A main concern is that the failure of some banks or governments to pay their debts could send a financial shock across many countries.

VOA: special.2009.03.06

The ruling challenges the Dublin II Regulation, used by many EU countries to send asylum seekers back to Greece, despite the country's backlog of cases.

BBC: Afghan wins key asylum case at European Court

April is usually the peak of tourist season, but the natural disasters have resulted in cancellations of tours from Hong Kong, China, Russia, South Korea, Thailand and other countries that normally send many tourists to Japan.

BBC: Cherry blossom festivals amid tragedy

Until now Joulwan's staff has only been able to guess which countries will send troops and how many.

CNN: NATO commander ready to guide Operation Joint Endeavour