Latest from International Politics

Afghans campaign Western style

With just days left in Afghanistan's presidential campaign, Abdullah Abdullah arrives in Kandahar for one of his last rallies before the election.

Hollande's ex back in power

Editorial: Better times ahead for Fiji with return to democracy

France's pecking order is a complex matter

A peck on the cheek? Yes, please! In France, everyone does it. It's a nationwide ritual, a salutation that connects friends and family, spanning all ages and physiques and unembarrassed by gender.

Chris Wilson: Everyman v oligarchs for president

Approximately 188 million people are eligible to vote in Indonesia and on July 9 they will choose a new president, writes Chris Wilson.

John Armstrong: Whale tale not all over yet

Much hangs on whether the Japanese Government sides with its future-focused Foreign Ministry or its inwards-looking pro-whaling fisheries agency, writes John Armstrong.

Maduro's men clear streets

The National Guards rolled in under the cover of darkness, firing tear gas and rubber bullets as they advanced with bulldozers and armoured vehicles.

Bouncing back after scandal

The nightclub dancer at the centre of the sex scandal that contributed to the downfall of Silvio Berlusconi is living a high-spending lifestyle.

Fresh start for under-fire Hollande

President Francois Hollande, reeling from calamitous results in local elections, fired his Prime Minister yesterday to try to give a fresh start to his failing presidency.

Renewed calls for Thai PM's resignation

Thousands of anti-govt protesters marched through Bangkok yesterday, reviving their whistle-blowing, traffic-blocking campaign to force the resignation of the PM.

UN tells Russia annex illegal

Europe weighs price of sanctions

After a rush of emergency meetings to frame its strategy, the West is now scrutinising the impact of a first volley of sanctions against Russia but doubts persist whether Europe will swiftly follow the United States in hiking up the pressure.

Combat dolphins fall into Russian hands

Russian forces have completed their takeover of the Ukrainian navy's assets in Crimea with the storming of the minesweeper Cherkessy.

Brian Fallow: Carefully uncaging Chinese tiger

China has embarked on a process of financial liberalisation and the sheer numbers involved mean it will have profound implications across the region, writes Brian Fallow.

Simon Rice: The right to be a racial bigot is all wrong

Australia's federal Attorney-General George Brandis is serious when he says on his watch, "people do have a right to be bigots".

Warlords recruited to help in polls

On the edge of a Kabul neighbourhood an election poster of presidential candidate Abdul Rasoul Sayyaf is damaged, partly scraped away by someone trying to remove it.

Knights arise again under Abbott

After three decades and amid a mix of anger, derision and praise, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has resurrected the titles of knight and dame.

War game tests world leaders

David Cameron played a "nukes on the loose" war game with Barack Obama, Angela Merkel and other world leaders to see how they would cope with a terrorist nuclear attack, it has emerged.