Representatives of 47 nations, including dozens of foreign heads of state, joined in the largest such gathering on U.S. soil since the San Francisco conference that launched the United Nations in 1945.

"Our primary concern is to make an easier road for overseas Chinese students who want to go back to China, but we also want to make it easier for those in China who wish to study in the U.S.," says [Chinese Returnees International] member Sue Wang, a graduate of Michigan State University.

His Majesty King Abdullah and US President Barack Obama on Monday reaffirmed the Jordanian-US partnership in talks that focused on means to strengthen bilateral relations and cooperation in the areas of education, science, culture and entrepreneurship.

This is the clearest signal that the US will refuse to negotiate on separate elements of the controversial accord, but intends to push it through the UN process as a single "take it or leave it" text.

Obama has reverted to Clinton-era policies in the Middle East. But Arab reformers are nostalgic for something more like Bush's "freedom agenda," which helped usher in a promising moment for Arab reform.

I think the saying "all politics is local" applies as much to the successful conduct of public diplomacy as to the campaign for Maricopa County Clerk. This is my conclusion after serving over 27 years as a Foreign Service Officer...

In a world of dangerously failed states and willful challengers to American leadership, South Korea is an astoundingly successful democracy that wants to be friends. But will America say yes?

The 162-year-old Associated Press news agency, an American icon, has chosen London as the hub of its global television operation. Ian Burrell pays a visit to its historic offices.