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• UK's Osborne to unveil future of state-controlled banks Tuesday, 18 Jun 2013 | 7:05 PM ET

  LONDON, June 19- The fate of Britain's two state-controlled banks will become clearer on Wednesday, when finance minister George Osborne is likely to start the clock ticking for the sale of the government's stakes.

• UPDATE 5-Russia's Putin torpedoes G8 efforts to oust Assad Tuesday, 18 Jun 2013 | 3:42 PM ET

  *Putin defiant, weighs arms sales to Syria. *Obama, Putin spar over Syria. ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 18- Russia's Vladimir Putin derailed Barack Obama's efforts to win backing for the downfall of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad at a G8 summit on Tuesday, warning the West that arms supplied to the rebels could be used for attacks on European soil.

• UPDATE 4-Russia's Putin torpedoes G8 efforts to push out Assad Tuesday, 18 Jun 2013 | 1:08 PM ET

  *Putin defiant after talks, considers arms sales to Syria. *Obama, Putin spar over Syria. President Barack Obama, said the Kremlin might sell more arms to Syria.

• UPDATE 2-Putin locks horns with West over Syria at G8 summit Tuesday, 18 Jun 2013 | 10:00 AM ET

  *Obama, Putin disagreed over Syria. ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 18- Russian President Vladimir Putin clashed with other world leaders over the civil war in Syria at a tense G8 summit, blocking any mention of the fate of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad from a final communique to be issued on Tuesday.

• UPDATE 1-Putin faces isolation over Syria as G8 ratchets up pressure Tuesday, 18 Jun 2013 | 6:16 AM ET

  *Obama, Putin disagreed over Syria in tense meeting. Syria was set to dominate the last day of the meeting in a secluded, heavily guarded golf resort in Northern Ireland, with Putin standing firm on his position that forcing out Assad would be disastrous for Syria and the region.

• Putin faces isolation over Syria as G8 ratchets up pressure Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 7:43 PM ET

  *Obama, Putin disagreed over Syria in tense meeting. ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 18- Russian President Vladimir Putin faced further isolation on the second day of a G8 summit on Tuesday as world leaders lined up to pressure him into toning down his support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

• UPDATE 8-Putin, Obama face off over Syria at tense G8 summit meeting Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 5:53 PM ET

  *Obama, Putin square off over Syria. President Barack Obama sparred with Russia's Vladimir Putin over how to end the war in Syria on Monday during an icy encounter at a G8 summit where divisions over the conflict eclipsed the rest of the agenda.

• UPDATE 2-Activists breach security perimeter during G8 protest Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 5:48 PM ET

  ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland,- Several dozen activists briefly breached a metal security barrier surrounding the G8 summit venue in Northern Ireland on Monday, but withdrew when police threatened to arrest them.

• UK's Cameron wants Syria peace plan, with or without Russia Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 5:05 PM ET

  ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 17- Prime Minister David Cameron wants Russian President Vladimir Putin to sign up to what he hopes will become an international peace plan to end the conflict in Syria but may have to press ahead without him, British officials said on Monday.

• UPDATE 7-Putin, Obama disagree over Syria at tense G8 summit meeting Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 4:29 PM ET

  *Obama, Putin square off over Syria. President Barack Obama sparred with Russia's Vladimir Putin over how to end the war in Syria on Monday during an icy encounter at a G8 summit where divisions over the conflict eclipsed the rest of the agenda.

• UPDATE 3-EU, U.S. leaders launch trade talks, France digs in on culture Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 4:20 PM ET

  ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 17- The United States and the European Union launched talks on Monday to create one of the world's most ambitious free-trade zones, as France again underscored its determination to protect its movies and culture.

• UPDATE 6-West rebukes Putin over Syria at G8 summit Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 12:54 PM ET

  *Obama, Putin likely to square off over Syria. ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 17- Western leaders rebuked Russian President Vladimir Putin for supporting Syria's Bashar al-Assad attempt to crush a two-year-old uprising, setting the stage for a tense G8 summit of the world's most powerful nations.

• UPDATE 5-West rebukes Putin over Syria before G8 meeting Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 11:09 AM ET

  *Obama, Putin likely to square off over Syria. British Prime Minister David Cameron, who is chairing the G8 summit, acknowledged there was "a big difference" between the positions of Russia and the West on Syria.

• UPDATE 1-EU, U.S. leaders launch free-trade talks Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 11:06 AM ET

  ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 17- The United States and the European Union launched negotiations for the world's most ambitious free-trade deal on Monday, promising thousands of new jobs and accelerated growth on both sides of the Atlantic.

• EU tax chief urges Swiss to end bank secrecy Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 9:40 AM ET

  BERNE, June 17- The European Union official in charge of tax policy tried to persuade Switzerland on Monday to agree to surrender more information about clients of its big banking industry as part of a drive to combat tax evasion. "Switzerland can gain from a stronger tax agreement with the EU with automatic exchange of information at its core.

• UPDATE 4-West scolds Putin over Syria before G8 meeting Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 9:28 AM ET

  *Obama, Putin likely to square off over Syria. ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland, June 17- Western leaders criticised Russian President Vladimir Putin for supporting Syria's Bashar al-Assad in his battle to crush a two-year-old uprising, setting the stage for what could be a difficult meeting of world leaders over Monday and Tuesday.

• UPDATE 1-Obama, Putin face tough talks on Syria at G8 summit Monday, 17 Jun 2013 | 3:18 AM ET

  *Obama to seek common ground with Putin on Syria. President Barack Obama will seek the help on Monday of Russia's Vladimir Putin, Syria's most powerful ally, to bring Bashar al-Assad to the negotiating table and end a two-year civil war.

• Obama, Putin face tough talks on Syria at G8 summit Sunday, 16 Jun 2013 | 7:00 PM ET

  LOUGH ERNE, Northern Ireland, June 17- U.S. President Barack Obama will seek the help on Monday of Russia's Vladimir Putin, Syria's most powerful ally, to bring Bashar al-Assad to the negotiating table and end a two-year civil war.

• UPDATE 2-Britain moves on tax dodges ahead of G8 summit Saturday, 15 Jun 2013 | 11:35 AM ET

  LONDON, June 15- Britain turned up the pressure on other rich economies to clamp down on secretive money flows at a summit next week by pressing its overseas tax havens into a transparency deal and announcing new disclosure rules for British firms.

• UPDATE 1-Britain presses its territories on tax action before G8 Saturday, 15 Jun 2013 | 5:34 AM ET

  LONDON, June 15- Prime Minister David Cameron will press Britain's overseas tax havens to sign up to an international transparency treaty in London on Saturday, before he meets leaders of G8 economies to push for coordinated global action on tax avoidance and evasion.