher interest expenses after it acquired Velcom last year.

Operating income rose to 262 million euros, increasing by 1.5 per cent from the third quarter of 2007.

The takeover of Belarus mobile phone operator Velcom dampened profits, but also boosted Telekom Austria's revenues, which grew by 4 per cent to 1.33 billion euros.