Politics - AFP

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (AFP) - It will take time for the Wall Street bail-out bill to be put into place and confidence to return to financial markets, US President George W. Bush said Monday.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The Federal Reserve and the US Treasury announced measures Monday to confront a rapidly escalating financial crisis under new emergency powers as panicked investors fled stock markets.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US Supreme Court Monday did not rule on whether it would hear arguments in the case of an African-American granted an 11th hour stay of execution for the murder of a white police officer.

HANOI (AFP) - Former enemies the United States and Vietnam on Monday discussed possible areas of future military cooperation in their first Strategic Dialogue on Political, Security and Defence Issues, officials said.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US Supreme Court Monday refused to hear arguments for a new trial for Mumia Abu-Jamal, a former Black Panther accused of killing a police officer who has become an icon for anti-capital punishment campaigners.

TRIPOLI (AFP) - The United States has opened a trade office in Libya to boost economic ties with the oil-rich state, the official JANA news agency reported on Monday.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - NATO's top commander wants to begin military planning to protect newer members of the alliance but allies are divided amid concerns over Russia's reaction, US defense officials said Monday.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Republican John McCain has bet his White House fortunes on a blitz aimed at scaring voters from Democratic rival Barack Obama -- a time-honored tactic with long odds of success this year, experts warned Monday.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US Defense Secretary Robert Gates is due in Europe on Tuesday for a trip to the Balkans and an informal NATO meeting against a backdrop of high tension with Russia.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US Treasury said Monday that the finance chiefs of the Group of Seven industrialized nations will meet this week ahead of the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

CAPE TOWN (AFP) - The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt was docked Monday in Cape Town, on a visit to South Africa aimed at building ties to fight piracy and other maritime problems.

ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (AFP) - Barack Obama hammered Republican White House rival John McCain Sunday for wanting to "turn the page" on the US economic crisis and engage in low-blow personal attacks a month from election day.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Democratic leaders warned Sunday they will fight fire with fire in the final push for the presidency, after Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin sparked outrage by attacking Democrat Barack Obama for "palling around with terrorists."

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US Supreme Court resumes work Monday, weighing a raft of social and environmental issues from light cigarettes to whales, amid uncertainty over the future of the oldest judge on its bench.

ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (AFP) - With a month to go before the US election, John McCain is going for broke with an all-out offensive to portray his White House rival Barack Obama as a wild liberal who is friends with "terrorists."

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Although all eyes are on the White House race, hundreds of other elections will be taking place around the country on November 4 as US lawmakers battle to hang onto their seats in the Congress.

ASTANA (AFP) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Sunday that Kazakhstan would remain a linchpin of US policy in Central Asia amid security challenges around the region from Georgia to Afghanistan.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US policy in Asia is expected to undergo major shifts, whoever wins the race to the White House.

ASTANA, (AFP) - The Bush administration is still considering setting up a diplomatic mission in Iran to improve contacts between the Iranian and American peoples, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Sunday.