The seventh meeting of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) wrapped up on Dec. 2 after three days of working (Nov. 28 – Dec. 1) in Indonesia.

The base that once served as headquarters for the US military in Iraq is now under Iraqi control.

Stock markets rallied after German Chancellor Angela Merkel called on December 2 for stricter fiscal rules for the 17-nation eurozone.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has opened a two-day summit of Latin American leaders to inaugurate a new regional bloc that excludes the United States and Canada.

The US unemployment rate tumbled to a 2-1/2 year low in November, even though the pace of hiring remained too slow to suggest a significant acceleration in the labor market recovery.

Glyn Davies, new US special representative for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), will visit the Republic of Korea (RoK), local media reported on December 2.

The UN Human Rights Council is due to hold an emergency meeting in Geneva to discuss the situation in Syria.

The second stage of Afghanistan's security transition officially started on December 1 as NATO forces handed over a province north of the capital to Afghan troops.

Medical treatments and understanding have progressed rapidly since the first AIDS cases were diagnosed 30 years ago, and according to prominent expert Dr. Renslow Sherer the world now has a variety of methods to stop the spread of HIV, if they can just be applied effectively.  

The French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, has said France and Germany must come together to ensure stability at the heart of Europe.