Lawyers

• Unification with China not on agenda, says Taiwan president

  Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou said on Thursday the island was not ready to discuss unification with China, sending a firm message to an increasingly assertive Beijing eager to absorb what it considers a renegade province.

• China's Xi touts women's rights at United Nations, U.S. critical

  China's President Xi Jinping told the United Nations on Sunday that all Chinese women have the opportunity to excel, touting his government's record on women's rights as the United States slammed Beijing and others for jailing women for their views.

• Pope meets Fidel Castro, warns against ideology on Cuba trip

  Pope Francis met Cuba's revolutionary leader Fidel Castro on Sunday hours after warning Cubans to beware the dangers of ideology and the lure of selfishness as their country enters a new era of closer ties with the United States.

• Kerry urges 'genuine democracy' at U.S. flag ceremony in Cuba

  U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry declared a new era in relations as he celebrated restored diplomatic ties in Havana on Friday, but he also urged political change in Cuba, telling Cubans they should be free to choose their own leaders.

• China stresses nationalism in war anniversary propaganda push

  China plans to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War Two in Asia, and its fight against Japan, with a stream of movies, concerts, performances and exhibitions, officials said on Monday, in an effort to strengthen "nationalism and culture".

• End of communism not all good for Christianity: Vatican

  The end of communist rule in Europe, which began 25 years ago this month, was not all positive for Christianity because it brought tensions between Rome and Russia back to the surface, a senior Vatican official said on Monday.

• Stasi victims still in trauma as Germany cheers 25 years since wall fell

  Sunday marks 25 years since the collapse of the regime that imprisoned and persecuted them, but many victims of former communist East Germany are still so traumatized that celebrating the unification of their country may forever be a challenge.

• Germany celebrates 25th anniversary of fall of Berlin Wall

  More than a million Germans and people from around the world on Sunday celebrated the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the event that more than any other marked the end of the Cold War.

• China likely will never open all files on painful past, official says

  China's ruling Communist Party will likely never open all the files on its recent painful past, including the Cultural Revolution and Great Leap Forward, and sees no need to reassess those periods, a senior party historian said on Monday.

• U.S. bans Hungarians from entry over corruption charges

  The United States has banned several Hungarian citizens from entry and alleged that they were engaged in or benefiting from corruption, prompting the Hungarian government to call for a show of evidence.

• China asserts paternal rights over Hong Kong in democracy clash

  Just days before China was set to deliver its edict on electoral reform in Hong Kong, Beijing’s most senior official in the city held a rare meeting with several local lawmakers whose determined push for full democracy had incensed Beijing's Communist leaders.