WTO approves membership for TajikistanThe World Trade Organization on Monday approved Tajikistan's 11-year struggle to join the UN's global trade body, paving the way for the Central Asian nation to become its 159th member.
12 December 2012
Abbas wins UN 'birth certificate' for Palestine state The UN General Assembly on Thursday overwhelmingly voted to make Palestine a non-member state, inflicting a major diplomatic defeat on the United States and Israel.
Palestinian UN bid on Nov 29: Abbas Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has announced that the Palestinian Authority will present its bid for non-state UN membership, despite US and Israeli opposition.
Obama tells Abbas of opposition to UN move US President Barack Obama told Mahmud Abbas on Sunday that his administration opposes a Palestinian bid for non-state membership of the UN.
12 November 2012
Economic minnow Laos set to join WTO club After years of preparation, communist Laos is on the verge of joining the World Trade Organisation, a milestone that the small landlocked nation owes to a slew of reforms it must now enforce.