Moscow/ Tbilisi, Georgia  - German Foreign Minister Frank- Walter Steinmeier arrived in Tbilisi on Thursday in an effort to revive peace talks over simmering conflicts in Georgia's rebel regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

"We don't have any illusions about simple answers, but we cannot stand by without acting on this conflict. That would be irresponsible," Steinmeier told journalist on the flight over.

Steinmeier's task will be to align the views from Georgia with the demands of Moscow and the Russian-backed separatist regions.

Algiers - A German construction company has secured the contract to build the world's third-largest mosque in Algiers, during a two-day visit to the Algerian capital by Chancellor Angela Merkel, it was announced Thursday.

German architects Engel and Zimmermann, together with construction engineers Krebs and Kiefer, are to build the mosque to hold 40,000 faithful over the next four years.

Other members of the large business delegation travelling with the chancellor on her first visit to the country expressed confidence that other major deals would soon be signed.

Among the contracts under consideration is the delivery of four German-built frigates to the Algerian navy at a cost of some 5 billion euros (8 billion dollars).

Algiers  - German Chancellor Angela Merkel used the occasion of her 54th birthday Thursday to express support for the women of Algeria in their fight for equal rights.

Stockholm - A German woman who was extradited to Sweden on suspicion of beating two young children to death will likely face charges next week, a police spokesman said Thursday.

Vasteras police spokesman Borje Stromberg told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa that the prosecutor was slated to present the charges on Wednesday but was not sure when the trial will begin.

Stromberg said the police have concluded their interviews with the suspect.

The woman, a student, was extradited to Sweden end of April after an attack on a 23-year-old woman and her children, aged one and three, on March 17 in the small town of Arboga.

Berlin - Europe's biggest carmaker Volkswagen AG said Thursday it h

Frankfurt - Workers in the German banking sector embarked on brief token strikes Thursday in support of demands for higher pay. In the main banking centre of Frankfurt, some 500 clerks held a demonstration called by services union Verdi.

Verdi, Germany's second-largest union with some 2.2 million members, called the so-called "warning strikes" ahead of a third round of talks with employers set for Tuesday next week in Frankfurt.

"We are demanding a respectable rise. It is urgently necessary," Verdi spokesman Leonhard Regneri said, pointing to inflation in Germany running at well over 3 per cent.