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The article discusses the visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao to the U.S. and China's intentions for it. Hu is profiled regarding his political ambitions and enigmatic nature. The history of the Hu clan is discussed. The author opines regarding the purpose of Hu's visit and whether substantive issues will be addressed or resolved.

This article discusses the relationship between North Korea and the U.S before and after North Korea's nuclear test. The authors compare the assumed character and mindset of North Korean President Kim Jong Il with that of German Kaiser Wilhelm before World War I. The article mentions a shared Napoleon complex and suggests that derogatory comments made by U.S. President George W. Bush in 2002 might still be remembered.

The article suggest that the fall of the U.S. dollar is stoking fears of a global crisis. The dollar has been declining steadily against many foreign currencies, but for most Americans, the subject of the dollar--its value on foreign-exchange markets--is a yawner. A depreciating dollar makes foreign vacations more expensive, puts pressure on the prices of imported cars and shoes and (the good part) improves the global competitiveness of U.S. manufacturers. Normally, these matters aren't high on our "must know" list. But now is not normal. The significance of the dropping dollar is that it's actually a symptom of a larger and more troubling development. For 15 years the American economy has been the engine for the world economy through ever-increasing trade and current-account deficits. The trouble is that there are now more dollars than foreigners want to hold. If there's a glut of anything--apples, computer chips, Beanie Babies--prices go down. So when surplus dollars are sold for euros, yen or pounds, then the dollar drops in value against those currencies.

Offers a look at the shortage of armored Humvees that led to war casualties of United States and allied soldiers during the Iraq War of 2003 and 2004. Claim by soldiers that the U.S. government has failed to protect them with the best technology; Lack of tanks and body armor; Filing of a Freedom of Information Act request by Russ Kick for the release of photographs showing coffins returning to the United States from Iraq; Statement that a breakdown of casualty figures suggests that many U.S. deaths and wounds did not need to occur; Recommendation by the head of the U.S. Army Forces Command, General Larry Ellis, that more of the Stryker combat vehicles be put into the field; Attacks by insurgents in Iraq on the vulnerable soldiers; Cost of the military operations in Iraq.

Reports on efforts by the U.S. military and coalition forces to control the violence in Iraq. Details of attempts by Iranian mediators to persuade radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to end his uprising; Discussion of the continued violence in Fallujah; Claim that Iraq's reconstituted security forces appear to be disintegrating; Report that many Iraqis are angry about civilian deaths in the attack by U.S. Marines on Fallujah; Comment by Lt. Col. Gary Volesky on the challenges of controlling the uprising in Sadr City; Account of how many ordinary Iraqis appear to be turning on American troops.

Reports on fighting between U.S. occupying forces and Sunni and Shiite militants in Iraq, and the debate over how to deal with radical Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Comparison between the attacks on Americans and the Palestinian intifada; Observation that the reluctance among Coalition Provisional Authority officials to crack down on al-Sadr, who is inciting violent uprisings against coalition troops, arises from the conflict between the dual goals of maintaining order and winning hearts and minds; Background on al-Sadr and his role in inciting violence; Details of the investigation into al-Sadr's role in the killing of moderate Shiite cleric Abel Majid al-Khoei; Claim that the Iraqi grand ayatollahs oppose al-Sadr, and are angry about his recent trip to Iran; Speculation about why the CPA has so far failed to stop al-Sadr.

Examines the U.S.-led occupation in Iraq. Attitudes of the U.S. military and the President George W. Bush administration; Incident in Fallujah where U.S. security personnel were murdered and mutilated; View that Iraq has become a strategic battleground in the war on terror; Iraqi reactions to the U.S. military presence; Outlook for the plan to hand over security to Iraqis; Challenges of bringing the killers in Fallujah to justice; The increased attacks on U.S. troops and civilians; Overview of the violence; How the growing threat to civilians has stalled reconstruction; Impact of the insurgency on the U.S. military; Question of who the insurgents are.

Discusses the current state of Iraq a year after the war started. Comments by a friend of the author who lives in Iraq on how the country is now compared to then; Experience of the author in Iraq when the war started; Progress of the rebuilding of Iraq, including the cost of infra structure projects; Feelings of other Iraqis on the condition of their country a year after the war started.

Profiles Kim Jong II, the dictator of North Korea. Views of the North Korean Secretariat about how the film 'Die Another Day' slanders the Korean nation; Consideration of the weapons of mass destruction which Kim Jong concealed from the United States; How he met with U.S. Secretary of State Madeline Albright in 2000; Plight of Jong to support a hatred of foreigners in North Korea; Suggestion that his prominent pastime is the pursuit of pleasure.

Focuses on the mid-air crash of a United States spy plane with a Chinese jet fighter off the coast of China. Details of diplomatic relations between the two countries with 24 U.S. airmen in Chinese custody and a Chinese pilot missing at sea; How George W. Bush views China as a competitive rival; China's concern about public reaction and anti-American outbursts; Demand that the U.S. apologize and take responsibility for the incident; Outlook for the standoff.

Discusses allegations that Taiwanese-born Los Alamos National Laboratory scientist Wen Ho Lee passed classified nuclear weapons information to the Chinese. Politicization of the story; Possibility that Lee, and espionage, were not involved; Chinese, and other foreign nationals', study of science in the United States; Impact of the story on relations between the US and China; Investigation of the allegations. INSET: Mystery in the Desert.

Points to the tensions resulting from the testing of missiles by China near the island of Taiwan in early 1996. Question of whether the United States, China and Taiwan can avoid an international crisis; Details of the `routine tests'; The 50 years of bullying the Taiwanese by the Chinese; Other violations by China being investigated. INSETS: Rising tensions in the Taiwan Strait;Time to speak clearly, and carry a big stick, by James R. Lilley.

Chronicles how Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents followed the trail left by the Oklahoma City bombers. Tim McVeigh, arrested on minor charges and held two days before being connected to the bombing; FBI `fly-away teams' and equipment; Discovery of a vehicle-identification number on a blown-up truck axle; How it was traced to a rented truck; The FBI's Rapid Start System; James and Terry Nichols; Michigan Militia. INSET: Piecing together the clues.

Reveals that Chinese gangs are smuggling illegal immigrants by the thousands into the United States--often forcing them into a life of servitude. Grounding of the freighter Golden Venture on Long Island, N.Y. in June 1993, causing death of six of the 281 Chinese would-be immigrants; Recount of the ship's trip from China; The clandestine immigration to the US orchestrated by Chinese criminal syndicates; Immigration laws; More.

Focuses on the June 1998 summit meetings of United States President Bill Clinton and Chinese President Jiang Zemin in Beijing, China. The unscheduled debate about human rights issues that took place on national television; Achievements that were announced; Symbolic incidents of conflict, including refusal of visas to journalists from Radio Free Asia; Question of the value of the agreement on a strategic partnership.

Looks at the crisis in United States and United Nations (UN) relations with Iraq as of February 24,1998. Possibility that UN Secretary General Khofi Annan's agreement with Saddam Hussein will avert a war; What the deal would have to include; Possibility that the crisis might recur even with a deal; First test of President Clinton's foreign policy team of Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Defense Secretary William Cohen and policy adviser Sandy Berger.

The article discusses Gary Locke, U.S. ambassador to China, and his management of political controversies as of 2012. Topics include the Chinese former Communist Party secretary Bo Xilai, a suspect in the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood, and the blind human rights activist Chen Guangcheng, who sought political asylum in the U.S. Also discussed are Locke's education and political career, his approach to tense negotiations, and U.S. public relations with China.

Focuses on the role of Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji in the November 1999 trade deal with the United States, and implications of the deal and World Trade Organization (WTO) membership, for China. Zhu's view of the effect of WTO membership on economic reform and foreign investment in China; Interpretation of Zhu's absence from signing ceremonies; Effects of competition on Chinese businesses; History of the negotiations.

Focuses on China's October 1999 observation of the 50th anniversary of its revolution. Features of the October 1, 1999 military parade; Opposing views of President Jiang Zemin and Prime Minister Zhu Rongji; Problems in relations between the United States and China; Implications of the National Day celebrations.

Discusses the visit of Chinese President Jiang Zemin to the United States in October of 1997. The discussion on democracy and human rights of Jiang and President Bill Clinton following the Summit meeting; Clinton's policy on China; Lobbies of the American Friends of China; Accomplishments of the visit; Economic and nuclear arms agreements.

Reports on Chinese President Jiang Zemin's visit to the United States in October 1997. His efforts to show China in a new light; Biggest concern; Problems Jiang faces in dodging China's human-rights record; Jiang's focus mainly on selling his agenda for China's future; Details of this agenda.

Spotlights the growing traffic in illegal migrants to the United States. Economic reasons a factor in the increase; The arrest of Immigration and Naturalization Service official Jerry Stuchiner for allegedly attempting to illegally smuggle Honduran migrants into the United States; Details of the case against him; Whether he was involved in a conspiracy to smuggle illegals into the United States.

Examines small, grass-roots efforts to prevent aggressive behavior by children who are daily witnesses to violence and grow up accepting it as normal. Washington's Youth Trauma Service Team; Howard University's Violence Prevention Project; Hawaii Healthy Start; `Let's Talk About Living in a World With Violence,' by James Garbarino. INSETS: Was the clown a murderer? (murder of Melissa Sue Cavender);A son, a mother, a brutal slaying (murder of Jacquelyn Piper).

This article examines the Chinese economic policy that has allowed the country to maintain its progress in spite of the financial crisis that has affected the rest of the world. China's policy goes against the advice of most economists by allowing the government to manipulate the stock market, fix prices in key industries, and appoint communists to important bank positions. The article suggests that the United States and Europe might benefit by looking at China's successful use of command capitalism.

The article reports on the popularity of the U.S. presidential election in countries such as Japan where interest in the election exceeded that in the U.S. The article states that the Voice of America broadcast election news in 45 languages to 134 million persons. The author describes how U.S. President-elect Barack Obama is viewed as a politician for reform and moral authority that the U.S. must elect in order to restore its reputation.

The article discusses efforts by countries including the United States, Russia, Japan, and China to get astronauts to the surface of the moon. Since humans have already collected data from the surface, it seems like the main motivator to return for many of the countries is pride and a desire to explore.

Focuses on the efforts of U.S. President George W. Bush and his administration to gain support for the progress of the Iraq War as of July 4, 2005. Responsibility of military commanders to inform the President and the public of the accurate progress of military operations; View that the assessment of stability in Iraq by Bush and his officials differs greatly from that of top generals; Claim that public support for the Iraq War has declined; Impact of increasing civilian and military casualties on the decline in public support; Characterization of communications between Bush and key generals in Iraq; Strategies used by the Bush administration to increase public support for the war; Analysis of U.S. policy in the Iraq War.

Focuses on China and its future as a superpower. Question of how Beijing will exercise its growing strength, and how the West should respond; China's economic rise; U.S. perception of China as a potentially aggressive empire; Why Taiwan is critical; Issue of selling arms to China; Europe's focus on China's commerce; China's advantages over the West in commercial diplomacy; Issue of clarifying China's intentions; Role of Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Focuses on the political implications of providing disaster relief to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), an army of Sri Lankan insurgents considered terrorists by the United States. Hopes of both the LTTE and Sri Lankan government that the tsunami disaster will provide a doorway towards peace; Comment from the leader of LTTE, Sippiah Paramu Tamilselvan, on the national emergency; Discipline of the LTTE, which enabled the army to stage an efficient search and rescue campaign.

This article discusses the effects of the relationship between the United States and Taipei. The Taiwan Strait has long been at the center of a war of words. Beijing and Taipei frequently exchange statements full of vitriol--each accusing the other of bringing them closer to the brink of war. But last week it was Washington that dropped the rhetorical bombshell. Buried deep inside a 54-page Pentagon report on China's military readiness, U.S. defense planners speculated that, in the event of a war across the strait, Taiwan might seek to hit "high-value targets" like the prestigious Three Gorges Dam as a way of deterring a Chinese invasion. Tensions between Beijing, Washington and Taipei are heating up--and the rhetoric is testier than it's been in years.

Discusses the pleas by many concerned people, such as human-rights activists and politicians, for the creation of a commission to investigate the prisoner abuse of Iraqis. Details of a meeting between Condoleezza Rice and human-rights activists on the prisoner abuse; Criticism of current probes into the abuse; Disciplinary actions already taken against soldiers; Progress of the current investigations.

Examines how U.S. military interrogation changed after the September 11, 2001 attacks, when the President George W. Bush administration wrote new rules to fight a new kind of war. Reactions of legislators to images of American soldiers abusing prisoners at Abu Ghraib Prison in Baghdad, Iraq; Question of who taught the torture methods to the guards; How some images portray techniques officially approved by the government for use against terrorist suspects; Roles of Bush, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Attorney General John Ashcroft in signing off on a secret system of detention and interrogation; Issue of the Geneva Conventions, which protect rights of detainees and prisoners of war; How the Bush administration created a legal framework to justify this system of interrogation; Background on the administration's emerging approach in the war on terrorism; Outlook for more charges. INSET: WHAT THE RULES SAY.

Discusses who is responsible for abuse of Iraqi detainees by U.S. military police at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. Comments by Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, formerly in charge of Abu Ghraib, on the role of Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller, the commandant at the Guantánamo Bay, Cuba detention camp, in advising soldiers manning Abu Ghraib on methods for obtaining information from detainees, and establishing Abu Ghraib as an interrogation center; Assertions by military police involved in the abuse that they were acting on orders; Reactions of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Richard Myers to revelations of abuse; Report that Miller has been assigned the task of rectifying the problems at Abu Ghraib; Speculation about whether the Pentagon is trying to cover up a widespread policy of abusive interrogation practices that clearly violate the Geneva Conventions; Attempts by members of Congress to establish who was really in charge at Abu Ghraib; Details of the report on interrogations at Abu Ghraib by Gen. Antonio Taguba.

Offers a look at the abuse of Iraqi prisoners of war by United States soldiers following the Iraq War of 2003. Comments made by Brigadier General Janis Karpinski on the abuse of Iraqi prisoners; Report by Amnesty International that as early as July 2003, former detainees in Iraq said they suffered beatings, sleep deprivation or other abuses; Deaths of prisoners in U.S. custody that were declared homicides; Statement that one of the goals of the detention centers is to break the prisoners' will by exposure to fear, shame, disorientation, exhaustion and physical pressure; Report that six U.S. soldiers face criminal charges for abusing prisoners; Claim by a lawyer for one of the defendants that the military is scapegoating the six soldiers; Possibility that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency was involved in the alleged brutality.

Examines the U.S.-led occupation in Iraq. Attitudes of the U.S. military and the President George W. Bush administration; Incident in Fallujah where U.S. security personnel were murdered and mutilated; View that Iraq has become a strategic battleground in the war on terror; Iraqi reactions to the U.S. military presence; Outlook for the plan to hand over security to Iraqis; Challenges of bringing the killers in Fallujah to justice; The increased attacks on U.S. troops and civilians; Overview of the violence; How the growing threat to civilians has stalled reconstruction; Impact of the insurgency on the U.S. military; Question of who the insurgents are.

Discusses the changing nature of terrorism and the groups that are targeting the innocent. Profile of Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi, Osama bin Laden's possible successor and the main suspect in a series of terror attacks in Iraq; Potential for a Madrid-like attack on commuter trains in the United States; Impact of the blows struck against the Taliban and Saddam Hussein by the U.S.; Goals of Al Qaeda, including to weaken and disrupt Western economies. INSET: FRONTIERS OF FEAR.

Discusses the Middle Kingdom of China and how it is putting on a masterful display of subtle, smart diplomacy. China's diplomacy in the old days, which was marked more by its passivity and ideological rigor than by any true inventiveness; Beijing's joining of the World Trade Organization, winning of its bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games and success catapulting of an astronaut into space; American and Chinese relations; China as the biggest market for U.S. firms such as Procter & Gamble, Kodak and Motorola; Doubt that this renaissance in China will last by some skeptics.

Discusses Iraqi financier and freedom fighter Ahmad Chalabi. Return to Iraq, his homeland, after 45 years in exile; Hope among Americans that Chalabi may help to reshape Iraq; Description of Chalabi as a democrat and a paragon of Iraq; How Chalabi was educated in the U.S. and headed a bank in Jordan.

Discusses the possible United States' military plan of action against Iraq and speculates as to how Iraqi President Saddam Hussein might fight back. Weapons to be used such as the E-bomb and precision-guided bombs and missiles; Statement that the desired effect is to stun and demoralize the Iraqi Army into surrendering quickly; Hope that Saddam will be left paralyzed before he can hit back; Technological advances made since the first Gulf War in 1991; Claim that the goal is not to wipe out Saddam's forces but to convince them that they are needed for the creation of Iraq without Saddam; Dangers of urban fighting.

Focuses on the struggle between the military and radical Muslims in Indonesia, in light of the worldwide struggle against Islamic extremism. Discussion of the growth in the appeal of radical Islam; Efforts of some Indonesian leaders, such as Megawati Sukarnoputri, to promote a secular nationalism; Way that the military's renewed prominence poses a challenge for the U.S.; Concern about the military's plans to crack down hard on Muslim extremists.

The article reports on an increase in interest which government leaders in China are placing on the opinions of Chinese citizens and a decrease in interest which they appear to be placing on the opinions of American citizens and government officials. A discussion of China's nationalist ideologies, and of the impact they have on its relations with other countries, is presented.

Questions whether the United States should try to assassinate terrorist leaders, in light of the hunt for Osama bin Laden. Mention of a video tape which features bin Laden taking responsibility for the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks; How U.S. officials are banned from plotting assassinations by executive orders dating to the Gerald Ford Administration; Topic of international relations.

Focuses on the war of the United States-backed Northern Alliance against the Taliban in Afghanistan. Topic of the battle waged in the city of Mazar-e Sharif; Possibility that Taliban troops will launch a counteroffensive after evacuating Mazar-e Sharif; Request of U.S. commander General Tommy Franks for troops, tanks, attack helicopters, and other artillery; Outlook for a possible civil war in Afghanistan due to divisions.

Discusses the outlook for the war of the United States against terrorism, specifically, the involvement of intelligence agencies. Idea that the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and Federal Bureau of Investigation need to cooperate; Search for members of the Al Qaeda organization; Search for Osama bin Laden.

Focuses on relations between the United States and China, in the wake of an incident between the two nations following an aircraft accident involving a U.S. reconnaissance plane and a Chinese fighter jet. Thoughts on the return home of the U.S. military personnel; Possibility of a confrontation between the two countries; Details of the accident, presented by the pilots involved.

Reports on a growing trend of anti-Americanism in the world. Details of the United States' controversial role in the United Nations; How US foreign policy has made the nation unpopular in many areas of the world; Feelings of many people that US policies on the death penalty and the environment are good reasons to dislike the country; Prevalence of US culture throughout the world. INSETS: A Subtle Form of Dissent, by Jonathan Freedland;Of Players and Spectators, by Pierre Assouline;The Trouble With the U.S: It's Just Too..., by Sergei Karaganov.

The article reports on U.S. relations with North Korea. The reception of the U.S. New York Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra in Pyongyang, North Korea is a positive aspect in the relations between the U.S. and North Korea. Kim Jung Rok, a Colonel in the North Korean military, says North Korea would return the USS Pueblo, an American spyboat captured in January 1968, if U.S. and North Korean relations would strengthen.

Focuses on the political implications of providing disaster relief to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), an army of Sri Lankan insurgents considered terrorists by the United States. Hopes of both the LTTE and Sri Lankan government that the tsunami disaster will provide a doorway towards peace; Comment from the leader of LTTE, Sippiah Paramu Tamilselvan, on the national emergency; Discipline of the LTTE, which enabled the army to stage an efficient search and rescue campaign.

Examines the American dream that Chinese leader Mao Zedong had struggled with and his love-hate relationship with the United States. His efforts to win over the United States in the late 1940s; His early interest in America and his belief that China and America would complement each other economically; How the US's choice to side with Mao's enemy Chiang Kai-shek devastated Mao; How Mao never gave up his American dream. INSET: How Nixon Tricked His Way Into Beijing.

Discusses the decline of good relations between the United States and China as of June, 1999. Protests made by Wang Dan and public opinion of him; Effect of United States bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia; Shift from pro-western ideals to nationalism and how this affects China's relationship with the United States; Questions of Chines nuclear espionage; The struggle to hold China together by its leaders including president Jiang Zemin; Outlook.