Obama vows US will back human rights in Middle East
US President Barack Obama vowed to maintain the pressure on the Syrian regime and to defend human rights in the Middle East on Tuesday, but offered no new ideas to halt bloodshed in the Arab world.
13 February 2013 14:34
Obama says 34,000 US troops to leave Afghanistan
President Barack Obama announced Tuesday that 34,000 troops would be pulled out of Afghanistan in the next year, and vowed that by the end of 2014 the US war in the country would be over.
With test, N. Korea threat looks more real
With a defiant nuclear test, North Korea has shown it poses an increasingly credible threat but some doubt whether even the notoriously bellicose regime would ever use weapons of mass destruction.
13 February 2013 11:33
US to launch free trade talks with EU: Obama
The United States and Europe will launch talks on what would be the world's largest free trade zone, US President Barack Obama declared Tuesday in his State of the Union address.
13 February 2013 10:26
Britain calls for 'robust response' to N. Korea test
Britain on Tuesday strongly condemned North Korea's announcement that it has staged its most powerful nuclear test yet and called for a "robust response" from the UN Security Council.
New Zealand lawmaker calls for Muslim flight ban
A New Zealand politician has labelled young Muslim men a terrorist threat who should be banned from Western airlines, sparking condemnation from Prime Minister John Key on Tuesday.
Pentagon extends some benefits to same-sex partners
The Pentagon officially extended some military benefits to same-sex partners Monday, but said provisions like medical coverage would not be offered to gay troops' spouses due to legal barriers.
12 February 2013 11:21
UN Security Council looms for Iran as IAEA tries again
Iran faces possible referral to the UN Security Council in early March unless Tehran and the UN atomic agency defy expectations in talks Wednesday and reach a deal on enhanced inspections.
Gay rights mostly out of reach in central, eastern Europe
Ania and Yga have been inseparable for the last 17 years, living together as a couple in the Polish capital Warsaw but their love is seen as second class in this deeply Roman Catholic country.