Kurdish rebel leader hopeful for peace

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Jailed Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan says he hopes peace talks with Turkey will succeed.

Ocalan's message was read by Kurdish legislators who met him on his prison island off Istanbul on Sunday. Earlier in the week, these lawmakers also met with Kurdish rebel commanders based in northern Iraq.

The rebels declared a ceasefire last month, heeding a call by Ocalan, who is engaged in talks with Turkish officials to end the nearly 30-year-old Kurdish rebel conflict.

The efforts, however, appear to have hit a snag over Turkish demands that the rebels retreat from Turkey unarmed. A Kurdish party leader has said the insurgents are hesitant about withdrawing fighters without legal guarantees from Turkey.

The conflict between Turkey and the rebels has killed tens of thousands of people since 1984.

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U.S. hopeful for strong Chinese action on North Korea

BEIJING (Reuters) - The United States is optimistic that China will take strong action against North Korea and has urged Beijing to increase scrutiny of financial institutions with links to Pyongyang, U.S. Treasury Undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen said on Friday.

Cohen said that the United States believes that China is looking at the threat by North Korea in a new and different way.

Dan Fried, the U.S. State Department's new coordinator of sanctions policy, also said Washington hopes ultimately to reach a diplomatic solution with North Korea.

(Reporting by Terril Yue Jones, Writing by Sui-Lee Wee; editing by Jonathan Standing)

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