TIME.com: Top World Stories

U.S. Talks with North Korea to Focus on Nuclear Issue

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

To jump-start stalled talks over the North's nuclear weapons, Washington sends a special envoy to Pyongyang. But the Obama Administration is not expecting a breakthrough

Mexico Witness Protection: Corrupt Program, New Killings

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Two murders in Mexico have raised concerns about the viability of the country's witness-protection program -- and its part in the violent drug war

Taiwan: World's Lowest Birthrate Could Affect Society

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

As of this year, Taiwan has the lowest birthrate in the world, with one baby born per woman

Latest Iran Protests Show a Resilient Opposition

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Street clashes in Iranian cities reflect a resilient opposition movement that sustains itself through its diverse forms

How Time Zones, Daylight Savings Work in U.S., World

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

In 1883, the U.S. and Canada adopted a standard time system, and the rest, as they say, is history

Bolivian Voters Give President Evo Morales Big Win

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

With a prosperous economy in place, the country's leftist and first indigenous President records a resounding victory to claim his second term in office

Jerusalem: Israelis, Palestinians in Deadlock Over Site

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

With no prospect of an Israeli-Palestinian agreement on sharing the Holy City, efforts by settler groups to create irreversible facts on the ground in Jerusalem threaten to spark a new conflagration

Turkish P.M. in Washington As Turkey Looks East

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is in Washington to discuss Iran's nuclear program, the war in Afghanistan and other issues. But the President also needs to convince him that Turkey must stay close to the U.S. and Europe even as it looks east

The Islamic Divide at Work: Advice for French Bosses

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

In their book Is There Room for Allah in the Workplace? two French anthropologists offer French bosses legal guidelines on how work-religion conflicts might be approached and practical suggestions to resolving them

Five Flawed Assumptions of Obama's Afghan Surge

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Viewpoint: There's no shortage of hope in the President's plan to turn Afghanistan around. Or is it wishful thinking?

Amanda Knox Guilty Verdict: Did She Get a Fair Trial?

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Two years after her British roommate in Italy was found brutally murdered, American college student Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito were found guilty. But her family she was never given a real chance to prove her innocence

Why Fake Snow Is Filling Beijing's Bird's Nest

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Eighteen months after the most ostentatious Olympics of all time, the organizers of the Beijing Games are finally facing a reckoning as they try to figure out how to keep their prized centerpiece stadium in the black

Al-Shabab: Recruiting Americans for Somalia's Jihad

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

A closer look at a young Islamic extremist group in Somalia that has been actively recruiting young American members

Obama's Latin American Policy Looks Like Bush's

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

The President has allowed his dealings with Central and South America to be hijacked by congressional conservatives and old-fashioned cold warriors

India, Pakistan and the Battle for Afghanistan

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Pakistan resists fighting the Afghan Taliban because it fears Indian domination next door. But India is expanding its influence there because it fears a Taliban comeback

In Philippines, A Colorful (and Chaotic) Election Season Kicks Off

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Election season in the Philippines has just begun, and nearly one hundred candidates have registered to run in next year's presidential derby

Amanda Knox, Convicted of Murder in Italy

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

The 22-year-old American student is found guilty after a yearlong trial

Suicide Bombing Marks a Grim New Turn for Somalia

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

A suicide bombing at a university graduation ceremony in Mogadishu highlights the growing problems in the most lawless place on the planet

The Legal Woes of Italy's Prime Minister Continue

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

The Italian Prime Minister is once again spending his weekends with lawyers. They have lots to do

Pakistani Taliban Targeting Boys' and Girls' Schools

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Attacks on Pakistani boys' and girls' schools have panicked the populace while also giving many young people a steely resolve

Doku Umarov: The Man Behind Russia's Deadly Train Blast

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Doku Umarov leads the radical wing of the Chechen resistance, which claimed responsibility for the Nov. 27 bomb attack on the Neva Express train en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg

North Korea: Currency 'Reform' Makes Citizens Poorer

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

The North Korean regime decided to lop off two zeroes from the paper currency, the won, and gave North Koreans less than a week to exchange all their old notes for new ones

Under Global Pressure, Sri Lanka Opens Post-War Camps

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Under intense pressure, the Sri Lankan government has begun to open the gates of a camp where 130,000 civilians have been waiting for their lives to begin since the end of the nation's civil war in May

No Royal Birthday Bash This Year for Thai King

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

An annual time of joy in Thailand has been transformed into a periodof unease as most ceremonies marking the birthday of King BhumibolAdulyadej have been cancelled or postponed this year

Will Iran Cause Problems for Obama in Afghanistan?

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Tehran quietly helped the U.S. overthrow the Taliban in 2001. But as tensions with the West mount, Iran's interests in cooperating in Afghanistan may be trumped by more hostile priorities

Chinese 'Mulan': New Movie Has Live Actors, No Disney

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

The Chinese were not happy that the Magic Kingdom appropriated their folkloric heroine Mulan for global gain. Now they've come up with their own movie

That Viral Thing: Tiger's Crash, the Chinese Reenactment

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

The events of that fateful Thanksgiving night at Tiger Woods' Florida home, recreated lovingly by computer-animated characters. In Chinese

Pakistan on Obama's Afghanistan Plan: Withdrawal Is Key

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Pakistani generals believe their domestic insurgency will end only when the Americans leave Afghanistan, but they want an orderly departure -- based on negotiations with the Taliban

Obama Speech: Afghans Skeptical About 18-Month Timeline

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

While President Obama's rhetoric was powerful, few in war-torn Afghanistan can envision how it might be translated into reality for the region

Will Europe Agree to Sending More Troops to Afghanistan?

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Some European countries are likely to send more troops to Afghanistan but others are already talking about drawing down their numbers. Washington may end up disappointed

Europe's Secret Nuclear Weapons: What Should NATO Do?

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

Not many people know that four non-nuke states in Europe host nuclear bombs and have air forces ready to drop them. It's time to rid Europe of this anachronism

Italian Town Dreams of a White (No Foreigners) Christmas

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

It's about skin color, not snow. Coccaglio, a town in northern Italy, has decided to conduct an unofficial census during the holiday to ferret out illegal aliens in its midst

Peru's Murderous Fat-Stealing Gang: Crime or Cover-Up?

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

The alleged homicidal liposuctioners made headlines throughout the world. But could they be an attempt to distract attention from a more sinister story?

Dubai's Woes a Blow to Ambitious Ruler Sheik Mohammed

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:20:00 EST

The dream of the oil-poor emirate may be in tatters, but don't write off its ego-driven leader yet