AP - Democrat Barack Obama pledged Wednesday to create millions of union jobs in alternative energy and to end tax breaks for companies that move jobs overseas, using tough new populist language to persuade voters that he, not rival John McCain, is best positioned to lift the limping U.S. economy.

AFP - Up to 280 hectares (692 acres) of forests have been burnt or are alight in Georgia after its conflict with Russia, the WWF said Wednesday, warning that key conservation areas were under threat.

AP - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her Polish counterpart signed a deal Wednesday to build a U.S. missile defense base in Poland, an agreement that prompted an infuriated Russia to warn of a possible attack against the former Soviet satellite.

AFP - World oil prices rose in Asian trade Wednesday on fresh supply concerns after key producer Venezuela indicated it could ask OPEC to cut output, dealers said.

AFP - Animal rights activists vowed no let-up in their campaign to stop Japan's whaling as reports Tuesday said Tokyo was seeking further arrests overseas of people who obstructed a hunt.

AP - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plans Wednesday to sign a deal to build a U.S. missile defense base on Polish soil, an agreement that has already prompted an infuriated Russia to threaten its former Soviet satellite.

AP - President Bush says he sees "hopeful signs of progress" in New Orleans three years after Hurricane Katrina's devastation, while acknowledging the city is still struggling to recover.

AP - Support for climate-change proposals may be growing among investors in big U.S. companies.

AP - A space-age version of the rusty springs under old pickup trucks will help NASA fix the most pressing technical problem with its high-tech new rocket to send astronauts back to the moon.