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Burma’s Rohingya Muslim population remains oppressed by the military junta and depends on international donors for survival. The United States is funding a U.N. program to issue identification cards that will facilitate registration of births and marriages, school enrollment, and access to basic health care and nutritional assistance. 

The Kenyan people must work out a way forward from the current period of post-election violence, U.S. officials say. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says that everyone in Kenya, which is an important friend of the United States, should remain calm while a political resolution to the crisis is found.

Chances for congressional approval of high-stakes U.S. bilateral trade agreements with Colombia, South Korea and Panama will improve once lawmakers focus on the strong strategic and commercial merits of the pacts, according Gary Hufbauer, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Deep in the mind and spirit of human beings lies the conviction that every person has rights, including a right to freedom from oppression, freedom to make reasonable choices and freedom from cruelty. A four-part series examines the nature of human rights.

“Our foreign policy is based on a clear premise:  We trust that people, when given the chance, will choose a future of freedom and peace,” President Bush says in his final State of the Union address. Bush also is seeking a boost in U.S. foreign aid funding to help developing countries realize democracy’s benefits.

Countries and regions that promote economic freedom are more likely to enjoy prosperity than those that restrict such freedom, a new report states. Economic freedom strongly correlates with good economic performance of a country or a territory and economic opportunities for its people, according to the 2008 Index of Economic Freedom.

America’s interests are inseparable from its ideals, making its support for the spread of political and economic freedoms more vital than ever, says Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. “American Realism,” a belief in the power of democracy, free trade, human rights and the rule of law, is at the core of U.S. foreign policy, she adds.

President Bush and congressional leaders agree that a short-term, temporary set of economic measures is needed to stimulate the U.S. economy at a time of slowing growth. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson says the U.S. economy is resilient and job creation "continues ... at a modest pace." Bush and the congressional leaders share a sense of urgency to get money into the economy quickly, Paulson says.

In response to growing challenges in reaching their audiences around the world, the five most influential international broadcasters have joined together for the first time to condemn what they describe as the “grave and rising threats to the right to gather information and communicate it across national borders.”

U.S. scientists and engineers are working with the Iraq Ministry of Water Resources to install the latest technology and implement modern methods for managing water resources. The effort is important because Iraq’s water resources must be monitored and managed to optimize distribution of water for agriculture and electrical generation.

With his stirring oratory sparking “Obamamania,” Illinois Democratic Senator Barack Obama connects to people of all different racial and ethnic backgrounds, according to one political analyst. Obama’s candidacy for U.S. president is galvanizing the American people, several students of the U.S. political scene tell America.gov.

President Bush and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke emphasize to world economic markets that the U.S. economy remains fundamentally resilient and concerns about a slowdown in growth could be ameliorated by a short-term stimulus package. President Bush also says he is asking Congress for a short-term economic stimulus package.

An American organization is making giving to international development causes easy while ensuring donors that their gifts have the effects they expect. The nongovernmental organization GlobalGiving, founded in 2002 by two former World Bank officials, also offers a way for donors to meet like-minded donors through the Internet.

After separate meetings with Palestinian and Israeli leaders January 9 and January 10, President Bush says he is increasingly confident that what might have been unlikely even a year ago is not only possible, but necessary: the creation of a Palestinian state by the end of 2008. “Is it possible for the Israelis and the Palestinians to work out their differences?” Bush asks in the West Bank city of Ramallah. “My answer is, absolutely, it’s possible. Not only is it possible, it's necessary. And I'm looking forward to helping.”

New Hampshire voters show up in record numbers and surprise many by casting their ballots for Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican John McCain in the first-in-the-nation presidential primary. With different winners emerging from the completed state nominating events, the race to the Republican and Democratic nominations is far from over.

The United States will provide $200,000 to the Kenya Red Cross Society for relief supplies for people displaced by violence related to the disputed presidential election. "I condemn the use of violence as a political tool and appeal to both sides to engage in peaceful dialogue aimed at finding a lasting political solution," President Bush says.

One hundred and eighty-nine smiling Iraqi jundi (soldiers) receive certificates for successfully completing a rigorous 10-week mechanics course December 30, 2007, knowing they now will play an integral role as engines for change powering their army. The graduation ceremony, at the Iraqi Army Sixth Division’s base in West Baghdad, is an example of the way the U.S. Army is partnering with the Iraqi military to move it toward self-sufficiency.

With the Iowa caucuses behind them, most of the presidential candidates are now in New Hampshire appealing to voters before the state’s primary on January 8.  "There's a lot of excitement living in Manchester right now," said 27-year-old resident Sarah Janas. "People are paying attention."  Candidates and political experts consider the first nominating events in Iowa and New Hampshire to be among the most important ones to win because victories in either state can help propel a candidate to success in later state primaries and caucuses.

President Bush will arrive in Jerusalem January 9 to promote a Middle Eastern peace initiative begun at the November 2007 Annapolis Conference that seeks to bring the long-standing Arab-Israeli conflict to a peaceful resolution and create a democratic Palestinian state. But the trip also will serve to reassure allies and friends of the United States of its full commitment to regional security.

Iowa caucusgoers, turning out in record numbers, award victories to Republican Mike Huckabee and Democrat Barack Obama. Attention now shifts to the January 8 New Hampshire primaries, where the candidates, minus Democrats Joe Biden and Christopher Dodd, will continue to vie for voter support.