Vienna - The international Association of Space Explorers (ASE) on Tuesday called on the United Nations to develop strategies against asteroids threatening to hit earth, in a report presented at the United Nations in Vienna.

Among the known 5,600 so-called near-earth objects, and the 500,000 additional ones expected to be discovered in the next 15 years, "several dozen will pose an uncomfortably high risk of striking Earth and inflicting local or regional devastation," the astronauts said in their report.

Vienna- The price for crude oil produced by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries

Vienna - Western countries on Monday questioned proposed nuclear technology aid for Syria, while developing countries did not want to defer the project for the country that allegedly worked on a secret nuclear reactor, diplomats said.

In a meeting of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) member states, IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei also defended the project that Syria applied for with his organization.

At issue is a project worth 350,000 dollars, to be spent over three years, in which the IAEA would help Syria define a suitable location for a nuclear reactor.

Vienna- Michael Spindelegger is set to become foreign minister in Austria's new coalition cabinet, his conservative People's Party said Monday, after incumbent Ursula Plassnik stepped down Sunday over a dispute on European Union referenda.

The People's Party, which on Sunday agreed to govern as a junior partner with the Social Democratic Party, announced the names of its ministers Monday.

Vienna - Austria's anti-doping agency NADA on Monday banned Austrian cyclist Bernhard Kohl for two years after he was found to have used blood doping in this year's Tour de France.

The verdict was "disappointing," Austrian news agency APA quoted the 26-year-old as saying.

The NADA hearing came after Kohl was heard by the body earlier in the day. Kohl said he hoped his full disclosure would make him get away with a one-year ban instead of the normal two years.

Vienna- This weekend's sudden winter onslaught has sharply increased the danger of avalanches in the Austrian alps, reported the APA news service Monday.

The peaks and slopes of western Austria's Upper Styria region are especially hard hit, reported the agency. The Salzkammergut region around Salzburg reported 1.5 metres of new snowfall in the last few days. In parts of the federal states of Salzburg and Voralberg the avalanche warning system was set to Level 3, or high danger.