UK-World Summary

Obama says will "finish the job" in Afghanistan

WASHINGTON - U.S. President Barack Obama vowed on Tuesday to "finish the job" of an unpopular and costly eight-year war in Afghanistan, and officials said he could announce an increase of around 30,000 troops next week. Obama said he would soon end weeks of intense speculation about his plans for the way forward in Afghanistan, after a three-month strategic review that has drawn fire from Republican critics who accuse him of dithering.

Iran says needs guarantees to send uranium abroad

TEHRAN abroad for reprocessing, saying this could only be swapped simultaneously on Iranian soil for fuel for nuclear medicine.

World's biggest cruise ship is a floating resort

FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida - Royal Caribbean's new Oasis of the Seas is the largest, widest, tallest, most expensive cruise ship afloat, a cornucopia of amusements aimed at quashing the notion that cruising is a sedentary vacation, said chief executive Richard Fain. Then he donned swim trunks, jumped on a boogie board and challenged fellow executives to a contest in one of the Oasis' two FlowRider pools that simulate surfing.

U.S. not expecting quick Afghan troop hikes by allies

WASHINGTON - U.S. allies will likely wait weeks before deciding whether to send more troops to Afghanistan rather than responding immediately to President Barack Obama's coming announcement on U.S. forces, the Pentagon said Tuesday. "I don't think there's an expectation that you're going to see a bunch of nations standing up in rapid succession and declaring their intention to add large numbers of additional forces right away," said Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell.

EU's Barroso hopes for new Commission by end-January

STRASBOURG, France - The next European Commission, the powerful regulatory arm of the European Union, should be in place by the end of January, Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Tuesday. The last of 27 nominees for Commission posts, one from each EU member state, was proposed on Tuesday, meaning consultations now begin on how to distribute the portfolios in the body that initiates laws and implements decisions across the EU.

Sarkozy promises crackdown on crime in the suburbs

LE PERREUX-SUR-MARNE, France - French President Nicolas Sarkozy made a rare foray into the suburbs of Paris on Tuesday to promise that a surge in the number of security cameras would make life better there. With regional elections coming up in March and opinion polls showing widespread dissatisfaction with him, Sarkozy used the visit to refocus on the themes of crime and security which served him well during the 2007 presidential election campaign.

Hague prosecutor accuses Congo warlords

THE HAGUE .

Crew member killed in attack on tanker off Benin

COTONOU - Pirates attacked an oil tanker off Benin, killing a Ukrainian crew member and stealing the contents of the ship's safe, the head of the West African country's navy said on Tuesday. The 230-metre Liberian-flagged Cancale Star was carrying 89,000 cubic metres of crude oil from Nigeria when pirates raided it 18 miles off the Benin coast, Commander Maxime Ahoyo told journalists.

Netanyahu says Hamas prisoner deal may not happen

JERUSALEM - An Israeli prisoner exchange with Hamas has not yet been agreed and may not happen, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday, after a senior cabinet colleague predicted a breakthrough within weeks. "There is still no deal, and I do not know if there will be one," Netanyahu, whose reticence on the state of the Egyptian- and German-mediated negotiations has helped stoke speculation about imminent progress, told reporters.

Escort's book describes night with Berlusconi

ROME - The escort at the heart of a sex scandal involving Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi gave graphic details of their alleged lovemaking in a book published on Tuesday and said she had been attacked and threatened since. Patrizia D'Addario, in her memoir entitled "Enjoy, Prime Minister," describes a party held at Berlusconi's Rome residence, Palazzo Grazioli, and gives intimate details of a night spent with the 73-year-old premier in a bed given him by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.