Society

China ordered a halt to construction of one of its high-speed rail lines due to violations of environmental rules, the latest sign of greater government scrutiny toward a high-profile project that has already been jolted by corruption and debt concerns.

China's Ministry of Environmental Protection said in a statement on its website Wednesday that project managers from eastern China's planned Tianjin-Qinhuangdao high-speed railway failed to submit to required environmental inspections after they made location changes.

A woman who answered the phone at the Tianjin-Qinhuangdao Passenger Dedicated Line Co., which is managing the project, said the company declined to comment. The environment ministry didn't respond to a written request for comment.

China has agreed to expedite the delivery of 50 fighter jets to Pakistan, a newspaper reported on Friday, as Islamabad tries to deepen ties with Beijing as an alternative to increasingly fragile relations with the United States.

Pakistan’s already strained ties with its ally and major donor were battered after US forces on May 2 killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in a garrison town near Islamabad.

The fact that bin Laden was found in Abbottabad, and had been living there for years, has prompted many in Washington to call for a review of the billions of US civilian and military aid that Pakistan receives.

As the pressure mounts in Washington, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yusaf Raza Gilani has courted “best friend” China, its biggest arms supplier, during a four-day visit that ends on Friday.

The presumptive future leader of North Korea has embarked on an official trip to China, South Korean media reported on Friday, although government officials in Seoul could not confirm the visit was under way.

Kim Jong-un, the youngest son of the North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, traveled Friday morning to Jilin Province, in northeastern China, according to anonymous sources cited by the Yonhap news agency and the Chosun Ilbo newspaper.

North Korea experts have expected that the younger Mr. Kim would make an official visit to China, the North’s principal ally, although the scope and itinerary of the trip were not immediately clear.

The trip was not mentioned by the official North Korean news agency.

“In the past, the pattern is that these trips are only confirmed by the Chinese authorities or the North Korean state media after the visit is over and the schedule of events has been completed,” said a Unification Ministry official in Seoul who was not authorized to speak publicly about the trip. “We have seen the reports about Kim Jong-un’s trip but we cannot confirm that the trip is taking place.”

The size and roster of Mr. Kim’s entourage was not immediately known, although the Chosun Ilbo report, which cited an anonymous government official in Seoul, said he was accompanied by his uncle, Jang Song-taek. Mr. Jang, the husband of Kim Jong-il’s sister, is said to control the day-to-day political affairs of the country.

Kim Jong-un, who is believed to be 28 or 29, first emerged publicly last autumn, when he was given the rank of four-star general along with two significant political posts. He has clearly solidified his position as the heir apparent since then, appearing with his father on public visits to farms and factories and at major political gatherings.

YOU’VE HEARD of the One Child Policy in China. Now get ready for the One Dog Policy.

Growing irritation with dog excrement on the streets, fears about rabies and public anger at people abandoning unwanted puppies when they grow up, means China’s largest city Shanghai, is embarking on a massive crackdown to control the number of dogs.

Shanghai has a canine population of 800,000 and a human population of 23 million, but only around 140,000 of the dogs are registered and city officials say that since 2006, Shanghai has recorded at least 100,000 dog attacks each year.

From now on, people can only have one pooch or pay for the privilege. Any additional unregistered dogs will be turned over to government shelters, and owners who don’t comply face a potential 3,000 yuan (€327) fine.