The West is being “outspent, outmaneuvered and out-strategized” by violent Islamic extremism, Tony Blair has warned. The former British prime minister said that there had been a failure to challenge the “narrative” that Islam was oppressed by the West which was fuelling extremism around the world. He said too many people accepted the extremists’ analysis [...]

Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has sacked Moscow mayor Yury Luzhkov, who held the post for 18 years, the Kremlin said today. The Kremlin’s website said Medvedev signed a decree effective today relieving the 74-year-old mayor of his duties due to the president’s “loss of confidence” in him. Luzhkov drew criticism in July when repairs to [...]

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev arrived in China today for talks with leaders, amid growing energy co-operation between the neighbors. The Russian leader arrived in the north eastern port city of Dalian and was to visit a war memorial and meet Chinese and Russian veterans as well as local leaders, China’s official Xinhua News Agency said. [...]

President Barack Obama is vowing a fresh effort to help job growth. US employment fell for a third consecutive month in August, but the drop was less than expected. It relieves concerns about a stalling economic recovery and a double-dip recession. The scarcity of jobs has hurt consumer spending, which normally accounts for about two-thirds [...]

French President Nicolas Sarkozy today vowed to continue with his changes to the pension system and unions promptly announced new national strikes. A day after more than a million people took to the streets in protest Sarkozy said it was “out of the question” to give up on the plan to raise the retirement age [...]

Serbia’s government today gave up its bid to challenge Kosovo’s independence at the UN General Assembly meeting, after reaching a compromise solution with the EU over the resolution it tabled there. President Boris Tadic said, however, the compromise “in no way includes recognition of Kosovo’s independence”. The US and major EU powers are among over [...]

Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao said today that the resignation of his deputy, whose party threatened to withdraw from the ruling coalition, will not lead to the collapse of East Timor’s government. Gusmao’s former deputy Mario Viejas Carrascalao said he had no choice but to quit this week after his boss called him a “liar” for [...]

British Prime Minister David Cameron met Pope Benedict XVI this morning as the Pontiff began the third day of his UK tour. The Pope arrived at Archbishop House, behind Westminster Cathedral in central London, at 8.40am followed 15 minutes later, by the Prime Minister. It is the first time the two men have met since [...]

A federal judge in Southern California declared the US military’s ban on openly gay service members to be unconstitutional. US District Judge Virginia Phillips granted a request for an injunction halting the government’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy for gays in the military. Ms Phillips said the policy does not help military readiness and instead [...]

Rand Paul, a tea party-backed Republican, who is running for a U.S. Senate seat in Kentucky, leading his Democratic rival Jack Conway by 15 points (SurveyUSA). The poll, conducted for the Louisville Courier-Journal and WHAS-TV, puts Paul ahead of Conway, 55% to 40%. The two are vying to capture the seat being vacated by Republican [...]