11.   At a recent briefing in a newly built hall near the canal, Mubarak was lively, interrogating his lieutenants about the progress so far on the desert projects.

12.   Foreign office spokesman Tariq Altaf said at a recent briefing that Pakistan is ready to hold bilateral talks with India although it has repeatedly been disappointed by one-on-one negotiations.

13.   In one recent briefing, Zhu suggested the United States now might better understand what the Chinese government has been dealing with for years in Xinjiang.

14.   John Holum, director of the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, offered the upbeat administration assessment at a recent briefing.

15.   The Interior Ministry and security agencies reportedly told Musharraf at a recent briefing about possible links between militant groups and terrorist acts in the country.

16.   He said in a recent briefing to journalists that he was confident of concluding an FTA with Singapore within the next few months.

17.   UN Under-Secretary-General Marrack Goulding expressed similar reservations at a recent briefing here.