WASHINGTON (AP) ― As with Iran 30 years ago, American leaders again are wrestling with the moral conflict between Washington’s demands for democracy among its friends and strategic coziness with dictatorial regimes seen as key to stability in an increasingly complex world, particularly the Middle East.The turmoil in Egypt ― and it’s potential for grave consequences for U.S. policy throughout the r

CAIRO (AP) ― Would-be looters broke into Cairo’s famed Egyptian Museum, ripping the heads off two mummies and damaging about 10 small artifacts before being caught and detained by army soldiers, Egypt’s antiquities chief said Saturday.Zahi Hawass said the vandals did not manage to steal any of the museum’s antiquities, and that the prized collection was now safe and under military guard.With mass

The worst outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Asia for at least 50 years may get more severe as Lunar New Year holidays spark a surge in travel, threatening to spread the virus that has decimated South Korea’s livestock. The magnitude of the outbreak is “unlike anything that we’ve seen for at least half a century,” Juan Lubroth, chief veterinary officer at the United Nations’ Food and Agricultur

State of the Union address demands N.K. abandon nukesWASHINGTON (AP) ― U.S. President Barack Obama highlighted America’s close ties with South Korea in his annual State of the Union policy speech Tuesday, praising South Korean progress and development and calling on Congress to ratify a newly negotiated trade agreement with Seoul.“To help businesses sell more products abroad, we set a goal of doub

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday called for reform in U.S. education and stressed the need to rebuild infrastructure to catch up with South Korea and other strong performing countries.“Our infrastructure used to be the best, but our lead has slipped,” Obama said in the nationally-televised State of the Union address. “South Korean homes now have greater Internet ac

At least 35killed, 180 wounded by suicide bomberMOSCOW (AP) ― Terrorists struck again in the heart of Russia, with a suicide bomber blowing himself up in Moscow’s busiest airport and turning its international arrivals terminal into a smoky, blood-spattered hall of dismembered bodies, screaming survivors and abandoned suitcases. At least 35 people were killed, including two British travelers.No one

WASHINGTON (AP) ― Political engines are revving up for the 2012 presidential election and the sound of one of those, President Barack Obama’s, will be heard above all others Tuesday night in his nationally televised State of the Union speech to a joint session of Congress.The Obama message: his prescription for a more robust economic recovery that cuts persistently high unemployment, now at 9.4 pe

CAIRO (AFP) ― The dramatic events that led to the ousting of Tunisia’s president have been echoed across the Arab world, but analysts say it is too early to tell if a “domino effect” could soon topple any leaders in the region.From the sultanate of Oman to the Kingdom of Jordan, via Sudan and Egypt, the downfall of Tunisian strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali has armed opposition groups and unions w

TOKYO (AFP) ― Call it a sign of the times for Japan’s yakuza crime syndicates ― placards on the fence around one of Tokyo’s most high-profile building sites warn: “Gangsters not welcome.”Developers of Tokyo’s Sky Tree broadcast tower, set to be the world’s highest when it is finished next year, are doing what long seemed unthinkable, shutting the door on the tattooed tough guys of the Japanese und

WASHINGTON (AP) ― Despite the pomp, pageantry and vows of cooperation, tensions between the United States and China are likely to grow, not shrink, after President Barack Obama’s summit meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao.While the United States struggles with near-chronic unemployment and a continuing housing crisis, China was the first major economy to power out of the global downturn and r

WASHINGTON (AP) ― U.S. companies have long demanded that China let its currency rise to make U.S. exports cheaper. But as President Hu Jintao visits Washington this week, U.S. companies are stressing other goals: Stopping the theft of intellectual property. And getting a fair chance to win government contracts.No one expects any big breakthroughs. Instead, many U.S. companies hold out hope that th

MILWAUKEE (AP) ― When a group of clergy sex-abuse victims held a news conference recently, it was the quiet man standing in the background who delivered the loudest message.Although the Rev. James Connell said little, his mere presence spoke volumes. It’s not every day that a Roman Catholic priest and archdiocesan vice chancellor stands in support as angry protesters demand his superiors stop hidi

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― Semiconductor companies are whipping up a new generation of chips to bring richer video and better battery life to personal computers and help them hold off threats from tablets and increasingly powerful smart phones.Intel Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc., whose processors are the “brains” of PCs, are unveiling significant changes to their chips’ designs at this week’s In