Barack Obama, the US president will be holding a key meeting Wednesday April 1 with Dimitry Medvedev, his Russian counterpart.
Both sides have indicated they are ready to start rebuilding US-Russian relations.
But suspicion remains, and Russia has made no secret of its plans to beef up its own military power, in the wake of Nato’s expansion towards the east.
Neave Barker reports from Moscow.
Washington has asked Hamid Karzai, the president of Afghanistan, to push for reconciliation efforts that could include holding talks with the Taliban. But there are those who oppose such a move.
Al Jazeera’s James Bayes speaks to Ismail Khan, a minister in Karzai’s cabinet and one of Afghanistan’s most influential figures, who is seeking an alternative approach which runs in contrast to US demands.
The US capital is suffering an epidemic of HIV and AIDS.
The city’s health department says three per cent of residents are living with AIDS, or HIV, a 22 per cent increase since 2006.
It means infections are spreading faster in Washington than in some cities in Africa.
Al Jazeera’s Monica Villamizar reports from Washington.
On Monday, Gordon Brown, the British prime minister, made his first visit to the United States since Barack Obama became president.
Brown says he will press Obama on the need for global action on the world economic crisis, ahead of next month’s G20 meeting in London.
Mark Seddon reports.