Beijing - Premier Wen Jiabao on Friday defended China's policies in Tibetan areas, saying they had achieved economic development and led to "peace and stability."

"The situation in Tibet is on the whole peaceful and stable," Wen told reporters in the first remarks by a top Chinese leader since Tuesday's 50th anniversary of a failed Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule.

The government's policies and legislation had "provided for the freedom and rights of the people of Tibet, particularly their freedom of religion," he said.

Los Angeles  - Bristol Palin, whose teenage pregnancy was an early problem in the vice-presidential campaign of her mother, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, has split up from her fiance, just two-and-a- half months after giving birth to their son.

People magazine reported Thursday that her split from fiance Levi Johnston happened several weeks ago and was mutual.

Tallinn  - Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said Thursday that the Baltic state could adopt the euro as its national currency by the middle of next year.

"It is possible that Estonia will request an extraordinary assessment from the European Commission and European Central Bank (ECB) this year," Ansip told a news conference in the Estonian capital, Tallinn.

"The purpose of requesting the assessment is so we could join the eurozone from July 1, 2010," he said.

Islamabad, Mar. 12: After the assassination of Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif and Asif Ali Zardari stood on a same platform and vowed to work together to establish democracy in Pakistan, but now it seems that Sharif is cursing himself for joining hands with Zardari.

According to The Dawn, during a telephonic interview Nawaz Sharif said: “My biggest political mistake was my decision to trust Asif Ali Zardari.”

London, Mar. 12: Former Pakistan Prime Minister and Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) Nawaz Sharif has accused the Zardari regime of plotting to assassinate him.

In an interview with The Guardian, Sharif blamed President Asif Ali Zardari of running an ‘elected dictatorship’.

“I have recently received certain information from own sources, about certain forces who are active against me. Threats to my life come from high-ranking government officials, certain topmost people in the government, my sources say,” Sharif said.

Washington - US President Barack Obama called on legislators to limit the number of pet projects for their own districts that are routinely included in spending bills, but refused to completely oppose the publicly unpopular practice known as earmarks.

A renewed debate over the merits of earmarks has been swirling in Washington over the past few weeks as Congress debated a 410-billion- dollar budget for the remainder of the 2009 fiscal year, which ends in September.