Senator Rand Paul sues Obama over NSA intel program
US Senator Rand Paul filed suit against President Barack Obama and other officials in a bid to end the secret program that scoops up telephone data on virtually all Americans.
Australia falls short on Aboriginal welfare targets
PM Tony Abbott admitted Australia has failed to meet important targets on Aboriginal life expectancy, education and employment, but insisted progress has been made in other areas.
Gulf-Russia talks to focus on Syria: Kuwait
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will meet his Gulf Arab counterparts on February 18 for talks expected to focus on the Syria conflict.
12 February 2014
Japan PM as unpopular as Kim Jong-Un: S. Korea poll
With Seoul-Tokyo relations at their lowest ebb for years, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is as unpopular with South Koreans as North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.
Energy is 'game changer' in new Cyprus peace drive
Greek- and Turkish-Cypriot leaders meet Tuesday to relaunch talks on ending the island's division after a nearly two-year break, with optimism that the energy card could provide a breakthrough.
11 February 2014
China and Taiwan to hold historic talks
China and Taiwan will hold their first government-to-government talks Tuesday since they split 65 years ago after a brutal civil war -- a symbolic yet historic move between the former bitter rivals.
Kazakhstan and Jamaica discuss visa regime
Tourism Minister of Jamaica Wykeham McNeill and Kazakhstan Ambassador Konstantin Zhigalov have discussed simplification of visa regime.
10 February 2014
N. Korea scraps US envoy's invite as tensions mount
Tensions tightened on the Korean peninsula Monday, as North Korea cancelled a US envoy's visit over a jailed Korean American, and Seoul and Washington set dates for military drills denounced by Pyongyang.
10 February 2014
Iran agrees to explain nuclear detonators to UN
Iran agreed Sunday to clarify to the UN atomic agency its need for detonators used in nuclear devices, as part of a probe into allegations of its past weapons work.
US diplomat sorry for cursing EU in bugged Ukraine call
The United States tried Thursday to defuse a potential row with its European allies after the leak of an embarrassing phone call in which a top US diplomat cursed the EU response to the Ukraine crisis.
Hong Kong police dismantle 'biggest' WWII bomb
Hong Kong police on Friday successfully dismantled the largest World War II bomb yet found in the city after its discovery on a construction site prompted the evacuation of 2,260 people.