David R. Sands

Seoul refutes shooting account

South Korean officials are sharply questioning the official account of the killing of a Seoul housewife walking along a beach at a North Korean tourist resort last week, but Pyongyang on Monday continued to block any proposal for a joint investigation of the incident.

July 15, 2008

G-8 faces setbacks to U.N. goals

As the Group of Eight focuses on the slumping world economy at its summit that kicks off Monday in Hokkaido, Japan, reports say the prospects of achieving the ambitious U.N. Millennium Development Goals to eliminate global poverty by 2015 have dimmed.

July 7, 2008

Civil rights activist criticizes U.S. as ‘oblivious’

U.S. policy toward Pakistan is "deaf and oblivious to the voice of the Pakistani people" and is undermining popular support for the war on terrorism, one of Pakistan's best-known civil rights activists said in an interview.

July 3, 2008

Taliban border havens targeted

Last week's Pakistani offensive against an Islamist warlord near Peshawar was an example of what's in store for extremists who challenge the nation's new government militarily, Pakistani Ambassador Husain Haqqani said Monday.

July 1, 2008

Pakistan prepares to act along Afghan border

Pakistani security forces are preparing a string of actions in the coming days to follow up on the operation last week against a top Islamist militant near Peshawar, Pakistani Ambassador Husain Haqqani said Monday.

June 30, 2008

Gun control in most countries more stringent than in U.S.

Few countries go as far as the District of Columbia government did in effectively banning handgun ownership, but gun control abroad tends to be far stricter and more intrusive than in the United States.

June 27, 2008

U.S. doubts resolve to fight militants on border

The United States expressed doubts Wednesday over a Pakistani pledge to fight militants along its border with Afghanistan amid escalating violence that included a massacre of tribal elders and growing tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

June 26, 2008

China, India hasten arms race in space

India became the latest country to boost its defense presence in space, announcing last week plans to develop a military space program to counter the fast-growing space defense efforts of neighboring China.

June 25, 2008

Left parties block nuclear deal with U.S.

The stalled U.S.-India nuclear cooperation deal faces a make-or-break hurdle Wednesday as warring factions within India's coalition government meet to decide whether to push ahead with the ambitious pact.

June 25, 2008

Ethics of military drug testing questioned

Colombian and Indonesian troops have been drafted to test new anti-malaria drugs. South African researchers used Tanzanian soldiers to study the effectiveness of an unorthodox treatment for HIV/AIDS.

June 22, 2008

Odinga suggests the removal of Mugabe

In an unusually pointed attack on a fellow African leader, Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga on Tuesday said Zimbabwe under President Robert Mugabe was an "embarrassment" for the continent and said he would back an international force to remove him from office and oversee new elections.

June 18, 2008

Nuclear dangers rise with oil costs

The rush of countries seeking to obtain nuclear power as the price of oil soars is going to make U.S. efforts to contain nuclear proliferation and keep terrorists from obtaining weapons of mass destruction even harder, the Energy Department's top intelligence chief warned Monday.

June 17, 2008

Iraq elections likely to see delay

Iraq might be forced to delay critical provincial elections until next year because of political disputes and technical hurdles, an Iraqi lawmaker said Thursday.

June 13, 2008

Obama defeats McCain in poll abroad

It may be the one election a presidential candidate would rather not win.

June 13, 2008

Overseas, it’s Obama in a landslide

Democratic nominee Sen. Barack Obama is crushing Republican rival Sen. John McCain in a poll of citizens of nearly two dozen foreign countries.

June 12, 2008

Protests of cost of fuel go global

The problem at the pump is fast becoming a crisis at the polls as governments around the world face rising popular unrest and violence because of record-high energy prices.

June 10, 2008

Settlements seen subverting talks

Top Palestinian negotiators complained Tuesday that continuing Israeli settlement construction on contested land was undermining chances of a peace deal this year, even as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the Bush administration still hoped to nail down at least the outlines of a peace deal before Mr. Bush leaves office in January.

June 4, 2008

Violence sullies soccer glory

It was meant as the ultimate symbol of South Africa's emergence as a global player - in both senses of the term - but the award to host soccer's World Cup tournament in 2010 has become caught up in the country's recent spasm of anti-foreigner violence.

June 1, 2008

Transit gains hailed in country’s rebuilding effort

Iraqis reclaimed a small but symbolically significant patch of sovereignty with the certification of the first three civilian air-traffic controllers for Baghdad International Airport, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters said.

June 1, 2008

Violence tars S. Africa’s racial-reconciliation image

South Africa was the "Rainbow Nation," the conqueror of the racist apartheid system and the economic hub of sub-Saharan Africa. But three weeks of violence, rioting and looting have badly tarred its reputation abroad.

June 1, 2008