Moscow - Russian President Dmirty Medvedev on Wednesday brokered peace talks in the 20-year-old frozen conflict between Moldova and its separatist region.

Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin and Transdniestr leader Igor Smirnov signed a statement in Moscow pledging to continue direct talks "with the goal of invigorating the negotiating process for the political resolution of the Transdniestr conflict," news agency Interfax reported.

The meeting comes ahead of parliamentary and presidential elections in Moldova on April 5.

Moscow - Russian President Dmirty Medvedev on Wednesday brokered peace talks in the 20-year-old frozen conflict between Moldova and its separatist region.

Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin and Transdniestr leader Igor Smirnov signed a statement in Moscow pledging to continue direct talks "with the goal of invigorating the negotiating process for the political resolution of the Transdniestr conflict," news agency Interfax reported.

The meeting comes ahead of parliamentary and presidential elections in Moldova on April 5.

Brussels  - European Union leaders meet in Brussels on Thursday and Friday to forge a common position on how to better regulate the international financial markets, whose persisting crisis is feeding into the bloc's rapidly-deteriorating economic outlook.

The spring council meeting in Brussels is seen as a key stepping stone towards London's Group of 20 summit on April 2, which will be called on to overhaul the global financial sector and avoid future credit crunches.

Prague - The government of Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek faces a March 24 confidence vote in Parliament's lower house, the first such challenge during his country's rotating presidency of the European Union, the Parliament said Tuesday.

The main opposition Social Democrats, who have not eased their attacks on Topolanek's government during the EU presidency, which started January 1 and ended June 30, summoned the vote over a scandal in which the premier faces allegations of meddling with the media.

Rafah, Egypt  - Egyptian security forces on Tuesday prevented a member in the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas from crossing into the Gaza Strip carrying some 850,000 dollars in cash, according to an Egyptian security source.

The member, who was not named, was among the delegates leaving Egypt via the Rafah border crossing following the conclusion of a first round of the Cairo-hosted intensive reconciliation talks between rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah.

Prague - The Czech government of Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek Tuesday withdrew Czech-US missile defence treaties from Parliament's lower house in a move that prevents the chamber from striking them down.

"It does not mean that we would give up on the ratification process," Topolanek said at a briefing televised on the CT24 news channel, adding that the cabinet may re-submit the treaties to the house at any time.