White House

On a four-day trip to Europe, US President Barack Obama has assured Poland and its Eastern European neighbours that America remains committed to their security.

Amid concern in the region over the wider strategic implications of Russian involvement in the crisis in Ukraine, Obama said: “As friends and allies we stand united together.”

The lone U.S. soldier held captive in Afghanistan was freed May 31 in exchange for five senior Taliban figures detained at Guantanamo Bay, in a dramatic deal brokered by Qatar.

Ukraine's president-elect Petro Poroshenko vowed to punish pro-Russian rebels who downed an army helicopter in the east of the country, killing 12 troops in one of the deadliest attacks of the insurgency.

US Vice President Joe Biden met with Cypriot leaders as he seeks to drum up support for sanctions against Russia and looks for natural gas supply routes into Europe.

Josipovic promoted Croatia’s energy independence policy among influential circles and think tanks during a week-long visit to Washington.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's trip to the recently-annexed Crimean peninsula was condemned by EU, US and NATO officials. 

The United States has announced new sanctions against Russia in relation to the events in Ukraine, Monday.

Putin and Obama urge each other to "use their influence"

WASHINGTON, MOSCOW -- U.S. President Barack Obama appealed on Russian President Vladimir Putin to convince "pro-Russian groups" in eastern Ukraine to lay down their arms.

As announced by the White House, Obama last night held a telephone conversation with Putin.

The US has refused a visa to the new Iranian envoy to the UN in New York, due to links to the group that took over the US embassy in Tehran in 1979.

US President Barack Obama has urged the European Union to be prepared for new sanctions against Russia.

In a phone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Obama "underscored the need for the United States, European Union, and other global partners to be prepared to meet further Russian escalation with additional sanctions", the White House revealed.