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Progress To Problem: China's High-Speed Trains

Workers clear the wreckage of a July 23 high-speed-train collision in Wenzhou in eastern China's Zhejiang province. The crash killed 40 people and raised questions about the safety of the country's high-speed-rail network, which the Chinese government has held up as an example of its technological prowess and with which it had hoped to attract overseas buyers. STR/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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STR/AFP/Getty Images

Progress To Problem: China's High-Speed Trains

Nearly two months after a collision on China's high-speed-rail network killed 40 people, the government is still investigating why it happened. But critics blame the haste with which the network was built, corruption and a disregard for human life.

World

Putin Says He Intends To Return To Presidency

This weekend, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin made his intentions for the future clear — with the announcement that he plans to return to his old job of president. He would swap jobs with Dmitri Medvedev. Presidential elections will be held in March, but the outcome is preordained — according to our guest Julia Ioffe. She is Moscow correspondent for The New Yorker and Foreign Policy. As she tells Michele Norris, a big change since this less-than-surprising news is Monday's resignation of the internationally respected finance minister.

U.S. Rebukes Pakistan For Ties To Afghan Extremists

Afghan security personnel carry a wounded colleague across a street in Kabul on Sept. 14, after Taliban fighters attacked the most heavily protected part of the Afghan capital. Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Thursday before a Senate panel that the Haqqani network of militants, supported by Pakistan, was responsible for this attack, among others. ShahMarai/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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ShahMarai/AFP/Getty Images

World

U.S. Rebukes Pakistan For Ties To Afghan Extremists

During a hearing Thursday on Capitol Hill, the top U.S. military officer, Adm. Mike Mullen, issued a stern warning to Pakistan over ties between that country's spy agency and groups attacking U.S. forces in Afghanistan. But it's unclear what the U.S. proposes to do in response.

The Curious Case Of The Vanishing Chinese City

Chinese officials announced on Aug. 22 that the large city of Chaohu in eastern China no longer existed. The move caught residents by surprise. Chaohu's museum, shown here, houses a Han dynasty tomb, and the city is known for its huge freshwater lake. Louisa Lim/NPR hide caption

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Louisa Lim/NPR

The Curious Case Of The Vanishing Chinese City

Chaohu, a city in eastern China with 4 million people, effectively vanished overnight by administrative order. Many former residents are uneasy with the new reality, and what it means for their future.

California Turns To China For New Bay Bridge

Catwalks hang over a section of the newly constructed eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in Oakland, Calif. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

National

California Turns To China For New Bay Bridge

American workers will assemble the more than $7 billion San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, but its massive cable, key sections of the iconic tower and deck are all made in China. Lower costs and Chinese expertise are the main reasons, but critics say the decision hurts the state, which is struggling with high unemployment.