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BBC news 2015-10-22

Hello, I’mJohnathan Izard with the BBC news.

The US and Russia have signed a memorandum of understanding to minimize the risk of their aircraft coming into accidental contact in the skies above Syria. It comes after several instances in which the US accused Russia of unsafe and uNPRofessional conduct by flying too close to its aircraft. A Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said even a memorandum contained specific protocols. It calls for aircraft to maintain a safe distance and we have the most professional, capable aircrews in the world, and they operate with professionalism everyday over Syria. We are calling on the Russians to do the same. And these crews are crews certainly knowing exactly what a safe distanceis and the obligation is upon the Russians to maintain that safe distance, maintain that professional airmanship just as our crews are displaying right now.

The Chinese president Xi Jinping has attended the royal banquet at Buckingham Palace at the end of the first four-day of his state visit to Britain. In her speech, Queen Elizabeth described their countries relations as global partnership and called his visit a defining moment. Howard Zhang from the BBC's Chinese Service has this analysis of the meeting's significance. This meeting is mainly about China agreeing to bankroll almost all of the major infrastructure projects in the UK for decades to come. Nuclear, high speed railway, technology sector and also making London the main Renminbi or the Chinese currency trading hub which will bring billions into London as well as UK economy, all that for a promise that the UK will recognize China as a main cooperative partner on world stage.

A scientific study has raised concerns that a deadly strain of a malaria parasite that's spreading across Southeast Asia could move into Africa. Laboratory experiments have shown that the parasite which is resistant to the most effective anti-malaria drug artemisinin is able to infect different mosquito species. Doctor Rick Fairhurst of the National Institute of Health in the United States, which carried out the research, warned that such a jump could have catastrophic consequences. We think that these parasites are going to be extremely difficult to stop. The spread out and that just cannot be good for any kind of containment effort. So we think that this will provide additional impetus for grossly intensifying the malaria elimination efforts in Southeast Asia.

A Cuban graffiti artist called Danilo Maldonado has been released from jail after spending ten months in prison for mocking Raul and Fidel Castro. Mr.Maldonado, who was known as El Sexto, attempted to release two pigs painted with the names of the country's current president and former leader before he was arrested by security officers. Amnesty International says he is a person of conscience. World news from the BBC.

The Mexican authorities are relaunching the investigation into last year's disappearance of 43 students in the state of Guerrero. International experts had said the investigation was flawed. One of the experts said there would be a new team of investigators who will make better use of technology including drones, satellites, and maps of clandestine graves. They've disputed the government's account that police in Guerrero handed the students over to adrugs cartel who killed them and incinerated the bodies.

Canada's prime minister, elect, Justin Trudeau has declared the country is back on the global stage after his Liberal Party's landslide election victory. Mr.Trudeau told a rally in Ottawa that Canada's friends abroad had worried that it has lost compassionate and constructive voice under the previous conservative government. In his first telephone conversation with president Obama since his victory, Mr. Trudeau confirmed his intention to withdraw Canada's fighter jets from the airstrikes against Islamic State militants.

The United Nations says women worldwide have made significant progress since the women's conference in Beijing 20 years ago. They are in general living longer and better educated. But millions face violence and discrimination and women still make up 2/3 of illiterate adults.

Scientists say they may have solved the mystery of what makes the belly of a snake so slippery. Our science reporter Johnathan Webb has more details. Snakes are notoriously unsettlingly slippery and scientists have known for years that the scales on the animal's underbelly are particularly frictionless. Now biologists have worked with chemical engineers to study that surface at the molecular level. The scales they say are covered in a thin layer of lubricant and almost makes belly these fatty molecules are lined up in an extremely orderly fashion as well as offering an explanation for the snake's slimy underbelly. This discovery could help engineers design new low friction pants or coatings that resists wear and tear. And that's the BBC news.