Geopolitics

WASHINGTON (AP) — China poses the greatest threat to America and the rest of the free world since World War II, outgoing National Intelligence Director John Ratcliffe said Thursday as the Trump administration ramps up anti-Chinese rhetoric to pressure President-elect... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr has given extra protection to the prosecutor he appointed to investigate the origins of the Trump-Russia probe, granting him authority to complete the work without being easily fired. Barr told The Associated Press... Read More

BEIRUT — The U.S. drone missile punched through the car of Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, instantly killing the 62-year-old Iranian spymaster and national hero as he drove through the streets of Baghdad last January. Days later, Iranian leaders who swore "severe revenge" lobbed ballistic missiles... Read More

WASHINGTON -- Defense analysts warned Congress Friday against the U.S. troop withdrawal in Afghanistan announced this week amid indications that radical Islamists could resume terrorist attacks. They said further proof is needed that Taliban fighters would not try to seize... Read More

China and 14 other countries agreed Sunday to set up the world’s largest trading bloc, encompassing nearly a third of all economic activity, in a deal many in Asia are hoping will help hasten a recovery from the shocks of... Read More

YANAN, China — Stars showered from the ceiling as actors suspended by ropes ran through the air. An unseen man's voice boomed through the theater: "I have followed this red flag, walking thousands of kilometers with the faith of a Communist Party member in... Read More

BERLIN — In the eyes of much of the world the United States is a potent, yet faltering force, a conflicted nation heading into an election that will either redeem it or tug it farther away from the myths and promise that for... Read More

WASHINGTON — Iran and Russia have obtained voter registration information and are sending disinformation to Americans ahead of Election Day, the leaders of U.S. intelligence agencies and the FBI warned Wednesday night. The announcement was made during a brief and hastily announced news conference, and it was another reminder of... Read More

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Amnesty International said late Tuesday there was “credible but disturbing evidence” that security forces in the megacity of Lagos had fatally shot protesters who were demonstrating against police brutality despite a new curfew going into effect.... Read More

WASHINGTON — The term 5G is all over telecommunications these days. It comes with the promise of data speeds up to 100 times faster than current connections and the ability to support devices that will perform functions not yet imaginable.... Read More

MEXICO CITY — The Mexican economy is cratering, homicides are rising at a record rate, and the COVID-19 death toll has surged past 80,000. For any other leader, the torrent of bad news might herald a political reckoning. Not for... Read More

The United States’ intelligence community is expecting active Russian disinformation efforts to influence the results of the 2020 presidential election, according to analysis by the RAND Corporation. Among the corporation’s key findings was that technological innovation has made widespread propaganda... Read More

WASHINGTON – A bipartisan delegation of Congressional leaders met Wednesday with National Security Advisor Matthew Pottinger to discuss the United States' foreign policy toward China in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.  “We are grateful to Deputy National Security Advisor Matthew... Read More

BEIJING — The herder couldn’t speak for long. His phone was being monitored, he said, as are those of many other Mongols around him. “We have no way out. There’s nothing we can do,” said Gangbater, a herder in Xilingol... Read More

China appears keen to bring piracy back as an instrument of foreign policy, but the days of eye patches and wooden legs are long gone. Instead, Beijing’s most effective raiding parties prefer business suits and briefcases, thus allowing them to... Read More

President Donald Trump is playing into Russia’s hands by claiming that his political adversaries are trying to rig the U.S. election, a former senior intelligence official said. Sue Gordon, who left the second-highest post in the Office of the Director... Read More

WASHINGTON — Trump administration appointees suppressed intelligence on Russian election interference and the threat from white supremacists, according to a whistleblower complaint filed by the Department of Homeland Security’s former intelligence chief. The complaint by Brian Murphy alleges interference from... Read More

TOKYO (AP) — Japan's longest-serving prime minister, Shinzo Abe, said Friday he is stepping down because a chronic health problem has resurfaced. He told reporters that it was “gut wrenching” to leave many of his goals unfinished. Abe has had... Read More

MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian navy conducted major war games near Alaska involving dozens of ships and aircraft, the military said Friday, the biggest such drills in the area since Soviet times. Russia's navy chief, Adm. Nikolai Yevmenov, said that... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is set to demand the restoration of all international sanctions on Iran in a move that will further isolate the U.S. at the United Nations, test the credibility of the U.N. Security Council and... Read More

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny is in a coma and on a ventilator in a hospital intensive care unit after falling ill from suspected poisoning that his allies believe is linked to his political activity. The 44-year-old... Read More

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign eagerly capitalized on Russia’s efforts to meddle in the U.S. election four years ago, according to a bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee report that raises new concerns about connections between his top aides and... Read More

BRUSSELS — U.K. and European Union officials have the next seven weeks to find something that has eluded them since March: an agreement over their future relationship. After a brief summer hiatus, face-to-face discussions will resume in Brussels on Tuesday.... Read More

Russia’s decision to approve a coronavirus shot before crucial tests have shown it’s safe and effective raises worries that politics will trump public health in the quest for a vaccine. The country’s plan to start mass inoculations as soon as... Read More

BERLIN — Twenty-four European countries lodged a complaint with the U.S. State Department this week over President Donald Trump’s expansive use of sanctions to help influence American foreign policy goals, according to a European diplomat familiar with the communication. The... Read More

BEIRUT — The United Arab Emirates and Israel have agreed to work toward establishing full diplomatic ties as part of a deal to halt, for now, Israel’s controversial plans to annex occupied West Bank land sought by Palestinians for their... Read More

President Vladimir Putin said Russia cleared the world’s first COVID-19 vaccine for use and hopes to begin mass inoculation soon, even before clinical testing has finished. “The first registration has taken place,” Putin said Tuesday at a televised government meeting,... Read More

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s beleaguered prime minister and the rest of his Cabinet resigned Monday, six days after a catastrophic explosion in Beirut’s port leveled large areas of the capital. Prime Minister Hassan Diab said he was stepping down as demonstrators... Read More

IRAPUATO, Mexico — Word spread quickly here after gunfire erupted at a neighborhood drug rehab center. Natalia Acosta Medina bolted from her patio, sprinted through the muddy streets and climbed the stairs of the two-story facility. More than two dozen... Read More

NORTH JEOLLA PROVINCE, South Korea — It wasn’t yet 9 a.m., but Promdeth Phonsrikaew stood sweat-soaked in the field. He was in his third hour of picking tobacco, beginning shortly after dawn at the foot of a mountain in a... Read More