Budget cuts hit security checks for defense contractors

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A budget shortfall has forced a Pentagon security unit to sharply cut back on regular investigations used to update security clearances for defense contractor employees.

Greek coalition signals state TV deal near, to meet again

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece's ruling party leaders have signaled they are moving towards a compromise on the restart of state TV broadcasts and pledged to resolve a political standoff by Thursday.

Obama defends U.S. intelligence strategy in wary Berlin

BERLIN (Reuters) - President Barack Obama defended U.S. anti-terrorism tactics on a visit to Berlin on Wednesday, telling wary Germans Washington was not spying on the emails of ordinary citizens and promising to step up efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay prison.

Obama challenges Russia to agree to deeper nuclear weapon cuts

BERLIN (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama used a speech in Berlin on Wednesday to call on Russia to revive the push for a world without nuclear weapons, offering to cut deployed nuclear arsenals by a third, but Moscow immediately poured scorn on his proposal.

Brazil protests proceed as smaller cities join the fray

SAO PAULO/FORTALEZA (Reuters) - Protesters blocked roads in Sao Paulo and marched toward a stadium hosting a major international soccer game in Brazil's northeast on Wednesday in a growing wave of nationwide demonstrations against poor public services, inflation and other woes in Latin America's biggest country.

Afghan government to shun U.S. talks with Taliban

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Wednesday his government would not join U.S. peace talks with the Taliban and halted negotiations with Washington on a troop pact, underscoring the fragile nature of hopes for a negotiated peace in Afghanistan.

Analysis: Putin basks in isolation over Syria as Obama's charm falls flat

ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland/MOSCOW (Reuters) - At the end of a tense two-hour meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Barack Obama - slumped over and serious - tried to lighten the mood with a joke about their favorite sports.

Obama wants to cut nuclear arms, seeks talks with Russia

BERLIN (Reuters) - 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 on Wednesday in Berlin.

Somali Islamist rebels attack U.N. base, 22 dead

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Islamist militants carried out a deadly assault on the main U.N. compound in the Somali capital on Wednesday, dealing a blow to fragile security gains that have allowed a slow return of foreign aid workers and diplomats.

Orders top $100 billion as Ryanair gives Boeing a boost

PARIS (Reuters) - Orders at the Paris Airshow surpassed $100 billion on Wednesday, as planemakers Boeing and Airbus cashed in on demand for fuel-efficient jets and growth in both budget carriers and emerging markets.

Turkish government, protesters seek to draw sting from unrest

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey's deputy prime minister said on Wednesday he had no objection to silent anti-government protests inspired by a symbolic "Standing Man" vigil, comments that could help draw the sting out of three weeks of often violent demonstrations.

NSA head, lawmakers defend surveillance programs

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - 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 sympathetic members of Congress also defended the use of the top-secret spying operations.

North Korea repeats offer for nuclear talks

BEIJING (Reuters) - A top North Korean diplomat repeated an offer for international talks over his country's disputed nuclear program during a meeting in China on Wednesday, saying the denuclearization of the peninsula was the "dying wish" of North Korea's founder.

Suicide bomber embraces and kills Sunni politician in Iraq

MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - A suicide bomber blew himself up as he embraced a Sunni Muslim political leader in northern Iraq on Wednesday, killing the man and four of his family a day before elections in the area.

World Bank watching Fed, ready to respond

LONDON (Reuters) - The World Bank is concerned about the spillover effects on developing countries of a slowing of U.S. money creation and will move to provide affordable capital when borrowing costs rise, its president said on Wednesday.

Rohani once approved of hiding Iran atomic work

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Years before he became Iran's president-elect, Hassan Rohani spoke approvingly about concealing his nation's nuclear program and said that when Pakistan got atomic bombs and Brazil began enriching uranium, "the world started to work with them."

Internet monitoring must have proper limits, Merkel tells Obama

BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel told U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday that government monitoring of Internet communications needed to remain within proper limits.

Fed seen keeping options open on pace of bond buying

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - 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 U.S. labor market continues to improve.

WikiLeaks' Assange fears U.S., says will stay in embassy

LONDON (Reuters) - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will not leave the sanctuary of the Ecuadorean Embassy in London even if Sweden stops pursuing sexual assault claims against him because he fears arrest on the order of the United States.

Analysis: French EU-wariness complicates life for Hollande

PARIS (Reuters) - 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.

Rousseff salutes Brazil protests, cities cut bus fares

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - President Dilma Rousseff on Tuesday sought to defuse a massive protest movement sweeping Brazil, acknowledging the need for better public services and more responsive governance as demonstrations continued in some cities around the country.

Asia business sentiment rises in second quarter, global growth risk still dominates

SEOUL (Reuters) - Asia's top companies have become more optimistic about their business outlook with the retail and shipping industries rebounding sharply in the second quarter of 2013, the latest Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Survey shows.

Republican-led House passes bill restricting abortion

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Republican-controlled House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation severely restricting abortions, a move that could alienate women from the conservative party.

Moves to limit contractor access to secrets meets resistance

(Reuters) - Industry executives and some corners of the U.S. intelligence community are pushing back against possible legislative moves to curb contractors' access to classified information.

U.S. says surveillance thwarted NYSE attack, Somali funding

(Reuters) WASHINGTON - U.S. intelligence officials on Tuesday identified two of the more than 50 classified cases in which they say National Security Agency eavesdropping helped thwart terrorist plots including a planned attack on the New York Stock Exchange.

United States to meet Taliban to seek Afghan peace

WASHINGTON/KABUL (Reuters) - The United States and the Taliban raised hopes on Tuesday for a negotiated peace in Afghanistan with commitments to meet this week after 12 years of bloody and costly war between American-led forces and the insurgents.

G8 urges Syria peace talks as fighting flares in north

ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Differences between Russia and the West mean an international peace conference on Syria is now unlikely before August, a source at a meeting of Group of Eight leaders said on Tuesday as surging government forces brought heavy fighting to Aleppo.

NSA head, lawmakers defend surveillance programs

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - 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 sympathetic members of Congress also defended the use of the top-secret spying operations.

Republican-led House passes bill restricting abortion

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation that would ban late-term abortions, a move that could alienate women from the conservative party.

Italian court says Knox murder acquittal had inconsistencies

ROME (Reuters) - Italy's top court said on Tuesday it had ordered a retrial of American Amanda Knox and her ex-boyfriend in the murder of British student Meredith Kercher because their acquittals contained "shortcomings, contradictions and inconsistencies."