Copenhagen Talks

Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen addresses the opening ceremony of the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen on December 7. After two weeks of negotiations, 193 countries reached a non-legally binding accord on climate change in the Danish capital (XINHUA/AFP)

Washington's New Move

U.S. troops arrive at Kunar Province in northeastern Afghanistan on April 7. President Barack Obama has introduced significant changes to America's foreign policy—most notably its Afghanistan strategy—since taking office in January (XINHUA/AFP)

Honduran Coup

Troops surround Honduran President Manuel Zelaya's residence in Tegucigalpa. Soldiers arrested Zelaya and flew him to Costa Rica on June 28 in a coup d'état condemned by the UN, the Organization of American States, the United States and the European Union (XINHUA/AFP)

A/H1N1 Flu Menace

A soldier hands a mask to a tourist in Mexico City on April 26. The A/H1N1 influenza pandemic has now spread across continents, posing a grave threat to public health worldwide (XINHUA)

Global Financial Crisis

Leaders of the Group of 20 major economies meet in Pittsburgh in the United States on September 25 for the third time since the outbreak of the crisis. The world community has coped with the devastating economic turmoil by stimulating growth, while seeking to reform the international financial system (YAO DAWEI)

New Japanese Prime Minister

Yukio Hatoyama speaks to the press after being elected Japan's new prime minister on September 16. The Democratic Party of Japan, led by Hatoyama, won a landslide victory in August's parliamentary elections, ousting the Liberal Democratic Party, which had been in office for more than half a century (REN ZHENGLAI)

Iranian Violence

Iranian riot police gather on a Tehran street on June 20. Iranian demonstrators clashed with authorities over several days following the controversial re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (XINHUA/AFP)

Landmark Treaty

Herman Van Rompuy, the first President of the European Council, speaks at the ceremony marking the Lisbon Treaty's entry into force in Lisbon, Portugal, on December 1. The treaty features new rules designed to make the European Union more efficient in decision-making and more responsive to global challenges (XINHUA/AFP)

North Korea's Nuclear Test

North Korea conducted an underground nuclear test on May 25. The file photo shows a possible site of the nuclear test in Kilju County. The country withdrew from the six-party talks in April 2009 (XINHUA/AFP)

The First BRIC Summit

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (from left to right) join hands on June 16 in Yekaterinburg, Russia (YAO DAWEI)