AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) - In a global kick to the tape, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is grasping for diplomatic victories before the Bush administration's exit from the world stage in January.
Too little, too late, say critics, as Rice and President Bush seek to cement a legacy beyond the unpopular Iraq war, which strained relations with Europe and the Arab world and made Americans a greater target of terrorists.
mbat militants along the Afghan border; seek additional support from China on Iran and North Korea; and assess the slow pace of progress in the effort to conclude an Israel-Palestinian deal by year's end. Prospects for achieving any of those are uncertain.

By THOMAS PM BARNETT, Scripps Howard News Service Recent diplomatic efforts by the White House with both North Korea and Iran -- nuclear newbies and

TEHRAN, July 25 (UPI) -- Iranian officials would be opened to the United States opening a diplomatic office in Tehran, Iranian Expediency Council Secretary

For Jewish organizational leaders, last week's unusual US-Iran encounter was a moment to put up or shut up. Jewish groups welcomed the attendance of the US

It is sometimes difficult to know what constitutes progress in Iraq. Perhaps it is simply about making the best of a bad situation. Suddenly, we have a confluence of events that offer hope in that region.
There has been undeniable progress in stabilizing Iraq, thanks in part to the surge that President George W. Bush executed. At the same time, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki has said it's time to set a timetable for departure of American troops. Last Friday, President Bush agreed to a "general time horizon" for troop withdrawal. Also over the weekend, an American diplomat broke precedent by joining talks with Iran in Geneva.