AP - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has said no nation is more important to the United States than China. But ties between the two powers may be off to a rocky start just days into the Obama administration.

AP - The departure of four sitting Democratic senators this year has cast a new — and at times, unflattering — light on the nation's governors and their outsize power to fill Senate vacancies.

Reuters - U.N. peacekeepers are increasingly finding themselves deployed with too few troops, insufficient funds and in countries where there is hardly any peace to keep, a top U.N. official said on Friday.

AP - Diplomacy now trumps defense as the main instrument of American foreign policy.

Politico - President Obama kept a low profile on Friday as he fulfilled a campaign promise by reversing President Bush’s policy barring U.S. aid to international organizations which provide abortions or advise women on how to get them.

Politico - Even as President Obama has instituted tough new ethics guidelines for administration officials, House Democrats continue to wrestle with the ethics problems of two of their most senior members—Reps. John Murtha (Pa.) and Charlie Rangel (N.Y.).

AP - President Dmitry Medvedev said Friday that Moscow is ready to help stabilize the situation in Afghanistan by allowing the United States and others to cross Russian territory with cargo intended for coalition forces in the war-wracked nation.

AP - Republicans appear to have overplayed their hand when blocking the expansion of a children's health care program last year.

AP - Barack Obama opened his presidency by breaking sharply from George W. Bush's unpopular administration, but he mostly avoided divisive partisan and ideological stands. He focused instead on fixing the economy, repairing a battered world image and cleaning up government.

Politico - Blog: The New York Post pulls out some particularly nice (though official) photos of moments around the Inauguration.

AP - Timothy Geithner's well-greased path to confirmation as treasury secretary is a sign of the severity of the recession and congressional willingness to give President Barack Obama the benefit of the doubt and look the other way.

AP - The following recalls have been announced:

AP - A new poll reports about a two-thirds approval rating of Barack Obama's first days as president.

Politico - Blog: My story today: President Barack Obama is staffing his Justice Department with some of his predecessor’s fiercest critics, amon

AP - Vatican officials said Saturday they were disappointed by President Barack Obama's decision to end a ban on federal funding for international groups that perform abortions or provide information on them.

AP - British government ministers and opposition politicians criticized the BBC on Saturday for refusing to show a charity fundraising appeal for Palestinians in the war-hit Gaza strip.

AP - Several hundred self-styled anarchists fought with police in central Athens Saturday after a march to demand the release of people arrested during riots last month.