Latest fromInternational Politics

Fresh fighting erupts amid new threats
Pakistan security forces relaunched their military operation at Karachi airport last night after gunfire was heard hours after all the attackers had been declared dead.

Apple, Microsoft targets of Chinese media
China's state-run media has stepped up criticism of US technology companies including Apple and Microsoft as tensions escalate over cyberspying and hacking allegations.

New President and Putin hit it off
Hopes rose of a resolution of the Ukraine crisis after the inauguration of Petro Poroshenko as the post-revolution President yesterday.

Italian businessmen digest evidence
Italian businessmen accused of bribing politicians in exchange for contracts for a huge flood-prevention project came up with a novel tactic for evading police attention.

Panel: Three-parent science safe
Scientists have called on the British Government to give its immediate approval to laws allowing three-parent babies after experts found the techniques were safe.

Aussies happy to spy on Kiwis
A major new poll on Australians' view of themselves and the world has revealed a nation nervous at the rise of China

Extreme Islam claim at NZ mosque
An Australian man who died in a US drone strike alongside a New Zealander was introduced to radical Islam at a Christchurch mosque, it's reported.

George Clooney's political aspirations
George Clooney wants to launch a career in politics after marrying Amal Alamuddin.

Benz vs Ford in mayoral elections
Canadian porn star Nikki Benz has formally announced her plans to run against scandal-ridden Toronto mayor Rob Ford in the October mayoral elections.

Lessons from turnaround of the Golden State
At the Golden State's nadir the jibes came thick and fast. "California is so broke that I saw a going-out-of-business sign at a meth lab," joked late night TV host Jay Leno.

D-Day meeting will test former allies
The hand of history lies heavily on the beaches of Normandy, where next week the leaders of the World War II allies will pay tribute.

'Debt from dead' bid fails
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has ruled out collecting student debts from the estates of the dead.

Editorial: Military must live with democracy
Editorial: Few eyebrows were raised when the army seized power in Thailand last week. This was, after all, the 12th military coup since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932.

China pushes banks to remove IBM servers
The Chinese government is pushing domestic banks to remove high-end servers made by IBM in an escalation of the dispute with the US over spying claims.

Editorial: Rigid visa system lacks compassion
Editorial: The integrity of this country's immigration system is, of course, very important. But that system must not be applied so austerely as to appear utterly inflexible.

Jane Kelsey: TPP looking less attractive for NZ
The problem for Tim Groser is that any deal is likely to fall far below his "gold standard" for Japan and the US to totally remove all tariffs, writes Jane Kelsey.

Heiress slaying grips Monaco
The imperturbable world of Monaco, cushioned by wealth, sunshine and secrecy is reeling from a double assault on its two royal families.

Paul Little: Killers too deserve due process
Last Monday I sat in Auckland Town Hall and watched people from 65 countries taking an oath that made them New Zealand citizens.

PM digs in over Budget
Prime Minister Tony Abbott says he won't surrender his Budget in the face of pressure to compromise over its most unpopular measures.

Paul Thomas: The raving loons are crooning, but don't let them call the tune
We've been warned to expect a vicious election campaign, but let's hope it doesn't descend to the depths plumbed this week by a candidate in Britain's local body elections.

Tim Stanley: Comparison of the odious gets it wrong
When Prince Charles compared Vladimir Putin to Adolf Hitler, in a private conversation in Canada this week, it was far from a first, writes Tim Stanley.

Putin his foot in it? Abdication call
Prince Charles is facing calls to ‘abdicate’ from a British Labour MP after he reportedly compared Vladimir Putin to Adolf Hitler in relation to his actions in Ukraine.

'Lard-arse' query dumbfounds Berlusconi
It was a clash that pitted one of the finest journalists of his generation against a now-disgraced former world leader, but this was no modern-day Frost-Nixon.

'What a total creep': PM's unwise wink?
Australia's PM is feeling widespread anger to his tough Budget first hand - but criticism stepped up a notch when he was caught in a conspiratorial wink yesterday.

Slur against Merkel: It wasn't me, says Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi was taken aback when Jeremy Paxman asked him whether it was true that he had once called the German chancellor "an un----able lard a---".