Matthew Lee

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is holding a second day of talks with Pakistani officials to press them to do more to combat insurgents. Clinton was meeting Friday with Pakistan’s president and foreign minister after a lengthy four-hour discussion on Thursday with top Pakistani military and intelligence officials. At Thursday’s talks, Clinton led a high-level US delegation, including CIA director David Petraeus and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey. The…

The Obama administration on Wednesday expressed concern about a “creeping” trend of anti-American sentiment in Egypt, where it says it has noticed mounting attacks and criticism of U.S. aid and motives as the country transitions to democracy. The State Department said it has raised the matter with Egyptian officials. It complained that the criticism is “inaccurate” and “unfair” and that personal attacks lodged against Anne Patterson, the new U.S. Ambassador to Egypt, are “unacceptable.” “With re…

Foreign leaders showered President Barack Obama and his family with hundreds of thousands of dollars in art, jewelry, rare books and other presents during their first year in the White House. Saudi Arabia’s king was the most generous gift-giver, according to documents released by the State Department on Tuesday. Saudi King Abdullah gave Obama, his wife and daughters nearly $190,000 in luxury baubles in 2009, including the single most valuable gift reported to have been given to U.S. officials t…

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez dared the U.S. to expel his ambassador in retaliation for his move to reject the U.S. envoy to the South American country. On Wednesday, that’s just what the Obama administration did. Chavez issued his dare a day earlier, saying he would not allow the U.S. diplomat, Larry Palmer, to be ambassador because the U.S. official made what Chavez described as blatantly disrespectful remarks about Venezuela. “If the government is going to expel our ambassador there, let t…

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton launched fence-mending talks with Afghan government leaders Tuesday by assuring President Hamid Karzai that the U.S. will help rebuild and defend Afghanistan long after the last U.S. combat troops have left. “We will not abandon the Afghan people. Our civilian commitment will remain long into the future,” Clinton said, with Karzai at her side in the ornate Benjamin Franklin room at the State Department. The Afghan president is in Washington for four da…