Paris  - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrived at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Thursday for talks with French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

The discussion was to centre on the EU summit, which opens later Thursday in Brussels, and the meeting of the G20 nations scheduled to be held on April 2 in London.

According to a source in the British government, Brown and Sarkozy were to concentrate on several issues related to the global financial and economic crisis.

Paris - Triple Olympic champion and men's 100-metre and 200m world record holder Usain Bolt will compete in the Golden League meeting at the Stade de France in Paris on July 17, organizers confirmed Thursday.

It remains unclear whether the 22-year-old Jamaican will compete in the 100m or 200m. Bolt will make his European season debut in Manchester on May 17 in a 150m race in the city centre.

Paris - US President Barack Obama has indirectly praised fo

Paris - French workers from the public and private sectors went on strike on Thursday to protest the economic policies of President Nicolas Sarkozy.

The second national anti-government job action this year will be accompanied by protest demonstrations in more than 210 cities and towns, trade union officials said.

The strike actually began late Wednesday when employees of the national rail network SNCF and the French oil giant Total walked off their jobs.

Paris  - A one-day general strike of French workers from the private and public sectors to protest the economic policies of President Nicolas Sarkozy began late Wednesday when employees of the national railway network SNCF walked off their jobs.

The SNCF said that only about half of its scheduled long-haul and regional trains on average were expected to be running during the strike.

Paris - The French Anti-doping Agency (AFLD) sprang a surprise out-of-competition doping test on seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong that included a sample of his hair, Armstrong said on his Twitter feed.

"Yet another "surprise" anti-doping control. 24th one. This one from the French authorities. Urine, blood, and hair! Classic," Armstrong wrote on the Twitter.

The AFLD confirmed the test on Wednesday, saying that Armstrong was subject to examinations like any other athlete.