top 10 int'l news stories-2009

Obama's inauguration the top international news story in 2009
SEOUL, Dec. 18 (Yonhap) -- Yonhap News Agency on Friday selected Barack Obama's
presidential inauguration in January as this year's top international news story.
The following is a list of the 10 major overseas news events of 2009 as compiled
by Yonhap.

-- First African-American president of the United States
Barack Obama was inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States on Jan.
20, becoming the nation's first African-American president. He stressed dialogue
and negotiations in dealing with international and domestic issues. He vowed to
engage enemies as well as friends to resolve nuclear threats and to use power
prudently to regain U.S. global credibility, tarnished by the war in Iraq. He was
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize but he is still facing innumerable problems
including massive unemployment and the war in Afghanistan.

-- Worldwide spread of Influenza A
Since its outbreak in Mexico in April, the highly contagious Influenza (H1N1)
virus has spread throughout the world. Over 200 nations have reported Influenza A
infections and the death toll has reached nearly 10,000. The World Health
Organization (WHO) upgraded the pandemic alert level to phase six, the highest
level. The United States declared a national emergency and European countries
have reported mutations of the Influenza A virus.

-- Regime change in Japan
The center-left Democratic Party won a landslide victory in August, breaking more
than 50 years of virtually continuous rule by the Liberal Democratic Party. Yukio
Hatoyama came to power in September and promised to create a new diplomacy less
subservient to the U.S. and to improve relations with Japan's Asian neighbors.
Tokyo has been in conflict with Washington over moving the U.S. air base in
Okinawa.

-- Summit on climate change
Nearly 15,000 representatives from 195 nations worldwide opened the United
Nations climate talks in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Dec. 7 to discuss coming up with
a new treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol scheduled to expire in 2012. Advanced
and developing countries are trying to bridge the gap on green house gas emission
cuts and the size of subsidies for underdeveloped countries in the Copenhagen
climate conference.

-- Lisbon Treaty
The Treaty of Lisbon went into force on Dec. 1 after eight years of controversy
and debate over the integration of Europe. Herman Van Rompuy was elected as the
first president of the EU and Catherine Ashton was named high representative for
foreign affairs and security policy, new foreign affairs chief.

-- Acceleration of economic recovery
The global financial crisis triggered by a dramatic rise in mortgage
delinquencies in the United States has been successfully overcome through close
policy coordination among the world's leading economies. The recovery of the
global economy is expected to accelerate as countries worldwide have come up with
various measures to stimulate their economy. The International Monetary Fund
raised the world's 2010 growth forecast from 2.5 percent to 3.1 percent.

-- Mass protests in Uighur
During bloody clashes between Uighurs and majority Han Chinese in Xinjian, China,
in July, 197 were killed and 1,700 were injured. Uighur separatists have demanded
independence from China, resenting the Chinese government's restriction on their
religion and culture.

-- War in Afghanistan
The War in Afghanistan has been getting worse with no end in sight since the
United States started the war in 2001. President Barack Obama declared a new plan
in early December to dispatch 30,000 additional troops to the war-torn country
and begin to withdraw troops starting July 2011. Over 920 U.S. soldiers have been
killed in Afghanistan.

-- Death of Michael Jackson
On June 25, Michael Jackson, the "king of pop," died of heart failure at 50. He
was scheduled to have a comeback concert two weeks later. He was awarded 13
Grammy titles during his lifetime and his albums have sold 750 million copies.
Police announced that they would treat his death as a homicide.

-- Iran's presidential election
Incumbent Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won the presidential election
held on June 12 but opposition parties and reformists took to the street claiming
the election was rigged. The Iranian government cracked down on the rallies, with
media reports saying that at least 30 people were killed as a result.
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