Vienna - Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg said he has doubts about Austria's proposal for an EU-sponsored package to rescue banks in Central and Eastern Europe, according to an interview with Austrian weekly News published Wednesday.

Austria's government last week called on CEE countries, the European Union and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to expand current measures in order to prevent a credit crunch in the region.

London  - A highly-explosive row erupted in Britain Wednesday over allegations that British agents could have been involved in the torture of a Guantanamo detainee, and that the US government put pressure on courts in Britain not to release the relevant evidence.

Conservative member of parliament David Davis, describing the matter as one of "utmost national importance," urged the Labour government to clarify allegations made in the case of Binyam Mohamed, an Ethiopian who lived in Britain prior to his arrest in 2002.

Washington - US President Barack Obama Wednesday announced new restrictions on the salaries of Wall Street executives seeking government aid and lambasted financial firms for shirking their responsibilities as the country suffers a severe recession.

Obama said executives from companies getting "exceptional assistance" from the government would be limited to a salary of 500,000 dollars per year, which Obama described as a "fraction" of the millions of dollars that top executives typically receive.

Herzlia, Israel  - Iran is the biggest threat facing not just Israel but humanity, and time to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons is running out, Israeli opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday.

Netanyahu, whom polls predict as winner of next Tuesday's Israeli election, told an international conference in Herzlia, north of Tel Aviv, that his biggest mission if elected "will be to deal with the Iran threat."

Washington/Brussels  - The European Union on Wednesday applauded US President Barack Obama for warning against protectionist measures in the midst of a global economic crisis.

Obama, in interviews with US television networks Tuesday night, said he was worried about the US Congress sending signals that could trigger a trade war between the US, the EU and other countries.

Pristina - Kosovo on Wednesday began creating its own secret service, appointing former police officer Bashkim Smakaj as director of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency (KIA).

President Fatmir Sejdiu and Prime Minister Hashim Thaci made the appointment at a ceremony in Pristina, two months later than expected since Kosovo had to wait for international approval.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia last February and was recognized by more than 50 countries, including the United States and most of the European Union. Serbia, backed by Russia, however, bitterly opposes Kosovo independence.