Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a joint news conference with Germany's chancellor following their meeting at the Kremlin, in Moscow, on Tuesday. That day the Kremlin said it pulled back some Russian troops but the U.S. and NATO have rejected the claim. Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
diplomacy
Thursday
Tuesday
Russian President Vladimir Putin talks during a press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban after their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow on Tuesday. Yuri Kochetkov/POOL/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Thursday
A train is ready on the station during the handover ceremony of the high-speed rail project in Vientiane, Laos, connecting the city with Kunming, China, on Dec. 3, 2021. Phoonsab Thevongsa/Reuters hide caption
With U.S. focused on defense, China's trade and infrastructure sweep Southeast Asia
Wednesday
Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) and President Biden shake hands during their meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, June 16, 2021. Russia, the United States and its NATO allies are meeting this week for negotiations focused on Moscow's demand for Western security guarantees and Western concerns about a recent buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool, AP hide caption
Wednesday
Qin Gang fields questions during a news conference around the Six-Party Talks on North Korea's nuclear program in Beijing in 2005. He served as spokesperson for the Chinese delegation. China Photos/Getty Images hide caption
China's New U.S. Ambassador Pioneered The Foreign Ministry's Brash Tone
Monday
In this 2011 photo, Joe Biden, then vice president, shakes hands with Vladimir Putin, then Russia's prime minister, in Moscow. President Biden will hold a summit with Putin this week in Geneva, a face-to-face meeting between the two leaders that comes amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Russia. Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP hide caption
Tuesday
A general view of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul in 2013. The State Department announced Tuesday "the departure from U.S. Embassy Kabul of U.S. government employees whose functions can be performed elsewhere." Ahmad Nazar/AP hide caption
Thursday
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga speaks to media in Tokyo this month. Suga will take part in a Friday summit meeting with President Biden, the first foreign leader to meet the president face to face. Eugene Hoshiko, Pool/AP hide caption
China To Loom Large At Biden's Summit With Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga
Saturday
Chinese and U.S. table tennis players train together in April 1971 in Beijing. April 10 marks the 50th anniversary of what became known as pingpong diplomacy between the two nations. AFP via Getty Images hide caption
50 Years Later, The Legacy Of U.S.-China 'Pingpong Diplomacy' Faces Challenges
Tuesday
Antony Blinken listens last week during his confirmation hearing to be secretary of state before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Alex Edelman/AFP/Bloomberg via Getty Images hide caption
Tuesday
President-elect Joe Biden listens as his secretary of state nominee, Antony Blinken, speaks in Wilmington, Del., in November. Blinken told senators at his confirmation hearing Tuesday, "Humility and confidence should be the flip sides of America's leadership coin." Carolyn Kaster/AP hide caption
Friday
Technicians work inside of a uranium conversion facility producing unit in 2005 outside the city of Isfahan, Iran. After the 2015 Iran nuclear deal put limits on the program, Iran's government has been increasing uranium enrichment since the United States pulled out of deal. Getty Images hide caption
Thursday
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discusses the counting of votes in the U.S. election last month at the State Department. Jacquelyn Martin/AP hide caption
Tuesday
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko greet a group of World War II veterans in the Russian village of Khoroshevo on June 30. Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP hide caption
Wednesday
The flags of the United Arab Emirates and Israel are raised on the Peace Bridge in Netanya, Israel. The UAE flag was displayed to celebrate last week's announcement that the two countries have agreed to establish diplomatic relations. Ariel Schalit/AP hide caption