>> bret: in world headlines, china says a trip by the top diplomat to north korea last week eased regional tension, china has been under pressure to keep the north in check since last month. the potential for more trouble led japan to agree to continue the payment of $2.2 billion toward the cost of stationing american troops in the country. japan had sought a cut in the fee. a major hurdle cleared, a suni agreed to join the team of al-maliki. he voted but was unable to form a coalition government. it appeared today the man responsible for releasing hundreds of thousands of classified government documents would be released himself from british custody. but reports say freedom for julian assange is not coming