Simon Denyer

WASHINGTON, Dec 3 (Reuters) - It was never going to be a relaxing day trip, but the presidential visit to Afghanistan had something of a jinxed quality to it. First, President Barack Obama got stranded at Bagram Air Base by high winds. He addressed…

WASHINGTON, Nov 30 (Reuters) -The U.S. government would surely love to get its revenge on Julian Assange, and the Justice Department says a criminal investigation has already begun. But specialists in espionage law tell us that peculiarities of…

WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - To an outsider, diplomacy sometimes looks like an exercise in smiling and being nice to people who you secretly dislike or even scorn. The trouble is, these days your real feelings may not be a secret. Perhaps it’s no…

WASHINGTON, Nov 3 (Reuters) - It was a subdued and chastened president who took the podium for his post-election news conference today. His tone flat, his eyes often downcast, his smile largely absent, Obama admitted the election results were…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - So much for criticism that Barack Obama doesn’t show emotion. On Wednesday the Democratic president’s mood was clear: somber, resigned, and chastened by the biggest political drubbing of his career. “It feels bad,” Obama…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Harry Reid, a key ally to President Barack Obama, is in danger in Tuesday’s election of becoming the first U.S. Senate majority leader in 58 years to be booted out of office by home-state voters. A Reid defeat -- to a favorite…

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - It was Haiti’s premier private hospital, its rooms filled with the latest medical equipment, its surgeons trained in the latest techniques, its thick walls built to withstand an earthquake. Those walls stood firm when the…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - American voters unhappy at high unemployment are set to oust President Barack Obama’s Democrats from control of the U.S. House of Representatives in November 2 elections, a Reuters-Ipsos poll projected on Wednesday. The…

For main investment story, click on [ID:nN07294093]. PORT-AU-PRINCE, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Haiti’s government and its international aid partners are appealing for private capital, both domestic and foreign, to contribute to the reconstruction of the…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A massive influx of free foreign food to Haiti after January’s earthquake helped feed many displaced people, but undercut Haitian agriculture and hurt farmers’ incomes, Oxfam International said Monday. The international…

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - Haiti and its aid partners are working to get credit flowing back into the earthquake-shattered economy to stimulate businesses, jobs and house building and make possible a projected growth rebound of up to 10 percent next…

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - Haitians should seize U.N.-backed elections in November as an opportunity to build a better nation from the ruins of this year’s earthquake by taking charge of future development and shedding years of aid dependency, the…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - General David Petraeus said on Wednesday he has completed a draft plan to start thinning NATO forces in parts of Afghanistan next year, but cautioned that the transition process would be slow. Petraeus, the top U.S. and NATO…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Boeing Co's BA.N defense unit is working to cut overhead and improve productivity, given the outlook for flat defense spending in the United States and Europe, the company's top defense executive said on Tuesday. Boeing expects…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Departing White House economist Christina Romer said on Wednesday the United States needed to find the political will for more economic stimulus, even if it pushed up the fiscal deficit in the short run. “While we would all…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Almost one-third of Americans support President Barack Obama’s proposal to allow tax rates to rise for the wealthiest, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found on Tuesday. Nearly half of those surveyed think the tax breaks, which were…

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama and fellow Democrats will be playing defense in what is a heated issue this U.S. election season, whether to extend lower tax rates for the rich during a waning economic recovery. Despite a risk of being…

HOUSTON (Reuters) - BP Plc said on Thursday no oil was leaking into the Gulf of Mexico for the first time since its huge spill began in April as it conducted pressure tests on its blown-out deep-sea well. For the test, BP closed valves and vents on a…

HOUSTON (Reuters) - BP PlcBP.NBP.N said on Wednesday a 24-hour delay in a key pressure test on a cap on its Gulf of Mexico wellhead was needed to reduce risks as it works to stop oil that has been spewing for months into the ocean. While they waited…

HOUSTON (Reuters) - BP Plc prepared on Tuesday to test a new cap on its runaway well in an effort to finally arrest the flow of oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico for the last 12 weeks. The tests, due to last between six and 48 hours, will begin…