European Union

Caroline Spelman was said by many commentators to have had her card marked for demotion after her handling of the forest sell off controversy, but her latest comments on the proposed referendum on EU membership prove she may have the makings of a baroness!

The next generation of young men and women all across the world could soon face even higher rates of unemployment, as a consequence of high poverty levels in developing countries and unstable work situations in developed countries, the International Labor Organization warns.

Gaza's Islamist rulers have released the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in return for hundreds of Palestinian militants held by Israel after more than five years in captivity, a Hamas military source has said.

Shares in British banks were mixed on the FTSE 100 in morning trading after a surprise no vote from the Slovak parliament upset European Union plans to increase the size and power of the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF).

Despite the Syrian government apparent assurance, analysts insist sanctions imposed by western states, coupled with the continuing protests have hit the Syrian economy, posing a growing challenge to President Bashar al-Assad's government.

Tony Blair's role as a Peace envoy in the Middle east is once again under scrutiny after, the Palestine Liberation Organization reiterated previous accusations of bias toward Israel, saying the former UK Prime Minister should no longer represent the UN Quartet on the Middle east, aimed at the Middle East conflict.

The recent killing of two transsexuals by their relatives in Turkey raises questions as to whether transsexuals have become a new target for the country's notorious honour crimes.

Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced his plan to bring ex-Soviet states into a "Eurasian Union" in an article which outlined his first foreign policy initiative as he is preparing his return to the Kremlin as the country's next president.

The huge and powerful Alma telescope has begun probing into the universe, and astronomers hope it will reveal the earliest dawn of the cosmos.

With criticisms against the U.S. efforts to block the Palestinian statehood bid and the UN Quartet's unwillingness to directly tackle the settlements issue growing, many accuse those leading efforts to renew peace negotiations of being biased in favour of Israel, leading to the country becoming more and more regionally isolated.

British Holiday Makers Warned Over Deadly Jellyfish Invasion. British holiday makers heading to their favourite Mediterranean spots have been warned of the increase in deadly jelly fish.

Was Margaret Thatcher’s Appearance at Liam Fox’s Party a Direct Challenge From the Right of the Conservative Party?

The former Afghan president Burhanuddin Rabbani was killed in a suicide bomb attack while at his home close to the American embassy in Kabul, along with four other officials, reports say.

The Palestinian statehood bid at the United Nations is threatening to turn into a real diplomatic incident as supporters and opponents battle over whether or not Palestinian leaders should go ahead with the move.

David Cameron’s appearance in front of MP’s yesterday at the House of Commons Liaison Committee has done little to quieten the calls for a vote on continuing European Union membership within the ranks of his party.

In a speech to the British Council later Monday, Deputy Prime Minster Nick Clegg is expected to say the Libyan people will be safe with the departure of Moammar Gadhafi.

Shares in European banks and leading financial services firms fell sharply on Wednesday after French and German leaders failed convince to traders concerned about the euro zone debt crisis and instead rekindled plans for a financial transaction tax.

Following Israel's announcement that the government had approved the construction of more settlers' homes in east Jerusalem, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Friday expressed her "deep regret" over Israel's latest move.

Prime Minster David Cameron has turned his back on his pledge to give the British public a vote on EU membership.

Financial Markets Meltdown: Will Britain Suffer?

The Independent reported that according to an Israeli television channel, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is prepared to base talks for a Palestinian state on the 1967 truce lines.

The pick of today's Premier League, Serie A, La Liga and Bundesliga football transfer rumours, news and gossip for 21 July 2011. All the latest transfer rumours surrounding Man Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus, Roma, Barcelona and Real Madrid will be covered here.

Goran Hadzic, the last war crimes fugitive from the Yugoslav wars, has been arrested, according to Serb officials, leading to the country fulfilling its main remaining obligation to the United Nations tribunal and clearing its most important political obstacle to European Union membership.

More than 30 nations, including the United States, on Friday declared that Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime is no longer legitimate and formally recognized Libya's main opposition group as the legitimate government until a new interim authority is created.

An Arab League decision to ask the UN to recognize a Palestinian state along the pre-1967 lines would not serve the peace process, the US said on Thursday.

The Arab League will submit to the United Nations a request for recognition of a Palestinian state, Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi said on Thursday in Doha.The Arab peace initiative committee "has decided to submit a call to the member states of the United Nations to recognise a Palestinian state," Arabi told a news conference after a meeting of the committee in the Qatari capital, the AFP reported.It would "move to present a request for full membership of a Palestinian state ...

A fresh row has broken out between David Cameron and Alex Salmond over the issue of who can call a Scottish referendum for independence.

More than sixty people are believed to have died in a plane crash at Kisangani international airport in Democratic Republic of Congo.

With the U.K. this week, joining the growing cacophony of countries calling for a unified global anti-cybercrime agency, analysts have already begun to question whether such a response could actually deal with hacking collectives like Anonymous.

Japan is planning to conduct "stress tests" on all of its nuclear power plants to address safety fears and avoid possible power shortages when demand reaches peak levels later this summer.After the11 March accident at Fukushima Daiichi power plant, reactors had to be shut down and delays in restarting others already undergoing regular maintenance checks mean that only 19 of Japan's 54 reactors are currently operating, hindering the county's effort to recover after the tsunami and...