Topic: Poland

World's most handsome man? Bruno!

Bruno Kettels – or 'Mr. Bolivia' – edged out the competition in the two-week-long 'Mr. International 2009' contest in Taiwan this weekend, extending Latin America's beauty pageant dominance across both genders.

Germany: To protect tradition, no shopping on Advent Sundays

Germany's highest court ruled that stores must stay closed on Advent Sundays so Germans can spend those days, as many traditionally do, going on walks and sitting for coffee and cake.

Opinion: In Afghanistan, NATO is fighting for its life

What has happened to the great alliance of democracies that won the cold war? NATO has yet to fully mobilize and exhibits no sense of urgency concerning the extremist threat in Afghanistan.

US, Poland status of forces pact deepens military cooperation

The US, Poland status of forces pact signed Friday allows deployment of a missile defense system to go forward. An earlier proposal for a more robust missile system had drawn the ire of Russia.

Text of Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech

Written speech delivered by President Barack Obama when accepting the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo on Thursday.

John Demjanjuk, alleged Nazi death camp guard, goes on trial in Germany

John Demjanjuk, who prosecutors alleged worked as a Nazi guard at the Sobibor death camp, went on trial in Germany Monday. His is likely the last high profile case over WWII war crimes.

Tony Blair loses EU presidency bid, Belgium's Van Rompuy wins job

Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair missed his chance to be the first EU president, with members selection the more low-key Belgium Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy for the job.

Safe Passage

Opinion: World leaders recall the fall of the Berlin Wall

Mikhail Gorbachev, Margaret Thatcher, George H.W. Bush, and Francois Mitterrand give their account of 1989.

Fall of the Berlin Wall: Timeline

A history of the events that caused the Berlin Wall to fall on November 9, 1989.

When the Berlin Wall came down

Twenty years later, the rest of the world is a different place because of that event.

The Monitor's View: The Berlin wall and violent Islamic jihad

A persistent, united effort by governments and individuals brought down the Berlin wall. The same strategy can crack the wall of jihadist ideology.

Agreement on climate change looks unlikely ahead of Copenhagen

A European Union agreement last week was short on specifics. US commitments on reductions may not be forthcoming, making Chinese commitments also unlikely.

Iran: A refuge for World War II's refugees

Exiled Poles were sent to Persia, as one woman discovers in tracing her grandmother's journey to America.

Missile shield shift opens common ground for Russia and US

Strategists say that President Barack Obama's decision to scrap a controversial missile shield for Eastern Europe has mollified Russia, and could open the door for cooperation against common nuclear threats.

Becoming Americans

Selections from 85 immigrants tell what it means to become an American.

In Prague, Biden shops toned-down missile shield to Czechs, Poles

US Vice President Joe Biden toured Eastern Europe this week with a new missile-defense plan designed to reassure the Czech Republic and Poland that they aren't being forgotten as relations warm with Moscow.

Opinion: Biden's task in eastern Europe: Reassurance

After the decision to cancel missile defense plans in Poland and the Czech Republic, the US needs to do more than damage control to soothe ties there.

The Zookeeper's Wife

Films that presaged the wall's fall

On the 20th anniversary, film festival honors Eastern bloc movies made in the decade before the Berlin Wall's demise.

Russia on Nobel Peace Prize: Obama thawing 'second cold war'

Russians are surprised, but largely welcoming of Obama's prize.

Opinion: The Berlin Wall: what really made it fall

Extraordinary civil courage by the people of Leipzig on Oct. 9 first dissolved a crucial mental wall.

Opinion: Albright: Iran nuclear shift shows Obama's policy is working

An interview with the former US secretary of State, in which she discusses Iran, Afghanistan, and the political statements her choice of jewelry makes.