lukewarm

. He said he was asked if Mitt Romney was conservative enough, but the comparison shouldn't be with Ronald Reagan but with Barack Obama, who he called the most left-wing radical president in the whole of US history. Now only Ron Paul remains challenging Mitt Romney in the Republican primary, so Mr Romney's victory is assured,

barring

accidents.

The Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng has said he left the American embassy in Beijing, where he'd been seeking

sanctuary

because he feared for the safety of his family. Michael Bristow reports.

China says Chen Guangcheng left the US embassy of his own volition. US officials say the same. But now a more complicated story is emerging. Mr Chen has told the Associated Press that the Chinese authorities threatened to beat his wife to death if he did not leave the embassy. He says this threat was passed on to him by a US official. The BBC spoke to one of the activist's friends, who also suggested Mr Chen had feared for his family's safety if he remained in the embassy.

Washington insists no American officials spoke to Mr Chen about Chinese threats.

The European Space Agency, the Esa, has approved a new mission to explore moons of the planet Jupiter. It says a craft will be launched in 10 years' time and should arrive at Jupiter by the year 2030. It will study three of Jupiter's biggest moons: Europa, Ganymed and Callisto, which are icy and believed to host internal oceans. The agency says the mission will study the moons' potential to be habitats for life.