Japan: Kyoto Protocol ratified

Japan ratified the international accord aimed at cutting emissions of heat-trapping gases and urged the United States and other countries to join efforts to fight global warming.

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s Cabinet gave final approval to the Kyoto Protocol, which passed the upper and lower houses of Parliament last month.

The 15 European Union countries formally signed the Kyoto Protocol on Friday. It was negotiated in Kyoto in 1997 to stem pollution and global warming. The Bush administration angered much of the world by rejecting the pact, calling it flawed.

To take effect, the Kyoto accord must be ratified by at least 55 countries, but those ratifying must include industrialized nations responsible for at least 55 percent of the 1990 emissions levels of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases blamed for global warming.

More than 70 countries have ratified the treaty, but the 55 percent mark has not been reached.

Argentina: Uruguay’s president apologizes for remark

Uruguay’s president offered a teary apology Tuesday for calling Argentines a “bunch of thieves” and for sharply criticizing leadership in the neighboring country.

Jorge Batlle went on national television with President Eduardo Duhalde at the Argentina leader’s suburban Buenos Aires compound to say he was sorry for his outspoken comments, broadcast a day earlier.

“To err is human. I also know that when one makes a mistake, one should recognize his mistake and ask for forgiveness,” Batlle said in the five-minute appearance.

Looking straight at Duhalde, seated beside him, Batlle added: “I apologize both to you and the Argentine people.” He then pulled out a white handkerchief and blotted away tears as TV cameras rolled.

Duhalde accepted the apology and said he considered the episode concluded.

Russia: Building collapses in St. Petersburg

As rescuers searched for people who might remain trapped in the smoky rubble of an apartment building, Russia’s emergency minister said Tuesday that foundation problems probably caused the deadly collapse.

One person was known dead and four were missing a day after the nine-story building plunged to the ground in a cloud of dust. About 430 people were left homeless.

Emergency workers and soldiers continued searching through the ruins of the building Tuesday, but no bodies or survivors were found.

Emergency Minister Sergei Shoigu said the foundation problems that led to the collapse probably started at least two days before the building fell.

Spain: Step taken to ban Basque political party

By an overwhelming majority, Spanish lawmakers took the first step Tuesday toward outlawing the party seen as the political wing of the Basque separatist group ETA.

The Congress of Deputies, or lower house of Parliament, voted 304 to 16 to approve a bill that would allow the Supreme Court to dissolve political parties viewed as encouraging or supporting terrorism.

The legislation now goes before the Senate, where debate is scheduled for June 25. Passage is virtually assured because the Senate is controlled by the conservative government of Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, which wants the new law enacted.

ETA’s name is a Basque-language acronym that stands for Basque Homeland and Freedom. The group has killed more than 800 people in its three-decade campaign for an independent Basque homeland.