Clinton Announces “Targeted Easing” of Sanctions on Myanmar

Two days after hailing Sunday's parliamentary by-elections in Myanmar, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that Washington would begin a process of "targeted easing" of longstanding economic sanctions against the Southeast Asian nation.

U.S. Boosts Sudan Aid as Humanitarian Crisis Deepens

In a memorandum released Tuesday, President Barack Obama ordered the State Department to allocate additional humanitarian assistance funds for Sudan as famine looms for thousands of civilians caught between intensified levels of armed conflict along the borders of Sudan and South Sudan.

Strong Majority of U.S. Jews Likely to Stick With Obama

Despite his repeated differences with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a strong majority of U.S. Jews are likely to vote to re-elect President Barack Obama in November, according to major new survey of Jewish opinion released here Tuesday.

Q&A: U.S. Funding Cuts in UNESCO More Audible than Visible

When the 194-member General Conference of the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) was on the verge of admitting Palestine as a full-fledged member of the Paris-based U.N. agency last year, the United States warned against it - and threateningly.

U.S. Praises Myanmar Poll

The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama Monday hailed Sunday's parliamentary by-election in Myanmar, also known as Burma, which the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) led by Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi won in a landslide.

Rights Groups Slam Renewed U.S. Military Aid to Egypt

The U.S. State Department announced on Friday that military aid to Egypt will resume, citing a national security waiver that was included in the most resent appropriations legislation on foreign assistance.

No Settlement in Sight as Syria Violence Intensifies

As Western governments reexamine their options for ending the ongoing violence in Syria, Kofi Annan, U.N.-Arab League special envoy to Syria, briefed diplomats Friday at the U.N. Security Council, who remain divided over whether a negotiated ceasefire or direct intervention will be necessary, or even feasible.

Little U.S. Popular Support for Israeli Attack on Iran

Amidst persistent speculation over a possible Israeli military attack against Iranian nuclear facilities in the wake of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit here, a detailed new public opinion survey released Tuesday suggests that such a move would enjoy little support in the United States.

U.S.: More Bad News on the Afghan Front

While U.S. officials insisted their counterinsurgency strategy is still working, Sunday's pre-dawn massacre by a U.S. staff sergeant of 16 people, including nine children, in their homes in Kandahar province has dealt yet another body blow to Washington's hopes to sustain a significant military presence in Afghanistan after 2014.

U.S.: Bomb-Iran Week Turns Syrious

This week was supposed to be all about Iran – at least, that's how Israel and its powerful U.S. lobby, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), had planned it - and why the U.S. should prepare to bomb it very, very soon if its leadership doesn't cave into Western demands to abandon its nuclear programme.

Washington Struggles to Find a Path Forward on Syria

As the Syrian army has stepped up its attacks against opposition strongholds in Homs and elsewhere, the U.S. and its allies have achieved little consensus in choosing a course of action to oust President Bashar al-Assad.

Obama to Pro-Israel Lobby Group: ‘Too Much Loose Talk of War’

U.S. President Barack Obama Sunday made a clear statement against a rush to war - either by the U.S. or Israel - with Iran, while also emphasising that he would pursue that option if alternatives were unsuccessful in ensuring that Iran would not develop a nuclear weapon.

U.S. Voters Increasingly Alienated by Two Major Parties

A new book shows there are now more U.S. voters who identify as independent than as Democrats or Republicans, despite the fact that the two major parties maintain their virtual stranglehold on U.S. politics and, so far, on the 2012 presidential election process.

U.S.: Amid Escalating Israel-Iran Tensions, a Glimmer of Hope?

After weeks of rapidly escalating tensions, particularly between Israel and Iran, signs emerged this week both here and in Tehran that serious negotiations over Tehran's controversial nuclear programme may soon get underway.

Washington’s Man in China?

When Hu Jintao took over as the leader of China in 2002, U.S. companies welcomed his accession as a "good sign for American business"." Political analysts described Hu as a member of the fourth generation of Communist party leadership who might very well turn out to be a "closet liberal".

NGOs Urge Open Selection Process for Next World Bank Chief

A global coalition of development activists and non- governmental organisations (NGOs) is calling on the World Bank's governors to ensure that Bank President Robert Zoellick's successor is chosen in an "open and merit-based process" that will give borrowing countries a major say in the selection.

U.S.: Obama Requests Slightly Higher Aid Levels for 2013

Despite strong pressure to reduce the yawning federal deficit, the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama is asking Congress for a slight increase in funding for the State Department and foreign aid next year.

While Israel Blames Iran for India, Georgia Bombings, U.S. More Reserved

While Israel and its allies here blamed Iran for Monday's two nearly simultaneous car bomb incidents in the capitals of India and Georgia, the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama echoed local authorities in both countries who said they were not sure who the perpetrators were.

Army Officer’s Leaked Report Rips Afghan War Success Story

An analysis by Lt. Col. Daniel Davis, which the U.S. Army has not approved for public release but has leaked to Rolling Stone magazine, provides the most authoritative refutation thus far of the official military narrative of success in the Afghanistan War since the troop surge began in early 2010.

Renewed Push in U.S. to Arm Syrian Rebels

What with rumours from Israel of war on Iran, a major showdown with the Egyptian military over the indictments of government- funded U.S. activists in Cairo, and continuing political paralysis in Iraq, you would think President Barack Obama has enough Middle East crises to deal with.

NGO Prosecution Puts U.S.-Egyptian Ties at Risk

The ongoing controversy over the activities of U.S. and other foreign non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Egypt appears to be bringing ties between the two countries to their lowest point in nearly 40 years.