Russia, China sign border agreement

After 40 years of talks, China and Russia reached a final agreement Thursday over their eastern border, as Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, exchanged ratification documents by their parliaments, agreeing to share around the last of the disputed land, a group of islands totaling 375 square kilometers, state media reported. India's foreign minister, Natwar Singh, also joined Lavrov and Li in Vladivostok, Russia, to discuss their joint efforts to fight terrorism and boost their economic ties, particulary in the energy sector, in what analysts say is aimed at counterbalancing the US influence in Asia.