Group of Eight member states have agreed on a programme worth more than €44bn to combat the spread of HIV/Aids in Africa, Germany’s development minister said today.

US President George Bush is to meet new French president Nicolas Sarkozy today on the sidelines of the G8 summit in Germany.

Proponents of debt relief for Africa were harsh in their assessment today of nearly two-year-old promises by the G8.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said G8 leaders in Germany agreed today to call for "substantial cuts" to greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming, hailing it as a big success on climate change.

German chancellor Angela Merkel today said the Group of Eight had agreed on a plan calling for "substantial cuts" to greenhouse gas emissions.

Protesters in speedboats today tried to breach a security cordon at the G8 Summit in Germany.

The Group of Eight world leaders start their first day of joint talks in Germany today with tough issues like climate change and possible independence for Serbia’s Kosovo province in front of them.

FARMERS have had to cope with a bewildering range of bureaucratic and economic buzz words for decades.

US President George Bush stood his ground on greenhouse gas emissions as he went into a meeting today with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Leaders of the Group of Eight industrialised nations are gathering in Germany today for their annual summit.

The leaders of the G8 industrialised nations were heading to Germany today for the group's annual summit.

HUNDREDS of protesters clashed with police yesterday ahead of this week’s Group of Eight meeting, as anti-globalisation activists challenged attempts by security officials to keep them away from the summit town of Heiligendamm.

Protests against this week’s Group of Eight meeting continued for a third day in Rostock, Germany, as anti-globalization activists mounted a legal challenge against a ban on demonstrations outside the summit town of Heiligendamm.

Russian president Vladimir Putin warned today that US plans to build a missile defence system in Eastern Europe would force Moscow to target its weapons against sites in Europe.

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned in an interview published today that US plans to build a missile defence system in Eastern Europe would force Moscow to target its weapons against sites in Europe.

Hundreds of masked protesters hurled stones and bottles at police during a demonstration today by tens of thousands of people against the upcoming Group of Eight summit in Germany.

Protesters clashed with riot police today as tens of thousands of demonstrators marched through the German city of Rostock to protest the upcoming Group of Eight summit.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has pledged to increase Germany’s aid contribution to poorer countries, including Africa, by €750m annually until 2011, ahead of next week’s Group of Eight summit.

US President George Bush today urged Congress to authorise an additional €22bn to fight Aids in Africa over five years, double the current US commitment.

The foreign ministers of Afghanistan and Pakistan agreed today to increase cooperation after meeting with Group of Eight counterparts concerned that acrimony between the two neighbours is helping the Taliban inflict mounting losses on NATO troops and Afghan civilians.

Police today shut off public access to the Baltic Sea resort of Heiligendamm, the venue for next week’s Group of Eight summit in Germany.

Disturbances broke out in Hamburg today after a march protesting at next week’s G8 summit, police said.

The US is preparing to reject new targets on climate change at a G8 summit next month, dashing German and British hopes of brokering a new global pact on reducing carbon emissions, according to a document leaked by environmental campaigners.

German authorities are using scent tracking to keep tabs on possibly violent protesters against next month’s Group of Eight summit – a tactic that is drawing comparisons with the methods of former East Germany’s secret police.

G8 leader Germany is pledging to make Africa a central point of next month’s summit and is calling for more aid, further debt relief and improved financial oversight.

Thousands of people staged spontaneous demonstrations in major German cities, police said today, after nationwide raids against anti-globalization activists suspected of plotting to disrupt next month’s Group of Eight summit.

Diplomats from six countries held talks in Berlin today on ways to get Iran to halt its disputed uranium enrichment programme.