Have you ever tasted a soft drink so good you thought it should be illegal? In some parts of the world, ingredients used in beverages available across the United States are outlawed — but not because they’re dangerously delicious. Drinks including Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Powerade and Squirt are all commonly available at restaurants and convenience stores... 

The picture shows North Korean rocket Unha-3, carrying the satellite Kwangmyongsong-3, lifting off from the launch pad in Cholsan on December 12, 2012. Pyongyang is developing missiles capable of reaching the US, South Korean officials have claimed. The allegations came as North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un called for the development of more powerful rockets after... 

British threats to invade Ecuador’s embassy will be discussed at international-level talks between the foreign ministers of the Organization of American States. The proposal was adopted despite the US saying OAS has nothing to do with the issue. ­Ecuador’s resolution to convene a meeting of the OAS member nations’ foreign ministers was adopted with... 

Israeli President Shimon Peres Israeli president has ruled out a unilateral attack on Iran’s nuclear energy facilities, saying Tel Aviv will need Washington’s help for a military operation against Tehran. “Now, it’s clear to us that we can’t do it alone… It’s clear to us we have to proceed together with America,” Reuters quoted... 

Switzerland will continue to purchase Iranian oil in defiance of the European Union sanctions on the Islamic Republic that came into effect on July 1. The Swiss Federal Department of Economic Affairs stated that Switzerland will not join the oil embargo against Iran, despite pressure from the United States and the EU, IRNA reported on Friday. Switzerland says... 

Who needs diplomacy, or international law? Not former presidential candidate (R-AZ) John McCain, who became the first senator to publicly call for a US-led military strike on Syria in order to halt the nearly year-long conflict there. Taking the Senate floor, McCain said there will be no UN mandate for the air strikes he deems the only way to stop the violence... 

China says the US has no right to “protect” Arab peoples, questioning “the sincerity and efficacy of US policy.” The country’s top newspaper replied to Hillary Clinton after she called China’s and Russia’s veto of a UN Syrian resolution “despicable”. The People’s Daily commentary says, “The United States’ motive in parading... 

US and its allies are pushing Syria into civil war by backing the armed opposition, the newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party writes. The article insists Beijing must stick to opposing any attempt to intervene or regime change in Damascus. ­”If Western countries continue to fully support Syria’s opposition, then in the end a large-scale... 

According to a 2009 Wikileaks cable, IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano asserted that "he was solidly in the US court on every key strategic decision, from high-level personnel appointments to the handling of Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program." The UN nuclear agency is expected to publish a report “harsher” than its November edition on... 

A plane being unloaded at Rafiq Hariri International Airport in the Lebanese capital city, Beirut. Lebanon’s security officials say a suspicious cargo containing huge amounts of US dollars, guns, special passports and credit cards have been seized upon arrival in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, from the US and Brazil. The items, packed in a number of chests... 

German Chancellor Angela Merkel Despite Beijing’s outright refusal to join the EU and US-sponsored unilateral sanctions on Iran’s oil industry, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has arranged a visit to China to convince the country to reduce Iranian oil import. A German government source told a news briefing on Tuesday that “It is in German interests... 

Iranian Troops Depending on how soon military contractors can get to work on a massive US Navy “mother ship,” a colossal sea vessel could be stationed outside of Iran as early as this May. At a Department of Defense briefing at the Pentagon this weekend, authorities confirmed that the USS Ponce, a massive marine carrier currently docked off the Atlantic... 

New Western sanctions seek to prevent other countries from importing Iran's crude oil. India has agreed to pay the price of crude oil it imports from Iran in gold, which makes it the first country to drop the US dollar for purchasing the Iranian oil. According to a report published by DEBKAfile news website, unnamed sources have stressed that China is also... 

Iranian Navy warships take part in maneuvers during the "Velayat-90" navy exercises in the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran. Tensions in the Gulf could reach a breaking point as a senior Iranian official said Iran would “definitely” close the Strait of Hormuz if an EU oil embargo disrupted the export of crude oil, the semi-official Fars news agency... 

A disturbing report prepared by the Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth (IPE) in Moscow that is circulating in the Kremlin today warns that the 6.2 magnitude earthquake that struck the Chiapas region of Mexico yesterday is a ‘potential precursor’ to a ‘megaquake’ of at least 7.5-8.3 expected to hit the US-Mexican Pacific coastline within the next...