Athens/Nicosia  - Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders agreed to hold weekly peace talks on Friday in an effort to find a formula and keep the momentum going to reunite the divided Mediterranean island.

It was the fourth meeting between Cyprus President Dimitris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehemt Ali Talat since they launched a new round of peace talks on September 3.

Both sides are hoping to end a conflict that has dragged on for decades and which trheatens Turkey's aspirations of joining the European Union. The two leaders are scheduled to meet again on October 13.

Nicosia - Greek Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias has suggested a series of proposals towards further reconciliation of the Greek and Turkish parts of the divided Mediterranean island.

Among the proposals broadcast on Cypriot television Wednesday morning was the cancellation of the annual autumn military exercises by the National Guard in the Greek Cypriot south of the island and the Turkish Army in the north.

"I also propose a full demilitarization of the Old City of Nicosia and the setting up of a demilitarized zone," Christofias said in a speech to the Council of Europe shown on television.

New York - Greek Cypriot President Demetris Christofias on Wednesday vowed to work out a definitive settlement with the Turk Cypriot community to end the ethnic division and achieve a federal government on Cyprus.

Christofias has been pursuing negotiations with Mehmet Ali Talat, leader of the Turkish Cypriots, in the last year. He now said that all Cypriots should agree on what they want and achieve it.

Nicosia, Sept 24: Gholamhossein Nejabat, Managing Director of the National Petrochemical Company (NPC) of Iran, has said that 20 subsidiaries of NPC have been earmarked for privatization.

He added that so far Carbon Iran, Farabi, Abadan, Kharg, Isfahan, Arak, Shiraz, Razi and Polika Karaj have been wholly privatized and that 52 of the 81 subsidiaries of the National Petrochemical Company have been semi-privatized.

Nejabad told journalists that more companies would be privatized if Iran Privatization Organisation approved the transfer of other petrochemical companies as a single block or holding companies.

Athens/Nicosia - Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders are meeting on Thursday to discuss power-sharing and governance in a new round of peace talks set on ending a decades old conflict and reunite the divided Mediterranean island.

It is the third meeting between Cyprus President Dimitris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehemt Ali Talat since they launched a new round of peace talks on September 3.

Peace talks have been deadlocked after former president Tassos Papadopoulos led the Greek-Cypriot rejection of a UN reunification plan in a 2004 referendum.

Turkish Cypriots had overwhelmingly voted in favour.

Nicosia, Sept 18 : The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in its latest monthly report has lowered its forecast for 2009 world oil demand to 0.9 million barrels a day (b/d), that is 1.00 per cent, compared with 1.03 per cent, as was the previous estimate.

Oil consumption next year OPEC forecasts will average 87.7 million b/d. The basic reason for the lowering of the forecast is falling demand in the United States which is the largest consumer in the world