loves to stiff him, play him along and manipulate him. He's the world's celebrity ingenue, the slender naif perpetually undone by the recalcitrance of foreign leaders. ...more

November 25, 2009

The Obama administration is open to discussions with Iran over its nuclear ambitions despite protests questioning the legitimacy of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election, U.S. officials said Sunday. ...more

June 29, 2009

The U.N. Security Council was poised Saturday to penalize North Korea for launching a missile, with the five permanent members plus Japan agreeing to slightly tighten sanctions against North Korea after haggling for a week. ...more

April 12, 2009

Invoking art, history and "the common humanity that binds us," President Barack Obama offered a new day in the United States' relationship with Iran, using a videotaped message released on the Internet to make an unusual appeal directly to Iranians for a shift away from decades of confrontation. ...more

March 21, 2009

Iran played down President Barack Obama's new video message to the Iranian people on Friday, saying it welcomed the overtures but warned that decades of mistrust can't easily be erased. ...more

March 20, 2009

Iran Says Movies Are 'Insulting' An adviser to Iran's president on Sunday demanded an apology from a team of visiting Hollywood actors and movie industry officials, including Annette Bening, saying films such as "300" and "The Wrestler" were "insulting" to Iranians. ...more

March 2, 2009

An adviser to Iran's president on Sunday demanded an apology from a team of visiting Hollywood actors and movie industry officials, including Annette Bening, saying films such as "300" and "The Wrestler" were "insulting" to Iranians. ...more

March 1, 2009

President Barack Obama's top envoy to Afghanistan declared Sunday that Iran should play a vital role helping stabilize the war-torn country. It was the latest statement by Obama officials signaling a clear shift away from the Bush administration's policy of avoiding direct engagement with Tehran. ...more

February 16, 2009

Vice President-elect Joseph Biden said Barack Obama would be quickly tested by a dangerous world, with the test coming from anywhere. In a possible warning not to underestimate him, Obama has filled his national security team with centrists and relative hawks. And his willingness to talk to America's adversaries will actually make their lives harder. "What Obama absolutely must prove early on in his administration is that he cannot be played for a patsy, that he has the strength ... and that he understands his No. 1 duty is as commander in chief and protector of the United States," said Robin Niblett, the director of Chatham House, the London-based think tank. Obama's foreign policy test might come from anywhere, but there are signs that some of America's most strident foes are not eager for a fight. ...more

January 4, 2009

A group of influential conservative Iranian clerics launched an online registration drive today seeking volunteers to fight against Israel in response to its air assault on the Gaza Strip. ...more

December 29, 2008