Karzai urged to fight corruption
UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The UN Security Council joined calls Friday on Afghan President Hamid Karzai to fight corruption, with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon calling the country's political situation "delicate'' following deeply flawed elections.

In a tepid statement, the Council "acknowledged,'' rather than welcomed, the conclusion of the tumultuous electoral process where Karzai was declared the winner after challenger

Abdullah Abdullah withdrew from a runoff race saying it could not be free or fair. Abdullah on Wednesday called Karzai's victory illegal and his government a failure, saying the president's tainted administration would not be able to check corruption or fend off the Taliban. Ban acknowledged there were problems with the elections, following a closed-door meeting briefing the Security Council on his recent trip to Afghanistan.

"It is obvious that the political situation remains delicate,'' Ban said. "Clearly, the recent elections were seriously flawed.'' The UN's most powerful body said nonetheless that it looked forward to working with Karzai. It urged him to improve security, promote good governance and fight corruption and the narcotics trade.

Japan helping Mekong nations
TOKYO (AFP) - The leaders of Japan and Southeast Asia's five Mekong River nations wrapped up a summit Saturday at which Tokyo pledged more than $5.5 billion in loans and grants and vowed deeper ties.

Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama told a press conference the Mekong region was a ''priority area'' for Japan's official development assistance (ODA) as it seeks to boost development in the resource-rich area. A joint declaration said ''Japan commits more than 500 billion yen of ODA in the next three years'' for the further development of the Mekong region, which includes Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and Thailand.

''We strongly recognised the need for further strengthening of the Mekong-Japan relationship and cooperation to maximise the potential of the Mekong region,'' the statement said.

Asian giants Japan and China have for years poured aid and investment into the region, home to more than 220 million people, and are seen increasingly as competitors for influence.

Russian plane crashes, 9 killed
MOSCOW (AP) - A Russian military plane crashed in the country's far east late Friday, killing all nine people aboard, news agencies reported.

An emergency ministry official said the Tu-142-M3 anti-submarine turboprop crashed in the Tatarsky Strait about 20 kilometers (12 miles) off the Pacific coast, ITAR Tass reported. The plane disappeared off radar screens shortly after 1100 GMT when it was finishing a training flight, the Interfax news agency quoted a Defense Ministry official as saying.

The official said the bodies of the crew and wreckage from the plane were removed from the water by emergency boats, the report said. Tu-142-M3 is a maritime reconnaissance aircraft that was widely used by the Soviet navy.

War hero gets US citizenship
WASHINGTON (AP) - Finally, Gen. Casimir Pulaski became an American on Friday, 230 years after the Polish nobleman died fighting for what became the United States. President Barack Obama signed a joint resolution of the Senate and the House of Representatives that made Pulaski an honorary citizen.

Pulaski's contribution to the Americans' effort to leave the British Empire began with a flourish. He wrote a letter to Gen. George Washington, the Revolution's leader, with the declaration:

"I came here, where freedom is being defended, to serve it, and to live or die for it.'' Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich, whose home city of Cleveland, Ohio, has many citizens of Polish extraction, had been pushing for the honorary citizenship since 2005.

"Pulaski made the ultimate sacrifice for this country, and he deserves nothing but the highest honor and recognition for his service,'' Kucinich said then.