US President Obama urges Israelis and Palestinians to resume direct peace talks before a settlement freeze expires in September.

• July 7, 2010

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin unveiled ambitious development goals for the volatile North Caucasus on Tuesday, promising 400,000 new jobs, an oil center in Chechnya and ski resorts stretching from the Black to the Caspian seas.

• July 7, 2010

The leaders of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan took their longest stride to date in linking their economies, forming a customs union that they say will soon evolve into a more ambitious common market, with Russia at its hub.

• July 6, 2010

Despite media reports that Turkey would cut diplomatic ties without an Israeli apology over a raid on an aid flotilla to Gaza, the Turkish government has taken a slightly softer tone with an unapologetic Israel.

• July 6, 2010

Normal life is disrupted in parts of India as opposition parties begin a 12-hour strike over fuel price increases.

• July 5, 2010

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has visited Azerbaijan to seek a restart of peace talks over Nagorno-Karabakh, repair frayed bilateral ties, and press the oil-rich Caucasus nation on human rights.

• July 5, 2010

Though sometimes overlooked, Azerbaijan’s geopolitical status far outweighs its size. Located just north of Iran and just south of the volatile Caucuses, it sits on the Caspian Sea, astride major oil and gas transshipment routes that avoid Russia.

• July 5, 2010

A 2008 civilian nuclear energy pact between the United States and India was meant to lift a 34-year-old embargo on nuclear trade despite New Delhi's longstanding weapons programme, a move seen as bolstering it as a counterweight to China.

• July 5, 2010