The Philippines has asked the United States to hold joint naval patrols, a defense ministry spokesman said on Thursday, amid a territorial dispute with China in the South China Sea.

• January 14, 2016

Saudi Arabia plans to create a new sovereign fund to manage part of its oil wealth and diversify its investments, and has asked investment banks and consultancies to submit proposals for the project, according to people familiar with the matter

• January 14, 2016

Western sanctions on Moscow are intended to exert long-term pressure on Russia and not to push it "over the economic cliff," a U.S. State Department official said on Tuesday.

• January 12, 2016

Iran has not yet decommissioned the Arak heavy water reactor, one of its obligations under the nuclear deal with world powers to win a reprieve from sanctions, but expects to do so in the coming days, a senior Iranian official said.

• January 12, 2016

Negotiators at the Ukraine peace talks have vowed to make fresh efforts to enforce a shaky cease-fire in eastern Ukraine.

• January 12, 2016

The White House has clarified U.S. President Barack Obama’s puzzling reference to Ukraine in his final State of the Union address, in which he said Russia is “pouring resources in to prop up” its ex-Soviet neighbor.

• January 12, 2016

Ukraine says it will for the first time ship goods to Kazakhstan along a route bypassing Russia, due to the Kremlin’s trade embargo on Kyiv.

• January 12, 2016

NATO allies cannot agree to Russian demands to limit their missile defenses because of the threat posed by North Korea, a senior U.S. State Department official said on Tuesday.

• January 12, 2016