• New Report Shows "Sprinkles" are Working to Prevent and Treat Childhood Nutrition Epidemic

Telecommunications
Lesotho Telecommunications Corporation was set up in 1980. There is a satellite earth station at Maeru.
Telephone and telefax: Automatic trunk services operate between Lesotho and South Africa. Satellite connections facilitate communication between Lesotho and most European countries, the USA and some countries of South America and the Far East. Dial 109 to book your connection.
Dialling code for Lesotho: IDD access code + 266, followed by subscriber's number (no area codes).
Banking
Central bank: Central Bank of Lesotho.
Main centre: Maseru.
Commercial banks: Lesotho Bank (government-owned) and the international banks NedBank and the Standard Bank of South Africa. Nedbank took over Standard Chartered Bank in Dec 1996.
Specialist banks: Lesotho Building Finance Corporation, Lesotho Agricultural Development Bank and Lesotho National Development Corporation.
Taxation
Corporate income tax: 35 per cent (15 per cent for manufacturing companies)
Capital gains tax: 35 per cent (15 per cent for manufacturing companies)
Branch tax: 35 per cent
Personal income tax: 40 per cent
Useful tips
Do not take photographs of the following places: the palace, police stations, government offices, airports, the central bank buildings, Lesotho Bank buildings, Royal Lesotho Defence Force buildings and offices.
Ask permission as a matter of courtesy before photographing anyone.
Wear seatbelts - avoid paying a traffic fine.
Do not give sweets to the children to discourage them from begging on the streets.
Walking alone at night is not advisable. Copyright: Walden Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved. Walden Publishing Ltd and JMIS assume no liability for the consequence of reliance upon any opinion or statement.
Document qedafr0020010908dv7100029

AFP news calendar for Monday, April 12 to Sunday, May 9
2,001 words

11 April 1999

Agence France-Presse

AFPR

English

Copyright (c) 1999 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved.
Monday, April 12:
BRUSSELS: NATO foreign ministers meet to assess Kosovo
situation
STRASBOURG,
France: Monthly session of the European parliament
(to 16)
THE HAGUE: War crimes trial of Bosnian Croats Dario
Kordic and Mario Cerkez begins
BONN: Hans Eichel officially takes over from Oskar
Lafontaine as German Finance Minister
BONN: Special meeting of Social Democrats (SPD)
GENEVA: Verdict due from World Trade Organisation
(WTO) on EU-US banana dispute
MADRID: Visit by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan
WASHINGTON: Chinese President Zhu Rongji continues visit
(until 14). Visits Chicago, New York and Boston
before six-day trip to Canada
BEIJING: Visit by Queen Beatrix of Netherlands and
Prince Consort Claus, then to Shanghai and
Hong Kong (to 19)
BEIJING: Nigerian President-elect Olusegun Obasanjo
tours China, India, Japan, Cote d'Ivoire,
Ghana and Togo
BEIJING: Visit by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak
(until 13)
MOSCOW: Visit to Caucasus of Norwegian Foreign
Minister and current president of Organisation
of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE),
Kurt Vollebaek (to 15)
MOSCOW: Syrian President Hafez al-Assad and Israeli
Foreign Minister Ariel Sharon (both to 13)
MANAGUA: Visit of Guatemalan President Alvaro Arzu,
then to Dominican Republic, France and Italy
(to 22)
MANAGUA: Organisation of American States (OAS) secretary
general Cesar Gaviria visits
MANAGUA: Central American foreign ministers meet
ATHENS: Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy visits
SAROSPATAK,
Hungary: Council of Europe ministerial meeting
on Euro-regions (to 16)
VILNIUS: UNESCO deputy director-general Daniel
Janicot visits (until 14)
BUDAPEST: Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio visits
(until 15)
BAGHDAD: Iraq-Iran committee on war victims meets
BISSAU: Special parliamentary session to examine
a report on arms trafficking to Casamance,
the disputed Senegalese territory on
Guinea-Bissau's border
KIGALI: EU special envoy Aldo Ajello visits (to 14).
Goes on to Ethiopia, Chad, Angola, Namibia,
Zambia, Mozanbique, Zimbabwe and South
Africa
SAO TOME and
PRINCIPE: Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Guterres
visits
Tuesday, April 13:
OSLO: US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright meets
Russia Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov
BELFAST: Talks on formation of Northern Irish assembly
WASHINGTON: Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar
visits, discusses Kosovo crisis with US
President Bill Clinton
ROME: Italian Prime Min,1$Ws Massimo D'Alema briefs
parliament on Kosovo crisis
PARIS: Mont Blanc tunnel disaster report submitted to
French government
LUXEMBOURG: Meeting of EU consumer affairs ministers
VILNIUS: Visit by Ukraine President Leonid Kuchma
(to be confirmed)
VILNIUS: Visit by Polish President Aleksander
Kwasniewski (to 15)
KIEV: Visit of German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer
with Finnish and Austrian counterparts
WARSAW: Visit of Danish Foreign Minister Niels Helveg
Petersen (to 15) and Dutch Defence
Minister Frank de Gave (to 14)
SOPHIA: Austrian President Thomas Klestil visits
AUSCHWITZ: Survivors' march
PARIS: Moroccan crown prince Sidi Mohamed visits
as part of Moroccan festival
RABAT: Belgian Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene
visits (to 14)
LAGOS: Symposium on Nigerian economy
Wednesday, April 14:
KUALA LUMPUR: Verdict expected in corruption trial of former
deputy PM Anwar Ibrahim
BRUSSELS: Special European summit in presence of
European Commission president-designate
Romano Prodi
BRUSSELS: European social-democrats discuss Kosovo
ST JOHN'S,
Canada: Visit by Chinese PM Zhu Rongji (to 20), then
tour of Canadian cities
TOKYO: US Defense Secretary William Cohen visits
BEIJING: Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat visits (to 15)
BUCHAREST: French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine visits
WASHINGTON: US Senate hearing on Salt Lake City Olympics
corruption scandal
PONTIAC,
Michigan: US doctor Jack Kevorkian to be sentenced
following murder conviction for helping
terminally-ill patient to die
VILNIUS: Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma visits
GENEVA: World Trade Organisation general council meets
ADEN: Trial opens of eight Britons and two Algerians
accused of terrorism
WASHINGTON: Senate hearings on Salt Lake City Olympics
corruption scandal
NEW YORK: Quebec's Prime Minister Lucien Bouchard
visits (to 16)
SANTO DOMINGO: Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo visits
Thursday, April 15:
MOSCOW: Duma (lower house of parliament) to begin
examining impeachment of President Boris Yeltsin
BONN: Special meeting of German lower chamber
of parliament the Bundestag to debate
NATO strikes in Yugoslavia
MOSCOW: Visit of Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman
(to 17). Followed by visits to Kazakhstan,
Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan
LONDON: Deadline for government decision on extradition
of former Chilean leader Augusto Pinochet to
Spain
ALGIERS: Presidential elections
LONDON: Privatisation of intergovernmental Inmarsat,
main international organisation of mobil
satellites
ATHENS: Visit of Serb representative to Bosnia's
collective presidency, Zivko Radisic (to 16)
BONN: Visit by Brazilian President Fernando Henrique
Cardoso
STUTTGART,
Germany: Meeting of foreign ministers from Europe and
the Mediterranean region
PARIS: European confernce on women and power (to 17)
WARSAW: Swedish Prime Minister Goeran Persson
visits areas in the southwest hit by 1997
floods (to 16)
DAKAR: African-Arab fair under aegis of the
Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and
the Arab League (to 25)
PORT-LOUIS: First ministerial conference of the Organisation
of African Unity (OAU) on human rights in Africa
(to 16)
QUEBEC: Ninth international weather forecasting
festival (to 18)
BEIJING: Tenth anniversary of the death of former
Communist Party leader Hu Yaobang,
an event which sparked off pro-democracy
demonstrations.
SEOUL: Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad ibn Khalifa
al-Thani visits until 18. Then goes to
Tokyo (to 21)
Friday, April 16:
DRESDEN,
Germany: Meeting of EU finance ministers (to 18)
TIRANA: Greek junior foreign minister Grigoris
Niotis visits (to 18)
LISBON: Visit by Brazilian President Fernando
Henrique Cardoso (to 17)
SANTO DOMINGO: Summit meeting of Association of Caribbean
States with Fidel Castro (Cuba), Rafael
Pastrana (Colombia), Ernesto Zedillo (Mexico),
and Hugo Chavez (Venezuela)
MIAMI,
United States: Dalai Lama visits
BERLIN: Austrian writer Norbert Gstrein receives
Alfred Doeblin prize
TUNIS: Central committee of ruling RDC party meets
Sunday, April 18:
ROME: Referendum on Italian electoral reform
ANKARA: Turkish municipal and legislative elections
REYKJAVIK: Visit of Latvian President Guntis Ulmanis
(to 23)
LOME: Visit of Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin
Khalifa Al-Thani (to 21)
ROME: Canonisation of Don Giovanni Calabrese,
Marcellin Joseph Champagnat, and Agostina
Livia Pietrantoni
PARIS: Guatemalan President Alvaro Arzu visits to 21)
Goes on to Vatican (to 22)
TEHRAN: Military parade for national army day
LOME: Possible meeting in Togo of Sierra Leonean rebel
leader Foday Sankoh, under sentence of
death, and his lieutenants of the
Revolutionary United Front (RUF)
PARAMARIBO: Cuban President Fidel Castro visits
Monday, April 19:
BERLIN: First sitting in Berlin of German Bundestag
LUXEMBOURG: Meeting of EU agricultural ministers (to 20)
LONDON: Visit by Brazilian President Fernando Henrique
Cardoso (to 20)
THE HAGUE: War crimes trial appeal of Bosnian Serb Dusko
Tadic begins
AMSTERDAM: World Press Photo award to be presented to
Dayna Smith
OSLO: Visit of Lithuanian Foreign Minister
Algirdas Saudargas
SEOUL: Visit of Queen Elizabeth II and Duke of
Edinburgh (to 23)
ANTANANARIVO: Inter-island conference on the Comoro
Islands under the aegis of the Organisation
of African Unity.
COPENHAGEN: Meeting of Nordic and Benelux countries
to discuss cooperation on European policy.
WARSAW: Chilean President Eduardo Frei visits
(to 21 (to be confirmed).
Tuesday, April 20
WASHINGTON: International Monetary Fund spring session
(until 28)
BOGOTA: Re-start of talks between Colombian government
and Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
(FARC)
NEW YORK: Hearings start into three policemen accused of
torturing Haitian immigrant
NEW YORK: Indonesian and Portuguese officials to discuss
East Timor
SHENZEN,
China: Meeting of creditors of the Guangdong
International Trust and Investment Corp
(GITIC)
Wednesday, April 21:
DAMASCUS: Syrian municipal elections
WASHINGTON: Visit to NATO summit of Polish President
Aleksander Kwasniewski, PM Jerzy Buzek and
Foreign Minister Bronislaw Geremek (to 25)
CAIRO: Meeting of council of Arabic energy and
electricty ministers
Thursday, April 22:
LUXEMBOURG: Meeting of EU telecommunications ministers
THE HAGUE: Report due from parliamentary commission
investigating 1992 El Al crash in Amsterdam
CHICAGO: Visit by British PM Tony Blair
NEW YORK: Indonesian and Portugese foreign ministers to
meet for talks on East Timor
WASHINGTON: Visit of Czech President Vaclav Havel to
United States and Canada, and to NATO summit
(visit to May 1)
WASHINGTON: Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus and Foreign
Minister Aldirgas Saudargas (to 26)
PEKING: Tenth anniversary of funeral of disgraced
former party secretary Hu Yaobang, which
indirectly led to Tiananmen Square student
protests
Friday, April 23:
WASHINGTON: Canadian Premier Jean Chretien visits for
NATO summit meeting (to 25)
STOCKHOLM: Vice president of the central Riksbanks
in court on tax evasion charges
DAKAR: Trial opens of Senegalese illegal immigrant on
Dakar-Lyon flight
OUAGADOUGOU: Cabinet ministers and Air Afrique board
meet to appoint director general
HARARE: Hearing of three alleged US mercenaries
charged with terrorism
DAR ES SALAAM: New hearing of two suspects in the 1998
bombing of the US embassy in Tanzania
Saturday, April 24:
WASHINGTON: NATO summit (to 25)
LYON,
France: Armenian groups to march in protests at
French senate's refusal to consider a bill
recognising the genocide of the Armenian
people
ROME: Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and
former Israeli prime minister Shimon Peres
to participate in a conference against
racism
WASHINGTON: Latvian President Guntis Ulmanis visits (to 28)
Sunday, April 25:
ERFUEHRT
Germany: Congress of opposition Christian Democratic
Union (CDU)
CARACAS: Referendum on the constitution
Monday, April 26:
LUXEMBOURG: Meeting of EU foreign ministers (to 27)
ATHENS: Visit of King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf and
Queen Silvia (to 28)
LUCERNE, Round-the-world Breitling Orbiter balloon
Switzerland: goes on show
THE HAGUE: Hearing of a Serbian lawyer charged with
disturbing court after NATO strikes against
Yugoslavia
CHERNOBYL,
Ukraine: Anniversary of explosion of Reactor number 4
SEOUL: International UNESCO congress on technical
training in the 21st century
Tuesday, April 27:
GAZA: Leadership of Palestinian Authority to
discuss declaration of independence (to be
confirmed)
WARSAW: Visit of Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny
Primakov (to 28)
STUTTGART: Probable opening of Nazi war crimes trial
YAOUNDE: End of trial of former Cameroonian
presidential candidate Titus Edzoa
BEIJING: Visit of Thai PM Chuan Leekpai (to May 1)
CARACAS: International Monetary Fund (IMF) team visits
Wednesday, April 28:
BAGHDAD: President Saddam Hussein's 62nd birthday
MONTREAL: Czech President Vaclav Havel visits
Thursday, April 29:
WASHINGTON: Visit of Japanese PM Keizo Obuchi (to May 5)
PARIS: Visit of Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kavan (to
30)
LUXEMBOURG: Meeting of EU industry ministers
TUNIS: International book fair
HANOI: Special meeting of Association of South
East Asian Nations (ASEAN) dedicated to
admission of Cambodia
Friday, April 30:
IMRALI, Turkey: Start of trial of rebel Kurd leader Abdullah
Ocalan
ESSEN: Start of trial of four German football fans
accused of attempted murder of French
policeman Daniel Nivel during 1998 World Cup
Saturday, May 1:
BRUSSELS: Treaty of Amsterdam comes into force
CAIRO: French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin visits
to open FranceExpo99 exhibition (on 2)
Sunday, May 2:
PANAMA: Presidential election
BAMAKO: Local elections
RIO DE JANEIRO: Visit of Queen Margrethe of Denmark, Prince
Consort Henrik and Prince Frederik (to 12)
VATICAN CITY: Beatification of Padre Pio
Monday, May 3:
STRASBOURG,
France: Monthly session of European Parliament
KATHMANDU: First round general elections. Second
round due on 17
Tuesday, May 4:
VILNIUS: Slovenian President Milan Kucera visits
(to 6, to be confirmed)
RIGA: Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou
visits
ISRAEL-GAZA/
WEST BANK: End of interim period on Palestinian autonomy
JERUSALEM: Date laid out for proclamation of a
Palestinian state
Wednesday, May 5:
SANTIAGO: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez visits.
Goes on to Brazil
Thursday, May 6:
BRUSSELS: Meeting of European Union and countries
of Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific
(ACP)
BUDAPEST: Meeting of foreign ministers of Council
of Europe (to 7)
Friday, May 7:
NANCY
France: Meeting of French President Jacques Chirac,
Polish President Alexander Kwasniewski
and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroder
STRASBOURG,
France: 50th anniversary celebrations of Council
of Europe
WEIMAR,
Germany: EU envirnoment ministers meet (to 9)
BUCHAREST: Pope John Paul II visits (to 9)
Saturday, May 8:
REJKJAVIK: General elections
KUMASI,
Ghana: Coronation of the King of the Ashantis,
one of the most ancient and powerful
West African monarchies (to 15)
SUVA: General elections
Sunday, May 9: US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright
sets out on tour of Bulgaria, Slovakia
and Germany (to 12)
afp
Document afpr000020010825dv4b00whp

Schedule of forthcoming political and general news events.
5,622 words

21 January 1999

09:05 PM

Reuters News

LBA

English

(c) 1999 Reuters Limited
Diaries Editor: Roger Jeal
Phone: London [phone]/ Fax: London [phone]
NOTE: The inclusion of diary items does not necessarily mean that Reuters will file a story based on the event.
REUTERS DIARY OF POLITICAL AND GENERAL NEWS EVENTS
1999 (UNDATED)
BELGRADE - The possibility of NATO air strikes hangs over Yugoslavia after recent violence in Kosovo.
LONDON - New hearing into whether Chile's ex-dictator Augusto Pinochet is immune from prosecution continues.
WASHINGTON - Senate impeachment trial of U.S. President Bill Clinton.
KUALA LUMPUR - Trial of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim continues.
BRATISLAVA - Slovak presidential election.
BUENOS AIRES - Argentine presidential election.
CANBERRA - The Australian government has promised a referendum in late 1999, probably November, on whether Australia should become a republic after a special convention voted in February 1998 in favour of a break with the British crown.
JOHANNESBURG - South Africa's second democratic elections due by the end of July.
RABAT - Morocco to hold legislative elections.
LOCATION TBA - Cuba will take part in a summit between the Rio Group of Latin American and Caribbean nations and the European Union scheduled for 1999. A total of 32 nations will represent an expanded Rio Group at the summit, including Cuba and the countries of Central America and the Caribbean. Rio Group rules excluding participation by non-elected governments will be overlooked to allow Cuba to be invited.
TORSHAVN - (TENTATIVE) Referendum on independence for North Atlantic Faroe Islands from Denmark.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 22
LONDON - The six-nation contact group on the former Yugoslavia will meet to discuss recent attacks on civilians in Kosovo.
ATHENS - Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy conference on 'Recent Developments in the Kosovo Region: Strategies and Options for a Peaceful Solution', with the support of the WEU Institute for Security Studies and the NATO Office of Information and Press. Invited to speak are Albanian Foreign Minister Pasca Milo, Montenegro Foreign Minister Branko Perovic (both at 0945 GMT) and Greek Foreign Minister Theodore Pangalos (1230 GMT). Zappeion Hall. For further information, tel: [phone].
THESSALONIKI, Greece - (AMENDED FROM JANUARY 23) European Socialist Party conference on developments in the Balkans and particularly Kosovo. Speakers include German Defence Minister Rudolf Scharping, Greek Defence Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos and Greek Foreign Minister Theodore Pangalos. Representatives from Balkan socialist and social democratic parties to attend as observers (To January 24).
GENEVA - Final day of new round of Korean peace negotiations between North and South Korea, China and the United States.
LAUSANNE, Switzerland - The Director-General of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Francois Carrard, gives a news briefing expected to touch on the latest scandals over the choice of Games host cities 1000 GMT.
MEXICO CITY/ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Pope John Paul begins trip to Mexico and the United States to discuss the results of a synod on the Americas held at the Vatican last year (To January 27). The Pope will hold private meetings with Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo on January 23 in Mexico City and with U.S. President Bill Clinton in St Louis, Missouri, on January 26.
MOSCOW - South Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Hong Soon-young to meet Russian leaders to discuss President Kim Dae-jung's state visit (To January 26)
RIYADH - Saudis mark the centenary of their rule in Arabia.
ARUSHA, Tanzania - (AMENDED) Presidents of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda meet to accelerate the pace of regional integration, discuss Rwanda's request to join the East African Cooperation grouping and consider lifting economic sanctions against Burundi (To January 23).
DUBLIN - U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan will lay a wreath at Royal Hospital Kilmainham to honour Irish men and women who served the United Nations 1030 GMT and meet Prime Minister Bertie Ahern at 1230 GMT. Final day of his visit to Ireland.
LJUBLJANA - Bulgarian Prime Minister Ivan Kostov visits Slovenia (To January 23).
MANILA - Meeting of the National Security Council on the Spratly Islands and the peace process in Mindanao.
ROME - Haute couture fashion shows (To January 26).
SATURDAY, JANUARY 23
LAUSANNE, Switzerland - The International Olympic Committee's investigation commission into the scandal over assignment of the 2002 Olympic Games to Salt Lake City meets 0800 GMT behind closed doors. At 1200 GMT, Director General Francois Carrard gives a news briefing. At 1500 GMT, the IOC releases the report of its Evaluation Commission on the competing sites for the 20006 Winter Games. At 1700 GMT, Evaluation Commission chairman Chiharu Igaya of japan and IOC Director General Francois Carrard give a news conference.
MEXICO CITY - Pope John Paul holds private meeting with Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo at start of trip to Mexico and the United States to discuss the results of a synod on the Americas held at the Vatican last year (To January 27). The Pope will meet U.S. President Bill Clinton in St Louis, Missouri, on January 26.
GENEVA - United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan visits (To January 26).
GENEVA - U.S. and North Korean negotiators hold the second round of talks within a week on access sought by the United States to a North Korean construction site suspected to be part of a secret nuclear programme.
ARUSHA, Tanzania - Presidents of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to discuss lifting economic sanctions against Burundi on final day of meeting to accelerate the pace of regional integration.
WARSAW - Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien begins private visit to Poland, during which he visits Auschwitz death camp (To January 24).
ANTANANARIVO - Chinese Vice-President Hu Jintao to visit Madagascar, Ghana, Ivory Coast and South Africa (To February 4).
BANJA LUKA, Bosnia - Bosnia's constitutional court to discuss an equal constituency of Bosnian Serbs, Moslems and Croats throughout the whole country.
CARACAS - President-elect Hugo Chavez to hold rally to argue for creation of a Constituent Assembly.
DUBROVNIK, Croatia - Bosnia and Croatia hold talks on air traffic control over Bosnia.
FRANKFURT - German Greens Party state council meeting 1000 GMT.
FRANKFURT - German Free Democratic Party (FDP) "Europe day" with FDP Head Wolfgang Gerhardt and European commission member Martin Bangemann 0900 GMT.
MULDA, Germany - National party congress of the far-right NPD to elect candidates for forthcoming European Parliament elections. News conference scheduled 1300 GMT (To January 24).
CHATEAU D'OEX, Switzerland - International Hot Air Balloon Festival (To January 28).
SUNDAY, JANUARY 24
CAIRO - Arab League foreign ministers hold a meeting to discuss Iraq sanctions; Iraq has said it will attend.
LAUSANNE, Switzerland - International Olympic Committee executive board to discuss report on corruption in awarding 2002 Winter Games to Salt Lake City. Report to be released on January 24 or 25.
SAN VICENTE DEL CAQUAN, Colombia - Fresh round of talks between government delegates and FARC rebel leaders to discuss proposed agenda for full-fledged peace negotiations.
CHAPADMALAL, Argentina - Interior Minister Carlos Corach meets provincial governors from governing Peronist Party in Buenos Aires province resort to discuss possible dates for a primary vote to choose a presidential candidate. President Carlos Menem may attend.
BUENOS AIRES - New telephone numbers come into effect throughout Argentina, with the addition of a preceding "4" to all numbers within Argentina. A "1" will also be added to the code to Buenos Aires.
MUNICH - Colombian President Andres Pastrana leaves for visits to Germany and Switzerland, where he is to attend World Economic Forum. He is to be received by Pope John Paul II at the Vatican on February 1 before returning home.
BEIJING - Laos Prime Minister Sisavath Keobounphanh visits China (To January 31).
MONDAY, JANUARY 25
MOSCOW - U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright visits for talks with senior Russian officials (To January 27).
KAMPALA - South African President Nelson Mandela visits Uganda (To January 27).
BRUSSELS - European Union foreign affairs ministers meet (To January 26).
AMSTERDAM - Luxembourg Premier Jean Claude Juncker gives speech on the future of the European Union 1630 GMT.
BONN - European Parliament President Jose Maria Gil-Robles makes speech on "The Contract of Amsterdam and the Challenges for the European Union" 1600 GMT.
SCOTT BASE, Antartica - New Zealand hosts first inter-governmental meeting in Antartica. All 26 Antartic Treaty nations invited to meeting, which will focus attention on the frozen continent and its fragile ecology (To January 28).
SOPRON, Hungary - Joint news conference of Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Austrian Chancellor Viktor Klima and Slovak Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda after their meeting 1100 GMT.
WARSAW - Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien official visit to Poland (To January 26).
KUALA LUMPUR - ISIS International Affairs Forum on "Human Rights and Wrongs" at ISIS Malaysia 0130 GMT.
MANILA - The House of Representatives hosts the Asian-Pacific Parliamentarians Union 6th Council Meeting and 33rd General Assembly (To January 29).
TOKYO - U.S. astronaut John Glenn and Japanese astronaut Chiaki Mukai at Japan National Press Club.
CHAMONIX, France - 75th anniversary of the start of the first Winter Olympics.
FRANKFURT - Association of Christian churches in Germany event with lower house of German parliament President Wolfgang Thierse and Head of the Central Council of Jews in Germany Ignatz Bubis 1700 GMT.
NAIROBI - The German Federal Agency for Technical Relief opens a disaster logistics centre in Nairobi.
STOCKHOLM - Latvian Prime Minister Vilis Krishtopans due to visit Sweden.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 26
MOSCOW - Second day of visit by U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright for talks with senior Russian officials.
MEXICO CITY/ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Pope John Paul ends visit to Mexico, travels on to St. Louis, Missouri, where he will hold a private meeting with U.S. President Bill Clinton.
BRUSSELS - A new round of bilateral talks with international mediator Sir Arthur Watts on division of assets of former Yugoslavia.
BRUSSELS - Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) holds lunch meeting on "Britain's European Policy" 1215 GMT. Roger Liddle, European adviser to British Prime Minister Tony Blair, addresses the meeting. Place du Congres 1. Contact: CEPS, Anne-Marie Boudou [phone].
PARIS - National Assembly symposium on the cost of defence. Speakers include Defence Minister Alain Richard at 1630 GMT.
RABAT - South Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Hong Soon-young to visit Morocco, Ivory Coast and South Africa to enhance cooperation with emerging African markets (To February 1).
HONG KONG - Conference on reforming the news media in Hong Kong, jointly sponsored by Centre of Asian Studies, the University of Hong Kong and the Freedom Forum Asian Center. Wang Gungwu Lecture Hall, University Conference Centre, HKU. Cheung Man-yee, director of broadcasting, and Tsang Tak-sing, member of Central Policy Unit, are commentators on one session 0130-0800 GMT.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 27
MOSCOW - Final day of visit by U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright for talks with senior Russian officials.
CAIRO/RIYADH - U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to visit for talks on Iraq and Middle East peace process. Albright will travel from Moscow.
BRUSSELS - United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan makes official visit to Belgium (To January 28); meets representatives of the European Commission; visits NATO headquarters.
ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Pope John Paul ends trip to Mexico and the United States to discuss the results of a synod on the Americas held at the Vatican last year, travels back to the Vatican.
WASHINGTON - Venezuelan President-elect Hugo Chavez, due to take office on February 2, to meet President Clinton and National Security Adviser Sandy Berger. Also visits New York and Atlanta. (To January 28).
NEW DELHI - Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis international seminar on "Asian Security in the 21st Century". Indian Defence Minister George Fernandes expected to speak (To January 28).
BRUSSELS - European Parliament holds plenary session (To January 28).
BRUSSELS - European children's network Euronet holds symposium on "Children Are European Citizens, Too" to debate a European agenda for children with representatives of the European Parliament, European Commission, national governments and non-governmental organisations.
BONN - Parliament meeting with speech by President Roman Herzog on the Holocaust commemoration.
MAINZ, Germany - German state of Rhineland Palatinate government commemoration event on the victims of national socialism 0900 GMT.
HELSINKI - Russian parliament Speaker Gennady Seleznyov visits Finland, holds speech at Paasikivi-Seura 1500 GMT.
ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to inaugurate international conference to mark centennial celebrations of the establishment of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia (To January 28).
KIEV - Italian President Oscar Luigi Scalfaro visits Ukraine.
LONDON - British Parliament's Defence Committee takes evidence from Slovakia's Foreign Minister Eduard Kukan on the future of NATO 1100 GMT.
LONDON - Financial Times conference on East Africa with British Minister for International Development Clare Short and Commonwealth Secretary General Chief Emeka Anyaoku and others. At Financial Times, One Southwark Bridge, London SE1 9HL. Starts 0830/0930 GMT. Contact Bill Castle 873 3368 or Ivor Germain 873 3427.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 28
LONDON/PARIS - U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright visits on Thursday and Friday for talks on Kosovo and Iraq on her way back from a trip to Russia and the Middle East. She will have talks in London with British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook and in Paris with French Foreign Affairs Minister Hubert Vedrine.
DAVOS, Switzerland - Annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, which brings together senior business and political figures to discuss the state of world affairs (To February 2).
BADEN-BADEN, Germany - South African President Nelson Mandela meets German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder; receives German media prize with speech by DaimlerChrysler Chairman Juergen Schrempp 1900 GMT.
BRUSSELS - Final day of visit by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
BRUSSELS - European Parliament plenary session includes vote on Common Agriculture Policy/Agenda 2000 reforms and European postal services.
ROME - The Italian post office is due to issue its first stamps denominated both in lire and euros. All Italian stamps will be denominated both in lire and euros until December 31, 2001.
LONDON - News conference on single market for East Africa. Speakers include Kenya's Minister for East African and Regional Cooperation, Nicholas Biwott, Tanzanian Foreign Affairs Minister Jakaya Kikwete and Uganda's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Amama Mbabazi. Commonwealth Secretariat, Marlborough House, Pall Mall, London SW1 1100 GMT. Contact Patrick Orr or Sally Peters on fax [phone] or 0171-828 0714.
PARIS - (POSTPONED TO MID-MARCH) Russian President Boris Yeltsin due to make official visit.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 29
MOSCOW - Third parliamentary reading of 1999 draft budget expected.
NOUAKCHOTT - Mauritania holds municipal elections. Second round on February 5.
BELGRADE - FEST Belgrade film festival (To February 7).
MUNICH - News conference on Munich Aids Days 1100 GMT.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 30
DAR ES SALAAM - (TENTATIVE) Food security report by the U.N. World Food Programme and the Food and Agricultural Organisation.
SKOPJE - German Defence Minister Rudolf Scharping to visit German troops in NATO force in Macedonia.
SUNDAY, JANUARY 31
OSLO - Deadline for nominations for 1999 Nobel Peace Prize.
WASHINGTON - Annual country reports on Human Rights Practices to be released to Congress.
MIAMI - Super Bowl XXXIII U.S. football championsip. Pro Player Stadium.
FRANKFURT - German Free Democratic Party (FDP) press event with speech by FDP Chairman Wolfgang Gerhardt 0900 GMT.
FEBRUARY (UNDATED)
WASHINGTON - Senior Israeli and Palestinian officials to meet in early February to try to revive U.S.-brokered peace accord. Palestinian delegation may be led by President Yasser Arafat.
RABAT - Arab League and Organisation of the Islamic Conference set to hold summit meeting on Jerusalem. Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and European Commission President Jacques Santer to attend.
SEOUL - Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura to visit South Korea.
TAIPEI/WASHINGTON - U.S. Defense Department expected to release report on Asian theatre missile defense system, including evaluation of whether Taiwan might actively or passively participate in the system at risk of provoking rival China.
TAIPEI - Newly expanded 225-seat parliament convenes for first time since December 5 election. Possibility of cabinet reshuffle.
BEIJING - 20th anniversary of breakout of Sino-Vietnamese border war.
RIO DE JANEIRO - Carnival in mid-February.
LOME - (MOVED TO MARCH 7) Togo parliamentary elections.
ALGIERS - (AMENDED TO APRIL) Presidential elections.
TOKYO - (CANCELLED) French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin will visit Japan at the end of February at the invitation of his Japanese counterpart, Keizo Obuchi.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 1
TEHRAN - 20th anniversary of return of Iranian revolutionary leader Ayatollah Khomeini to Iran after 15 years of exile.
ATHENS - Greek Parliament tentatively scheduled to ratify the European Union's Amsterdam treaty.
MADRID - Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari visits, accompanied by Foreign Minister Tarja Halonen and Europe Minister Ole Norrback (To February 4).
NAIROBI - 20th session of the Governing Council of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) meeting (To February 4).
VATICAN CITY - Colombian President Andres Pastrana to be received by Pope John Paul II.
ESSEN, Germany - Political forum Ruhr lecture event with speech by U.S. Ambassador John Kornblum on "German-American Partnership" 1830 GMT.
TUTZING, Germany - Political academy of Tutzing organises journalists seminar on "50 years Federal Republic of Germany - historical Prospects" 1430 GMT.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 2
LAUSANNE, Switzerland - International Olympic Committee meeting on drugs and doping in sport (To February 3).
ISLAMABAD - U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott expected to arrive for two-day visit (To February 3).
CARACAS - Presidential inauguration of Hugo Chavez.
ATHENS - (TENTATIVE) Cameroon President Paul Biya to visit Greece (To February 4).
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3
CAIRO - The Egyptian Centre for Economic Studies holds an international conference on development. Participants include speakers from Harvard University and the International Monetary Fund (To February 4).
BRUSSELS - The American European Community Association (AECA) holds a conference on "Culture, Media in a Free Global Market: EU/U.S. views" 1630 GMT. Speakers include U.S. Ambassador to Belgium Paul Cejas and European Parliament Deputy Peter Pex. Venue: European Parliament.
SOFIA - President Petar Stoyanov convenes his advisory National Security Council in a move to renew dialogue between local parliamentary groups.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4
MOSCOW - State Duma holds fourth and final reading of government's 1999 draft budget.
BONN - EU employment and social affairs ministers hold informal meeting (To February 6).
CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. - Marine pilot Captain Richard Ashby faces court martial (first of two, second is on March 15) over Italian cable car disaster on February 4, 1998, in which 20 people were killed.
CARACAS - Military parade to mark transition of power to government of President Hugo Chavez.
WASHINGTON - Peru and Ecuador meet with lending agencies to work out details of $3 billion package for cross-border projects under peace treaty signed in October (To February 5).
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5
CAPE TOWN - Parliament session opens with state of the nation address by President Nelson Mandela.
CAPE TOWN - New National Party's postponed court challenge over whether South Africa's citizens must have a modern identity document to vote in elections due to take place.
COPENHAGEN - Microsoft chairman Bill Gates is among the speakers at an information technology seminar.
NOUAKCHOTT - Mauritania holds second round of voting in municipal elections.
ROCKVILLE, Md. - Former boxing champion Mike Tyson scheduled to be sentenced on two counts of misdemeanor assault. Montgomery County District Court.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 6
LISBON - National congress of ruling Socialist Party (To February 7).
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 7
DAKAR - EU-ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific countries) ministerial level negotiations.
NIAMEY, Niger - Regional, departmental and municipal elections, the final phase of national elections following the 1996 coup that brought President Ibrahim Bare Mainassara to power.
SARAJEVO - Fifteenth international cultural festival Sarajevo Winter 99 (To March 21).
SARAJEVO - Olympic sports centre ZETRA, rebuilt after extensive war damage, formally reopened by the International Olympic Committee Chairman Juan Antonio Samaranch, to mark 14th anniversary of the Sarajevo Winter Olympics.
WIESBADEN - German state of Hesse parliament elections.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 8
ATHENS - (TENTATIVE) Greek Foreign Minister Theodore Pangalos leaves on visit to Sarajevo, Zagreb, Podgorica, Pristina (To February 9).
BANGALORE, India - World Bank organises international conference on lead poisoning-prevention and treatment.
BONN - Friedrich-Ebert Foundation event on "Ecological Market Economy" with speech by Worldwatch Institute President Lester Brown 1000 GMT.
BRUSSELS - European Union finance ministers meet; discuss Italy's three-year stability pact.
THE HAGUE - Start of The Hague Forum to review progress since the United Nations' 1994 Cairo Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) (To February 12).
HELSINKI - Nordic Council and Baltic Assembly hold joint conference on topics including the EU's Northern Dimension policy, crime and security policy. Speakers include prime ministers of Finland, Latvia, Norway, Estonia, Sweden and Iceland (To February 9)
STRASBOURG - European Parliament holds plenary session (To February 12).
VIENNA - An international tribunal in charge of the decision on the future status of the disputed Bosnian town of Brcko holds hearings on the case.
VIENNA - Airports Council International (ACI) holds Europe Airport Trading Conference and Exhibition on "Managing Change - Meeting the Future Challenges of Duty Free, the Euro and Concession Planning" 1500 GMT (To February 10). Hilton Hotel. Contact: ACI Europe conference unit fax: [phone].
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9
LUEBECK, Germany - Draeger Foundation symposium on "Health Care Systems at the Crossroads: Balancing Individuals' Needs with Financial Limitations" with German Health Minister Andrea Fischer and British Health Minister Frank Dobson 0800 GMT.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10
MEXICO/CENTRAL AMERICA - U.S. President Bill Clinton visits Mexico and Central America for talks with Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo and to visit areas hit by Hurricane Mitch (To February 15). Clinton is due to meet Central American leaders to discuss plans for the long-term recovery of the region after the hurricane, which killed at least 9,000 people and caused more than $5 billion in damage.
CAIRO - Second Africa Congress academic meeting with lecturers from the United States and other countries (To February 12).
CARTAGENA, Colombia - Delegates from 170 countries attend opening of two-week meeting, sponsored by Colombian Foreign Ministry, on biodiversity.
STRAUSBERG, Germany - Army officers meeting on "The Future of The German Army" with Defence Minister Rudolf Scharping.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 11
TEHRAN - 20th anniversary of Iranian Islamic revolution.
MEXICO/CENTRAL AMERICA - U.S. President Bill Clinton continues visit to Mexico and Central America.
BERLIN - EU justice and home affairs ministers hold informal meeting (To February 12).
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12
MEXICO/CENTRAL AMERICA - U.S. President Bill Clinton continues visit to Mexico and Central America.
ABUJA - Final date for submission of names of presidential candidates for Nigerian elections.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 13
MEXICO/CENTRAL AMERICA - U.S. President Bill Clinton continues visit to Mexico and Central America.
ANTIOQUIA PROVINCE, Colombia - Government to open peace talks, in still unspecified area of this northwest province, with representatives of Cuban-inspired National Liberation Army, Colombia's second largest rebel group.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 14
TEHRAN - 10th anniversary of Iranian revolutionary leader Ayatollah Khomeini's fatwa (edict) ordering the execution of British author Salman Rushdie after the publication of his novel "Satanic Verses".
MEXICO/CENTRAL AMERICA - U.S. President Bill Clinton continues visit to Mexico and Central America.
HAVANA - Interamerican Catholic Church meeting (To February 17).
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15
MEXICO/CENTRAL AMERICA - U.S. President Bill Clinton concludes visit to Mexico and Central America.
KABUL/MOSCOW - 10th anniversary of the departure of 100,000 Soviet troops from Afghanistan under a U.N.-brokered accord just over nine years after Moscow had sent troops to help a tottering Marxist government in Kabul.
CANBERRA - Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Legislation Committee "Examination of Developments in Contemporary Japan and the Implications for Australia".
THE HAGUE - Start of hearings at International Court of Justice in Kaskili/Sedunu Island case (Botswana/Namibia).
VIENNA - Greek President Costis Stephanopoulos visits (To February 17).
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 16
BRUSSELS - The European Natural Gas Vehicle Association (ENGVA) sponsors a government relations roundtable discussion with representatives of the European Commission on the development of a European policy on alternative fuels, energy efficiency and sustainability.
GREENLAND - Local home rule parliament elections in Greenland, an arctic province of Denmark.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 17
CAPE TOWN - South African government presents its 1999/2000 annual budget.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18
BRUSSELS - (TENTATIVE) European Union research ministers meet.
BOGOTA - Public sector unions and community organisations stage 24-hour protest against government economic austerity measures.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19
WASHINGTON - French President Jacques Chirac will visit U.S. President Bill Clinton.
OPORTO, Portugal - Opposition Social Democrats hold extraordinary party conference to approve electoral alliance with right-wing Popular Party.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20
ABUJA - Elections to Nigeria's national assembly. In mid-1998 military leader Abdulsalam Abubakar scrapped elections, parties and the election commission announced or set up by his hard-line predecessor General Sani Abacha.
BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan - Launch of new crew to Mir space station, consisting of Russian Viktor Afanasyev, Frenchman Jean-Pierre Haignere and Slovak Ivan Bella.
PETERSBERG, Germany - Finance ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) leading industrial nations meet near Bonn to discuss a report on supervision of financial institutions and speculative hedge funds among other things. Bundesbank President Hans Tietmeyer has been asked by the G7 to draw up a report on prudential control and supervision on banks and hedge funds in the wake of recent financial market crises.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22
BRUSSELS - European Union foreign ministers meet (To February 23).
BRUSSELS - European Union agriculture ministers meet (To February 23). European farmers to demonstrate in Brussels against planned EU farm reforms.
CANBERRA - Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams arrives at start of visit to Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23
HAVANA - International symposium on Havana cigars (To February 25).
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24
LOS ANGELES - Music industry's 41st annual Grammy Awards at Shrine Auditorium.
BRUSSELS - European Parliament holds plenary session (To February 25).
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25
GENEVA - Special session of the the World Trade Organisation's General Council to discuss preparations for the WTO's Third Ministerial Conference, due at the year-end (To February 26).
ATHENS - Israeli Foreign Minister Ariel Sharon visits.
BRUSSELS - EU internal markets ministers meet.
LONDON - Centenary of the death of Paul Julius Reuter, German founder of the news and information group that bears his name.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26
BONN - (TENTATIVE) - European heads of state/government likely to hold extra summit on Agenda 2000 package of budget, farm spending reforms, other issues ahead of scheduled special summit on March 24/25.
TEHRAN - Iran's first nationwide municipal elections.
HELSINKI - Finnish parliament is prorogued ahead of general elections on March 21.
HAVANA - Cuban cigar company Habanos S.A. holds gala dinner.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27
ABUJA - Nigeria due to hold presidential election.
CAIRO - Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium visits with a group of businessmen to explore investment opportunities in Egypt (To March 3).
MARCH (UNDATED)
BEIJING - National People's Congress, or parliament, to hold annual session.
TAIPEI - China and Taiwan expected to resume bilateral talks, with possible visit by senior mainland negotiator Wang Daohan, which would be highest-level exchange on Taiwan soil since the civil war split in 1949.
DHAKA - Summit of eight Islamic developing countries - known as D-8, countries are Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iran, Indonesia, Malaysia, Egypt, Turkey and Nigeria. Group was launched in 1997 in Istanbul to foster greater economic cooperation.
RIYADH - Iranian President Mohammad Khatami expected to visit Saudi Arabia for talks on political and economic relations.
MARCH/APRIL
JOHANNESBURG - South African Institute of International Affairs hosts two-day conference on the future of the Lome Convention. The fourth Lome Convention, which regulates trade and aid relations between the EU and the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) bloc, is due to expire in February 2000. Proposals from the European Union have suggested a renegotiation of the convention.
TUESDAY, MARCH 2
BRUSSELS - (TENTATIVE) European Union youth and education ministers meet.
SUNDAY, MARCH 7
LOME - First round of Togo parliamentary elections. Second round March 21.
TALLINN - Estonian general elections.
MONDAY, MARCH 8
LHASA - 10th anniversary of imposition of martial law in Tibetan capital after three days of separatist riots in which up to 50 Tibetans were shot dead by police. China lifted martial law on May Day the following year.
DOHA - Qatar to hold its first municipal elections. It is the only Gulf Arab state to allow the vote to every citizen above 18 years, including women. The 29-member municipal council's role will be limited to the implementation of rules and regulations on food and public cleaning but its importance lies in the fact it will be the first elected by the people.
STRASBOURG - European Parliament holds plenary session (To March 12).
TUESDAY, MARCH 9
BRUSSELS - EU employment and social affairs ministers meet.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10
BERNE - Election by parliament of new Swiss justice and foreign ministers ahead of announced April resignations of present ministers.
THURSDAY, MARCH 11
BRUSSELS - EU environment ministers meet (To March 12).
GENEVA - International Motor Show (To March 21). Press days March 11-13.
FRIDAY, MARCH 12
BRUSSELS - (TENTATIVE) EU justice and home affairs ministers meet.
SATURDAY, MARCH 13
SCHLOSS REINHARTSHAUSEN, Germany - EU foreign ministers hold informal meeting (To March 14).
HAVANA - Seventh Congress of Cuban journalists (To March 14).
SUNDAY, MARCH 14
ABU DHABI - International Defence Exhibition and Conference (IDEX) (To March 18).
MONDAY, MARCH 15
PARIS - Annual meeting of Inter-American Development Bank. Palais du Congres (To March 17).
BRUSSELS - EU finance ministers meet.
BRUSSELS - EU agriculture ministers meet (To March 16).
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 17
BEIJING - Premier Zhu Rongji in office for one year.
LHASA - 40th anniversary of flight of Tibet's god-king, the Dalai Lama, from his Himalayan homeland into exile in India after abortive uprising against communist rule.
LAUSANNE - International Olympic Committee (IOC) special committee to tackle the consequences of the Salt Lake bribery scandal.
THURSDAY, MARCH 18
ATHENS - (TENTATIVE) Ruling party Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) holds 5th party Congress (To March 21).
HANOVER, Germany - CeBIT technology trade fair (To March 24).
BRUSSELS - (TENTATIVE) European Union education ministers meet.
FRIDAY, MARCH 19
HANOVER, Germany - CeBIT technology trade fair (Second day).
SUNDAY, MARCH 21
HELSINKI - Finland holds general elections.
LOS ANGELES - Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences hold annual Oscars ceremony on a day other than Monday for the first time in a decade. It will be the first time ever that Hollywood's biggest night will be staged on a Sunday.
LOME - Second round of Togo parliamentary elections.
MONDAY, MARCH 22
BRUSSELS - EU foreign ministers meet (To March 23).
TUESDAY, MARCH 23
VIENNA - Oil ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meet to decide output policy.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24
BRUSSELS - European Union holds special summit of heads of state/government to adopt Agenda 2000 package of EU reforms to prepare the bloc to take in new members from central and eastern Europe (To March 25).
HELSINKI - Election boards to announce official results of Finnish general elections held on March 21.
BRUSSELS - European Parliament holds plenary session (To March 25).
THURSDAY, MARCH 25
BRUSSELS - Final day of European Union summit of heads of state/government to adopt Agenda 2000 package of EU reforms.
BRUSSELS - (TENTATIVE) EU fisheries ministers meet.
FRIDAY, MARCH 26
CAIRO/JERUSALEM/WASHINGTON - Twentieth anniversary of the signing of the Egypt-Israel peace treaty. In a ceremony at the White House, President Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel signed a treaty ending 30 years of war between the two countries.
SUNDAY, MARCH 28
HAVANA - (TENTATIVE) Date for possible historic match between Cuban national baseball team and U.S. Major League side the Orioles of Baltimore.
LHASA/BEIJING - 40th anniversary of China's dissolution of Tibet's government and installation of an autonomous authority under the Panchen Lama after an uprising.
MADRID - 60th anniversary of the end of the Spanish Civil War when a white flag was hoisted in Madrid and General Franco took over in the city.
THREE MILE ISLAND, Penn. - 20th anniversary of America's worst nuclear accident at the Three Mile Island plant near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. A partial meltdown of one of the reactors forced the evacuation of residents after radioactive gas leaked into the atmosphere.
MONDAY, MARCH 29
FRANKFURT - European Union and Asian countries' foreign ministers hold Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).
BRUSSELS - EU transport ministers meet.
TUESDAY, MARCH 30
BERLIN - European Union and Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting.
BRUSSELS - European Union fisheries ministers meet.
SANTIAGO - Parties of the ruling coalition Concertacion hold primary elections to select a candidate to run for president in December.
APRIL (UNDATED)
ALGIERS - Presidential elections to succeed President Liamine Zeroual, who will step down this month, 19 months before the end of his term.
KINSHASA - Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire) scheduled to hold promised presidential and parliamentary elections.
ROME - Italians vote in referendum between mid-April and June on whether to scrap the proportional representation element of their current complicated electoral system in favour of a fully first-past-the post method.
KATHMANDU - (TENTATIVE) Nepal set to hold general elections.
BERNE - Resignations of Swiss Foreign Minister Flavio Cotti and Justice Minister Arnold Koller seen as first step to rejuvenate Christian Democratic People's Party ahead of October elections.
FRIDAY, APRIL 9
LONDON/PARIS - 30th anniversary of the maiden flight of the supersonic Anglo-French aircraft Concorde from Bristol to Fairford in England.
MONDAY, APRIL 12
STRASBOURG - European Parliament holds plenary session (To April 16).
TUESDAY, APRIL 13
LUXEMBOURG - EU consumer ministers meet.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14
BEIJING - The 2nd Asia-Pacific Symposium on Press and Scientific and Social Progress (To April 17).
THURSDAY, APRIL 15
BEIJING - 10th anniversary of death of reform-minded Chinese Communist Party general secretary Hu Yaobang. His death sparked student-led demonstrations for democracy.
BARCELONA - EU and Mediterranean countries hold Euro-Mediterranean conference (To April 16).
DAKAR - Senegal hosts 4th Afro-Arab fair (To April 25).
FRIDAY, APRIL 16
DRESDEN, Germany - EU finance ministers' informal meeting (To April 18).
SATURDAY, APRIL 17
LAS VEGAS - National Association of Broadcasters conference and trade show on converging worlds of broadcasting, Internet and telecommunications (To April 22).
SUNDAY, APRIL 18
ANKARA - Early Turkish general election expected. An election was due by December 2000.
BAMAKO - Mali holds municipal elections in 682 new communes created under a decentralisation law.
MONDAY, APRIL 19
LUXEMBOURG - EU agriculture ministers meet (To April 20).
(C) Reuters Limited 1999.
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