WASHINGTON — Hillary Rodham Clinton has decided to give up her Senate seat to become secretary of state in the Obama administration, making her the public face to the world for the man who dashed her own hopes for the presidency, confidants of Mrs. Clinton said Friday.
The accord between the two leading figures of the Democratic Party was the culmination of a weeklong drama that riveted the nation’s capital. President-elect Barack Obama and Mrs. Clinton fought perhaps the most polarizing nomination battle in decades, but in recruiting her for his …

Paris: French Socialists were choosing a new leader yesterday who could challenge President Nicolas Sarkozy and set the direction for the once-powerful but long-fractured French left.
Two women headed the tight race: ex-presidential candidate Segolene Royal and the author of France’s 35-hour workweek law, Martine Aubry.

The president-elect of the Maldives, a nation of 1,200 low islands in the Indian Ocean, is planning to establish an investment fund with some of its earnings from tourism so it can buy a haven for its citizens should global warming raise sea levels at a dangerous pace, according to several news reports.
Mohamed Nasheed, a former political prisoner who will be sworn in Tuesday as the country’s first democratically elected president, named Sri Lanka and India as possible spots for a refuge, according to the BBC.

President Bush and President-elect Barack Obama sat down face to face for about an hour in the Oval Office today, their first meeting on the transfer of power.
Not even top aides were allowed into the meeting, in which the two men discussed national security, the economy, the auto industry, and the $700 billion bailout to help stabilize the economy, most which has not yet been allocated.

OTTAWA, CANADA — Stéphane Dion, the leader of the Liberal Party, announced Monday that he would step down, a moment that was a new low for a party that has dominated this country’s politics for much of its history and that is sometimes called “Canada’s national governing party” by supporters.
When Canadian voters last week returned to power the Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, they dealt a severe rebuke to Mr. Dion and his campaign platform, which had focused on climate change. The Liberal Party will hold …

Thaksin Shinawatra
BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) — Thailand’s Supreme Court is expected to rule Tuesday on whether deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra abused his powers while in office.
A guilty verdict in the corruption case could bring a sentence of up to 23 years in prison, but the twice-elected leader is unlikely to serve any jail time. He fled the country in August just as he was to appear in court.
The case stems from a Bangkok land deal. Thaksin’s wife, Pojama, is accused of using her husband’s political influence to buy undeveloped land …