What's Happening Today - Wednesday 17 November

Japan:

WHO Global Forum on urbanisation and health.

Cambodia: 

Final day of Cambodia - Laos - Myanmar - Vietnam summit in Phnom Penh; Thai Prime Ministers Abhisit Vejjajiva, Lao Prime Minister Bouason Boupphavan attend

Cook Islands: 

General election; referendum on political reform might be held on same day

Russia: 

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan visits to meet counterpart Dmitriy Medvedev; second and final day

Azerbaijan:

Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinezhad arrives ahead of Caspian Sea littoral states' summit tomorrow; meets counterpart Ilham Aliyev for bilateral talks today

Kyrgyzstan: 

Trial kicks off of former top officials charged with shooting of protesters on 7 April; former President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, his brother Zhanysh, former Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov and others tried in absentia 

Iran: 

Major air defence exercise Defenders of Skies of Velayat-3 continues (-20) 

UAE: 

Lebanese Prime Minister Sa'd Al-Hariri visits as part of tour which also included Russia (-22) 

Ukraine: 

Test pumping of Venezuelan oil via Odessa-Brody pipeline to Belarus; move likely to anger Moscow, which wants to use pipeline to pump its oil

Madagascar: 

Constitutional referendum held as part of political transition following ouster of President Marc Ravalomanana in 2009

South Africa: 

Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping continues three-day visit; today meets President Jacob Zuma, parliament speaker Max Sisulu, attends South Africa-China Bi-National Commission meeting

Nigeria: 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrives from Kenya as part of regional tour, meets President Goodluck Jonathan 

Greece: 

Annual march on US embassy in Athens; coincides with anniversary of 1973 student uprising, which was crushed when tanks were sent to Athens polytechnic, killing 20 students

Moldova:

Acting Moldovan President Mihai Ghimpu described the recently signed border agreement with Romania as unconstitutional

Italy: 

Moldovan Prime Minister Vlad Filat visits to meet counterpart Silvio Berlusconi (-18)

Holland:

International Pension Summit (to Nov. 19).

Belgium:

EU Parliament in Brussels hosts international conference on relations between EU, Turkey and the Kurds (-18); South African archbishop Desmond Tutu, Belgian EU Presidency, EU Parliament representatives among attendees

Belgium:

6th Annual Brussels Climate Change Conference 2010 (to Nov. 18).

France:

French President Nicolas Sarkozy meets IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn (1600).

France:

17th Special Meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas opens in Paris amid an increasingly emotive debate over quotas for Bluefin Tuna. (to Nov. 27)

UK:

Confederation of British Industry holds "climate change summit."

NATO:

Following up after the NATO Parliamentary Assembly adopted a resolution on cooperation with Russia. Officials called Russia a reliable and responsible partner in the spheres of nuclear nonproliferation and arms control. 

US: 

British Foreign Secretary William Hague meets Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ahead of NATO summit in Lisbon on 19-20 Nov

Brazil: 

Zambian President Rupiah Banda visits (-18); addresses business forum, meets outgoing counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva tomorrow 

US:

House Democrats caucus to chose their leaders for the next Congress.

US:

Assistant Secretary of State Phil Gordon speaks on NATO's future, at Atlantic Forum, ahead of weekend NATO summit.

Colombia:

Venezuela to pay approximately $280 million owed to Colombian firms and has recognized approximately $400 million in debt from a total of $800 million, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said

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