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ized to discuss the matter publicly before the administration's official announcement.
• President Barack Obama's top national security aides recommended the aid cutoff in late August, and Obama had been expected to announce it last month. But the announcement got sidetracked by the debate over whether to launch military strikes against Syria.
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• Kerry, in Brunei, presses China, smaller neighbors on maritime security in South China Sea
• BANDAR SERI BAGAWAN, Brunei (AP) -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in Brunei for meetings with top officials from China and its smaller Southeast Asian neighbors, in which he will urge all countries to cool tensions over territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
• Kerry will make the case in Wednesday discussions with China's prime minister and the leaders of the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. U.S. officials said Kerry would call on the Chinese to accept a binding code of conduct to govern maritime behavior until disputes with the ASEAN states are resolved.
• Kerry has added an "informal meeting" with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to his schedule Wednesday, according to a senior U.S. official. They are expected to discuss Syria and Iran. This will be their second meeting in three days; they met Monday at a different Asia-Pacific summit in Indonesia.
• Kerry is filling in at the summits for President Barack Obama, who had to cancel his participation due to the government shutdown in Washington.
• One senior official traveling with Kerry said he would he encouraging the ASEAN countries to continue to work "for enhanced coherence and unity" among themselves to bolster their position with China in negotiating a code of conduct.
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NJ Gov. Chris Christie's re-election race highlights his political future
• WAYNE, N.J. (AP) -- With the gubernatorial election less than a month away, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is telling voters that he might not serve out his full second term if elected.
• The admission might hurt any other candidate.
• But for Christie, it underscores his popularity as a straight-talking Republican in a Democratic state. And it highlights what's at stake in New Jersey's looming gubernatorial election -- a contest as much about Christie's presidential aspirations as the (Continued on page 40)
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