Japan's incoming PM pledges to mend ties with China
Japan's incoming premier Saturday pledged to seek a thaw in ties with China after a report said he will send a special envoy on a fence-mending mission to Beijing.
22 December 2012
Obama picks John Kerry as secretary of state
US President Barack Obama Friday nominated Senator John Kerry as his new secretary of state, as he began to reshape his national security team for a second term clouded by overseas crises.
22 December 2012
Chavez said to be 'well' and 'conscious'
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is making steady progress after cancer surgery in Cuba and the respiratory infection he developed earlier in the week has been contained.
Eurasian Economic Union draft to be ready by mid-2014
Nazarbayev emphasized that the presidents of Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus are intent on transforming the Customs Union and the ensuing Single Economic Space into a solid alliance that would attract other nations.
Russia negotiates union with ex-Soviet statesRussia sought Wednesday to expand its influence over former territories during integration talks that Washington has cast as a bid to "re-Sovietise" the region.
Hopes for stronger ties as Hollande visits Algeria President Francois Hollande arrives in Algeria on Wednesday seeking to end simmering resentment over French colonial rule and bolster ties with the OPEC country.
19 December 2012
South Koreans vote in presidential election South Koreans cast their votes Wednesday in a tight and potentially historic presidential election that could result in Asia's fourth-largest economy selecting its first female leader.
'You need me': Berlusconi on new election run Italy's indefatigable former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi appeared on television Tuesday for the third time in as many days to vow a return to political life.
19 December 2012
Kazakhstan Foreign Minister comments Strategy-2050Many people were skeptical about Kazakhstan’s future. Foreign analysts and observers believed that Kazakhstan would most probably not be growing a sovereign state, because the country had a demanding geopolitical surrounding, complicated ethnic composition of the population and backward economy: Yerlan Idrissov.
18 December 2012
China resists moves to sanction N. Korea: diplomatsChina is resisting US-led efforts to order new sanctions against North Korea over its rocket launch and the UN Security Council could take weeks to decide a formal move, diplomats said.