US-German Rift Grows Over Afghan Bombing

Viktor Bout is an innocent man, says Moscow

(NEWSER) - Moscow isn't happy about the arrest and conviction of Russian arms dealer Victor Bout, MSNBC reports. This will “one of our top priorities in Russian-American relations," said a Russian official, a day after the so-called "Merchant of Death" was sentenced by a New York judge to 25 years in prison on terrorism charges . “In this situation we are not seeking revenge, but want to help Viktor Bout," the official said. "We are not proceeding by a desire to take revenge at any price." More»

'Obama effect' is real, say pollsters

(NEWSER) - How soon they forget. America has become a lot more popular around the world since President Obama took office, according to a BBC poll. The poll of 30,000 people in 28 countries found that positive views of the US now average 40%, up from a low of 28% in 2007. Spain, France, and the UK generally have positive views of the US. Germans and Russians still tend to have a negative attitude toward the US but by a much smaller margin than a couple of years ago. More»

How about a stop to the meddling, pleads Simon Tisdall

(NEWSER) - Vladimir Putin’s “sardonic” acknowledgment of the interim regime in Kyrgyzstan yesterday is just another clue that the Russian government was involved in ousting president Kurmanbek Bakiyev, Simon Tisdall writes. It’s obvious: Putin essentially paid off Bakiyev to boot the US from a Kyrgyz air base, which ended up not happening. Then, voila! Russian TV stations “not usually noted for their concern for human rights have freely criticized Bakiyev.” More»

(NEWSER) - President Obama is several months into a second campaign: a bid to win the world’s approval. But what shapes his foreign policy? Michael Scherer outlines five key parts for Time:

• Pull from personal history: Obama has been pushing stories of his Indonesian childhood and Kenyan grandfather while overseas, and the message is clear: If I can do it, you can do it.

(NEWSER) - Revamped leadership in India and Pakistan and some behind-the-scenes encouragement from the US could lead to negotiations over the disputed Kashmir region, the New York Times reports. But while there are shimmers of hope, the relationship is still strained. “I am happy to meet you,” India’s PM told Pakistan’s president today, “but my mandate is to tell you that the territory of Pakistan must not be used for terrorism.” More»