Wash Post Europe

French Teachers Rally Against New Rules

Edward Cody — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

TOULOUSE, France, July 10 -- Alain Refalo, a veteran elementary schoolteacher in this luxuriant corner of southwestern France, decided enough was enough.

Obama's Trip to Ghana Inspires Envy in Nigeria

Karin Brulliard — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

LAGOS, Nigeria -- When the White House announced two months ago that President Obama would visit Ghana this week, Nigerians read a different, glaring message between the lines: The American leader was not coming to their country.

British Paper Says Reporters From Rupert Murdoch Company Tapped Phones

Karla Adam — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

LONDON, July 9 -- The Guardian newspaper said yesterday that reporters at Rupert Murdoch's British news subsidiary illegally tapped the phones of politicians, sports stars and celebrities.

Nations Agree To Curb Emissions

Michael A. Fletcher and David A. Fahrenthold — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

L'AQUILA, Italy, July 9 -- Leaders of the world's major economies on Thursday formally embraced limiting the rise in the Earth's average temperatures but declined to set numerical targets for reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming.

Group of Eight Accepts Global Warming Goal

Craig Whitlock and Michael A. Fletcher — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

L'AQUILA, Italy, July 8 -- The world's leading industrial nations tentatively agreed Wednesday to try to prevent global temperatures from rising above a fixed level, after a more far-reaching proposal to slash production of greenhouse gases fizzled, according to U.S. and European negotiators.

Aftershocks at G-8 Summit Site in Italy Raise Concerns

Craig Whitlock — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:09:00 EDT

L'AQUILA, Italy, July 8 -- President Obama and other world leaders opened a Group of Eight summit Wednesday in this earthquake-shattered mountain city but seemed unlikely to reach consensus on how to repair their economies and prevent global warming.

Robert Kaiser Recalls Late Russian Writer Vassily Aksyonov's Years in D.C.

Robert G. Kaiser — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

Vassily Aksyonov, one of many former Soviet citizens to take up residence in the Washington area since the 1970s, lived among us for 24 years. He held a distinguished professorship at George Mason University; he became an avid Bullets fan; he fell in love with this country, which made him a citizen....

Obama and Russia Leaders Come to Terms on Several Points of Tension

Michael A. Fletcher and Philip P. Pan — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

MOSCOW, July 7 -- President Obama called Tuesday for a new relationship between the United States and Russia, saying that the frequent rivals would both prosper by joining forces to combat common threats and pursue their mutual interests.

Aftershocks at G-8 Summit Site in Italy Raise Concerns

Craig Whitlock — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

L'AQUILA, Italy, July 7 -- After an earthquake shattered this mountain city in April, killing 296 people and leaving tens of thousands homeless, the Italian government decided to move the Group of Eight summit here to draw global attention to the rebuilding effort.

Treaty Conveys Little Power to Break Swiss Bank Secrecy

David S. Hilzenrath — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

A new treaty touted as helping U.S. law enforcement crack Swiss bank secrecy may do little to help authorities achieve a prime objective: exposing tax evaders.

In Russia, Obama Is Met With Skepticism Rather Than Cheers

Michael A. Fletcher — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 17:22:48 EDT

MOSCOW, July 7 -- If much of the world is gripped by Obamamania, Russia is decidedly not.

Controversy Could Follow Italian Prime Minister to G-8 Summit

Craig Whitlock — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

ROME, July 6 -- The good news for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is that Italians are no longer quite so obsessed with his wife's demand for a divorce or his flirtations with an 18-year-old model. The bad news is that now they are fixated on his parties with paid escorts and the high-priced hooker...

Russians Intrigued by Michelle Obama's Gardening

Robin Givhan — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

MOSCOW, July 6 -- First lady Michelle Obama arrived here Monday afternoon to an audience more intrigued by and enamored of her gardening skills than of anything else on her résumé. If she effected any kind of charm offensive leading up to this official visit -- at least one with a message that seems...

Obama and Medvedev Reach Agreement to Reduce Nuclear Arsenals

Michael A. Fletcher and Philip P. Pan — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

MOSCOW, July 6 -- President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev reached a preliminary agreement Monday to cut the American and Russian nuclear arsenals by as much as a third while exploring options for cooperation on missile defense.

Obama, Medvedev Aim to Advance Arms Control Talks, 'Reset' Bilateral Ties

Philip P. Pan — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

MOSCOW, June 5 -- President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will try to break a deadlock in talks to replace a vital nuclear-arms-control treaty when they meet here Monday, with U.S. missile defense plans and Russian demands for sharper cuts in launchers presenting the key obstacles.

London Squatters Exalted for Occupying Parliament Members' Home

Karla Adam — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

LONDON -- On a quiet street in west London, a group of Britons have stumbled on an outlet for their outrage over lawmakers' abuse of claims for expenses.

Russia Presents New Test for Obama on Overseas Trip

Michael A. Fletcher and Philip P. Pan — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

President Obama is scheduled to leave Washington tonight on a week-long trip that will help determine whether his personal popularity and fresh policy approaches can yield concrete results on difficult issues including arms control, missile defense and nuclear nonproliferation.

Air France Jet Was Intact When It Hit Surface of Atlantic, Investigators Say

Edward Cody — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

PARIS, July 2 -- French crash investigators said Thursday they have determined that an Air France jetliner that plunged from a stormy sky on June 1 was intact when it smacked belly-first into the Atlantic Ocean at high speed, killing all 228 people aboard, but acknowledged they still have no clea...

Honduras Targets Protesters With Emergency Decree

William Booth and Mary Beth Sheridan — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, July 1 -- The new Honduran government clamped down on street protests and news organizations Wednesday as lawmakers passed an emergency decree that limits public gatherings following the military-led coup that removed President Manuel Zelaya from office.

Russia Banishes Casinos to Far-Flung Zones, Effectively Shutting Down Industry

Philip P. Pan — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EDT

MOSCOW, July 1 -- Thousands of casinos and slot-machine parlors across Russia were outlawed Wednesday as new restrictions on gambling took effect, shutting down an industry that had come to embody the seedier side of capitalism in the post-Soviet era.

Jews Remain Stymied in Efforts to Reclaim Art Looted by Nazis

Craig Whitlock — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 00:00:00 EDT

PRAGUE, June 27 -- Holocaust survivors and their heirs are still battling museums and governments for the return of thousands of pieces of looted art, despite pledges made by dozens of countries in Washington a decade ago to resolve the claims.

Iran's President Rebukes Obama; Candidates Reject Election Review

Thomas Erdbrink and William Branigin — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 00:00:00 EDT

TEHRAN, June 27 -- President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad added new fuel to an intensifying spat with President Obama on Saturday, denouncing what he called "insulting" comments about a crackdown on protesters, and two opposition presidential candidates rejected participation in a special committee aimed at...