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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Former eBay chief executive Meg Whitman recovered a wide lead over her rival for the Republican nomination in California’s governor race after the pair stepped up their costly television campaigns accusing each other of being too liberal, a poll showed on Sunday.

PRAGUE (Reuters) – Czech center-right parties began talks on forming an austerity-minded coalition government on Sunday after their surprisingly decisive election victory over leftists who advocated higher welfare spending.

LONDON (Reuters) – France admitted on Sunday that keeping its top-notch credit rating would be “a stretch” without some tough budget decisions, following German hints that Berlin may resort to raising taxes to help bring down its deficit.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The top military officer said on Sunday he would like Congress to hold off passing legislation to repeal the ban on gays serving openly in the military until the Pentagon completes a review of how to implement the policy.

SEOGWIPO, South Korea (Reuters) – China deflected pressure to censure North Korea at a regional summit on Sunday, instead urging its neighbors to calm tensions over the sinking of a warship and avoid any clash that could shake Asia.

By Paul Day MADRID (Reuters) – Spain’s Socialist government grappled with a deepening political crisis on Sunday, with reforms of a “dysfunctional” labor market hanging by a thread and its chances of survival beyond the autumn looking shaky.

TRIPOLI (Reuters) – Investigators have so far found no evidence that mechanical failure caused an Airbus aircraft to crash in Libya this month killing 103 people, a Libyan commission studying the crash said.