BBC News with David Austin.
There's been a cautious international response to the announcement by Iran that it percents some of its low enriched uranium abroad in return for higher-grade nuclear fuel for a research reactor. Tehran hopes the deal will avert new sanctions against Iran. Barbara Plett reports from the United Nations.
The White House said the fuel transfer would be a positive step, but it didn't address the main concern about Iran's nuclear program which is that Tehran continues to enrich uranium despite UN demands that it stop and a higher level than it used to. Washington said it would continue efforts through the Security Council to show Iran that such behavior has consequences, including sanctions. However, it did acknowledge the efforts of Turkey and Brazil in brokering the compromised deal. The White House also said it would proceed enclose consultation with all its partners. Aware, perhaps that the coalition it's built to isolate Iran could fragment over this issue.
The United Nations has appointed a Costa Rican diplomat Christiana Figueres as its new climate chief. She will be in charge of stored international talks on how to counter the effects of greenhouse gases on global warming. Mrs.Figueres was nominated by the Costa Rican government after Yvo de Boer of the Netherlands announced he was stepping down after almost four years in the job.
An influential think tank, the International Crisis Group says tens of thousands of tunnel civilians were killed in the final stages of Sri Lankan Civil War which ended exactly a year ago. From Colombo, here is Charles Haviland.