Obama wants to cut nuclear arms, seeks Russia talks
President Barack Obama wants to reduce deployed nuclear weapons by up to a third and revive negotiations with Russia to "move beyond Cold War nuclear postures", he said in a speech in Berlin. Full Article
Swiss parliament rejects U.S. tax deal
BERNE - The Swiss lower house of parliament dealt a final death blow on Wednesday to a draft law aimed at protecting the country's banks from criminal charges in the United States for helping wealthy Americans to evade tax.
Afghanistan to shun U.S. talks with Taliban
KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai said his government would not join U.S. peace talks with the Taliban until they were led by Afghans and would suspend negotiations with the United States on a troop pact. Full Article | Video
Syria's Islamists seize control, moderates dither
ALEPPO, Syria - During a 10-day journey through rebel-held territory in Syria, Reuters found that radical Islamist units are sidelining more moderate groups that do not share the Islamists’ goal of establishing a supreme religious leadership in the country. Full Article
NSA head, lawmakers defend spying programs
WASHINGTON - The head of the National Security Agency said U.S. surveillance programs had helped disrupt more than 50 possible attacks since September 11, 2001, as members of Congress also defended the use of the top-secret spying operations. Full Article
Colombia peace hinges on drug corridors
As the Colombian government and FARC hold ongoing peace talks in Havana to end Latin America's longest-running insurgency, it will be in rebel fiefdoms like Cauca where peace will be hardest to build and hardest won. Full Article
EU-wariness complicates life for Hollande
PARIS - A feeling in France that the European Union no longer works in its interest is fueling tensions between Paris and Brussels and adding pressure on President Francois Hollande to be more assertive in Europe. Full Article
Fed seen keeping monthly pace of bond buying
WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve policymakers will likely announce on Wednesday that they will keep buying bonds at a monthly pace of $85 billion, while keeping their options open to scale back the program later this year if the labor market continues to improve. Full Article
Europe Day Ahead: Fed up? Let the flash PMIs cheer you up
June 19 - European markets get their chance Thursday to react to the Fed's decision today. They will also get the first glimpse into how the euro zone economy is faring this month, with the flash PMIs for June.
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Musk: Time to tackle dealer dispute
Elon Musk, Tesla Motors CEO, tells the Reuters Global Tech Summit that he'll talk to politicians who back local car dealers trying to keep Tesla from selling directly to consumers. Video
Rate rigging costs more than money
In cash terms, the manipulation of supposedly objective reference rates and prices is a petty crime: relatively small gains for a few and microscopic losses for many. Ethically, though, the tolerance of untrustworthy behaviour makes the industry look particularly bad. Full Article
Snowden versus the dragons
One measure of our culture's disdain for whistle-blowers like Edward Snowden can be culled from the pages of a thesaurus. Commentary
What does Apple really owe taxpayers? A lot.
Even as Apple sizzles in the Senate hot seat for alleged tax evasion and finds itself the object of a Justice Department investigation into price-fixing e-books, the company still enjoys a vast reservoir of good faith with the American people. Commentary
Vetting the Syrian rebels, stock gyrations, and A-Rod's return
If we can't vet American citizens like Edward Snowden for security, how will we be able to prevent arms going to the Syrian rebels from falling into the wrong hands? Commentary
Weiner: As American a political redemption
Anthony Weiner, now running for mayor of New York, is the latest in a long line of disgraced officials seeking not only absolution, but political resurrection from voters. Commentary
Turkey’s economy is vulnerable
Tayyip Erdogan’s harsh actions against protesters could backfire economically. Turkey depends on foreign investors to fund its big current account deficit. If they turn tail, interest rates will rise, hurting the economy and undermining one of Erdogan’s sources of popularity. Commentary
Economic worries and the global elite
Here’s one sign the global elite is starting to get worried that capitalism isn’t working for the Western middle class. At the TED Global gathering in Scotland’s elegant capital city this week, much of the spotlight was on what’s going wrong with the 21st-century economy. Commentary


















