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G-8 leaders support political solution to Syria

By Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:03:00 PDT

Although the fate of Syrian President Bashar Assad split the Group of 8 summit, leaders manage to come up with a statement of common goals.

BEIRUT — Global economic leaders, including the United States and Russia, reiterated support Tuesday for a political solution to the Syrian civil war, backing a plan for a transitional government hammered out last year in Geneva.

G-8 leaders vow to crack down on tax evasion

By Henry Chu, Los Angeles Times — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 14:39:00 PDT

The Group of 8 nations agree on a 10-point plan to swap financial information and expose companies that use elaborate schemes to hide profits.

LONDON — With many of their governments strapped for cash, leaders at a summit of rich nations vowed Tuesday to crack down on tax cheats by swapping financial information and exposing companies that set up elaborate structures to hide their profits.

Obama, Putin differ on Syria during tense talks

By Kathleen Hennessey, Los Angeles Times — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:15:00 PDT

In Northern Ireland for the G-8 summit, the U.S. and Russian leaders have little common ground on Syria, other than hopes for peace negotiations.

ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland — President Obama differed sharply with Russia's leader over the Syrian civil war in an icy encounter Monday illustrating how difficult it may be to drive Syrian President Bashar Assad from power, even after some rebel groups begin to receive U.S. weaponry.

Edward Snowden vows more disclosures about U.S. surveillance

By Shashank Bengali and Ken Dilanian, Los Angeles Times — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:09:00 PDT

Former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden rejects speculation that he spilled intelligence secrets to China in exchange for asylum.

WASHINGTON — Defiant and apparently unbowed by threats of prosecution, former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden vowed Monday to release more secrets about U.S. intelligence surveillance systems that he described as "nakedly, aggressively criminal."

Britain's scrutiny of tax havens involves looking in the mirror

By Henry Chu, Los Angeles Times — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 20:36:00 PDT

David Cameron has made cracking down on tax evasion a top item of the G-8 summit in Northern Ireland. But many of the centers in question are linked to Britain.

LONDON — For hundreds of years, the island of Jersey has been famous for its cows, which have been bred, raised and exported worldwide. But these days, the mother's milk of its economy is something else entirely: the billions upon billions of dollars funneled from around the globe into the tiny island's outsize financial sector.

G-8 meeting will test NSA leaks' effect on U.S. influence

By Don Lee, Los Angeles Times — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 18:36:00 PDT

The United States' position would seem strong going into the Group of 8 economic summit, but European nations are likely to bristle over data collection and privacy issues.

WASHINGTON — On the surface, President Obama would seem to have a strong hand as he heads to the annual Group of 8 economic summit. Instead, the meetings Monday and Tuesday seem set to provide the first test of how much his administration's international agenda has been complicated by revelations of U.S. surveillance of telephone use and the Internet.

After 20 years, hunt for fugitive Sicilian Mafia boss intensifies

By Tom Kington, Los Angeles Times — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 18:24:00 PDT

Cosa Nostra boss Matteo Messina Denaro, believed to have killed 50 people, is protected by a network of family and allies, perhaps including corrupt officials. But investigators may be closing in.

ROME — Each day, Giacomo Di Giralomo makes a point of asking, "Where are you, Matteo?" on his talk radio show, which is broadcast across western Sicily.

Turkish police launch assault on protesters in Istanbul park

By Glen Johnson and Jeffrey Fleishman — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 15:19:00 PDT

Firing tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon barrages, riot police drive thousands of demonstrators out of Gezi Park.

ISTANBUL, Turkey — Hundreds of riot police firing tear gas stormed a central Istanbul park Saturday, tearing down tents and clearing out demonstrators in a bold, if politically risky, move by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to stem more than two weeks of antigovernment protests.

Obama returns to Berlin, no longer a 'superstar'

By Kathleen Hennessey, Los Angeles Times — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 15:51:00 PDT

President Obama will give his first speech in Berlin since his rousing address as a candidate in 2008. This time, he comes amid lowered expectations, trying to mend transatlantic rifts.

WASHINGTON — Five years ago, when Americans had not yet made up their minds on their choice for president, Europe had. More than 200,000 people crowded the streets of Berlin — a favorite backdrop for U.S. politicians reaching for history — to hear then-candidate Barack Obama promise to turn the page on the unpopular policies of George W. Bush.

Europe rethinks its pursuit of austerity

By Henry Chu, Los Angeles Times — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:03:00 PDT

European Union leaders are beginning to acknowledge that cutting spending too much too fast to solve the continent's debt crisis is crippling nations.

LONDON — After years of unrelenting austerity, Europe seems to have turned a corner on its debt crisis — right into a dead-end street.