British diplomats tried to convince the United States to suppress "very embarrassing" details of MI6's role in the 1953 coup in Iran, documents have disclosed.

One of China's leading forensic scientists has quit, castigating the judicial system, as it was announced the trial of Bo Xilai will take place on Thursday.

As unpalatable as the prospect was for the West, the Arab Spring was always likely to lead to Islamic governments.

Glaring out from beneath heavy eyebrows, face deeply shadowed, Opposition leader Tony Abbott has become the lead face of Labor's new advertising campaign.

Labor is heading for an election loss, with support for Kevin Rudd plummeting to new lows, the latest Newspoll shows.

For a ship on a mission of worldwide importance, the Yong Sheng is a distinctly unimpressive sight.

The campaign for Australia's September 7 election continues to fall Opposition Leader Tony Abbott's way.

Last week, Alexei Navalny, the recently convicted Russian opposition blogger, lawyer and candidate for the post of mayor of Moscow, posted a provocative item on his site.

The standard internet routing protocol sends messages not by the shortest route, but by the fastest and least congested, writes Gwynne Dyer.

While Australia's election debate continues to whirl around the economy, there is a sleeper in the campaign.

As Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Opposition leader Tony Abbott campaigned in Sydney and Melbourne yesterday.

Relatives of Israelis killed in the conflict with the Palestinians accused their Government yesterday of betrayal over a planned mass prisoner release.

New Zealand's leading universities and academics are behind international competitors when it comes to attracting cash from business, a new comparison shows.

Nearly three years after becoming the youngest leader in the history of Britain's Labour Party, Ed Miliband is learning the hard way about the pendulum swing of politics.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott made an unfortunate gaffe as he attacked Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's leadership style this morning.

Kevin Rudd may have had a narrow victory in the first leaders' debate but the prime minister's performance was marred by his use of notes, in clear breach of the rules.

The second week of the campaign for the September 7 election dawns with Kevin Rudd conceding Labor remains the underdog.

America's patience with Russia's stance on the fugitive whistleblower Edward Snowden ran out as President Barack Obama abruptly cancelled a summit with President Vladimir Putin.

Judges have described Dominique Strauss-Kahn as "king of the party" and the "linchpin" of soirees with prostitutes that resembled "carnage on a pile of mattresses", in a damning indictment of the disgraced former International Monetary Fund chief.

The Spanish skipper of the fishing boat at the centre of a diplomatic spat threatening to rupture relations between Spain and Britain has said he feels "used" by his Government.

The beast is back. Rupert Murdoch, the Australian-born naturalised American media billionaire, is out to get Labor with a sledgehammer.

He claims to be the underdog, but as one of Queensland's most popular Premiers, Peter Beattie has the best chance of winning the marginal seat of Forde.

Editorial: Australia is set for an interesting election in less than a month, with polls giving an indication of just how close Sept 7's federal election will be.

Fonterra said it had been fined $900,000 following the conclusion of a review by Chinese authorities into the pricing of dairy products in the people's republic.

It used to be dodgy pamphlets and misleading how-to-vote cards.

China will not tolerate another slip-up from Fonterra, with the dairy giant caught up in its third contamination scare there since 2008, says a marketing expert.

Some worried and confused parents are taking their babies to doctors, fearing the worst in the infant formula contamination scare.

Sydney's irrepressible tabloid, the Daily Telegraph, is not known for its subtlety.