Saudi Ambassador to the United States Turki al-Faisal on Monday urged Washington to press Israel to have peace talks with the Palestinians.

Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos on Monday urged that Turkey must agree to return the fenced off area of Famagusta (Varosha) to its lawful inhabitants if Ankara wants a meeting with Cyprus on its EU course to be held.

NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, on a visit to Prague on Monday, reproached the Czech Republic for its declining spending on defense, which does not reach 2 percent of GDP recommended by NATO.

Macedonian parliament on Monday passed a crucial bill on police reform which is required by the EU before it opens accession talks with the small Balkan country, news from Skopje reported.

U.S. congressman Duncan Hunter, chairman of the House Armed Service Committee, announced Monday that he plans to make a longshot bid for the Republican party's 2008 nomination for president.

U.S. President George W. Bush accused Democrats as being "wrong" on Iraq on Monday, when he was campaigning in the southeastern state of Georgia for candidates of the Republican Party, which might lose its control of Congress in the midterm elections just eight days away.

Israeli Knesset (parliament) voted and approved the addition of extreme-right party Israel Beiteinu led by Avigdor Lieberman into the government coalition on Monday evening.

Visiting Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht said here on Monday that he was optimistic about finding a solution to the Cyprus issue in Turkey's European Union (EU) accession bid prior to the bloc's summit in December.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Monday called for more resources from member states to improve recruiting practices and streamline contracts so as to attract good candidates and keep them with the organization.

Iran on Monday urged foreign military forces not to damage Gulf peace as U.S.-led naval maneuvers were being held in the region, the official IRNA news agency reported.