Reuters World News Highlights at 1755 GMT, Dec 22

NEW DELHI/ISLAMABAD - India accused Pakistan on Monday of trying to shift blame for the Mumbai attacks and demanded it do more to dismantle militant networks, while a top U.S. commander landed in Islamabad for more talks.

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SINGAPORE/LONDON - China cut interest rates on Monday and Japan warned it was sliding deeper into a recession encroaching steadily on the global economy, closing factories and throttling trade.

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KIEV - President Viktor Yushchenko dug in on Monday against attacks by Ukraine's prime minister, rejecting blame for a deep economic slide and refusing to sack the central bank chief after the hryvnia currency sank to record lows.

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GAZA - Palestinian armed groups in Gaza observed a 24-hour halt to rocket fire against Israel at the request of Egyptian mediators, a senior official of the ruling Islamist Hamas group said on Monday.

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MOSCOW - The upper house of parliament unanimously approved extending Russian presidential terms on Monday, a constitutional amendment which has fuelled speculation Vladimir Putin will return as head of state.

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VIENNA - The OSCE said on Monday it would start shutting down its mission in Georgia on Jan. 1 after Russia blocked a proposal to extend it in a standoff over the status of the breakaway South Ossetia region.

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LONDON - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe will have to step down if any power-sharing government deal is to succeed, Britain's Africa minister said on Monday, echoing comments from Washington.

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MOSCOW - Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko failed on Monday to secure a firm promise of preferential gas prices from Russia in 2009 despite warning the Kremlin that undermining its ally's economy could backfire.

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BRUSSELS - Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme ruled out a return to office on Sunday while media speculation grew that King Albert was trying to revive the collapsed government in the face of urgent economic problems.

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NICOSIA - A suspect package was sent to the U.S. embassy in Cyprus on Monday and authorities were carrying out tests to determine what it contained, officials said.