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U.S. climate envoy John Kerry conceded there was likely to be a “gap” between the commitments nations make at an international climate summit in Glasgow next month and the emissions cuts that are necessary to prevent catastrophic global warming during an interview with The Associated Press. Kerry said he was not seeking to downplay expectations for the event, and said the gap should be used to convince countries to go further. “We will hopefully be moving very close to that…though there will be a gap and…we’ve got to be honest about the gap, and we have to use the gap...

BRUSSELS — NATO nations are increasing spending on defense, with nine of the alliance’s 29 members now meeting guidelines, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Friday, ahead of a summit next week where President Donald Trump is expected to urge leaders yet again to increase military expenditures. The top-tier spending club — with at least 2% of annual gross domestic allocated for defense — expanded by one country and now includes Bulgaria, according to figures released by the military alliance. EU countries and Canada have collectively boosted their defense spending every year since 2015, motivated first by Russia’s conflict with...

Running for president is a perilous endeavor. Candidates make mistakes. And Barack Obama is making a serious mistake this weekend. As he tours Afghanistan, the senator from Illinois says he is "more interested in listening than doing a lot of talking." That would be good if it were the case. Unfortunately, Obama is busy making promises.

President Bush can't make major, long-term economic and military commitments to Iraq without consulting Congress first, according to a resolution introduced Thursday by several legislative authors, including two Bay Area House members. The resolution isn't binding, acknowledged Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, who crafted it along with Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Petaluma, Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Los Angeles, and Rep. Bob Filner, D-San Diego, to put on record congressional opposition to such far-reaching pacts. "Consistently I have seen this administration ... really erode our checks and balances, erode our democracy," Lee told reporters Thursday. "This resolution is long overdue and we've got to...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 25, 2007 – The commitment of ground forces in Iraq and Afghanistan is heavy, but the U.S. military has ample forces to respond to any other contingency that may arise, the general in charge of planning for the Joint Chiefs of Staff said here today. About 490,000 military members are forward-deployed around the world, with 234,000 in Southwest and Central Asia, about 139,000 in the Pacific, about 96,000 in the European theater, and a little more than 4,000 in Latin and Central America and the Caribbean, Army Maj. Gen. Richard Sherlock, director of operational planning for the Joint...

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, July 31, 2007 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice got firm commitments here today from Iraq’s neighbors that they’ll continue to support the Iraqi government and counter forces trying to derail it. (Video) Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice meet with President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, July 31, 2007. Gates and Rice are in Egypt to meet with the president and the minister of defense to discuss regional affairs and the United States' long-term relationship with Egypt. Defense Dept....

TALLIL, Iraq, Jan. 19, 2007 – Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government is delivering on its commitments for the new way forward in Iraq, the commander of coalition forces said here today. "So far, so good" is the way Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr. characterized Iraqi efforts to bring security to Baghdad. At a news conference with visiting Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, Casey said Maliki has delivered on what he promised in a recent speech in which he laid out a range of commitments Iraqi security forces will have to follow. In the speech, Maliki said the...

WASHINGTON, July 27, 2006 – Today's Army is the best the U.S. has ever sent into combat, and initiatives under way will ensure it remains that way, the Army chief of staff said in a statement released last night. Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker said he's confident that efforts from the Army and Defense Department staffs, in Congress and the White House will ensure the Army is equipped and financed to face “the many challenges that lie ahead during these dangerous times.” Schoomaker, who came out of retirement to accept the Army's top military job, disputed recent public statements criticizing...

WASHINGTON, June 28, 2006 – The U.S. and Australian defense leaders today reaffirmed their governments' commitment to work together to counter terrorism and other threats, with Australian Minister of Defense Brendan Nelson vowing that his country will remain a solid partner in Iraq. "We remain with you, shoulder-to-shoulder, to support the heavy lifting in Iraq and Afghanistan and other theaters, including our own region, for the foreseeable future," Nelson said during his first visit to the Pentagon as Australia's defense minister. Australia has no plans on the table to reduce its force in Iraq - currently about 1,350 members --...