Washington  - The United States will stay "on the offensive" against terrorist strongholds in Afghanistan and elsewhere, President Barack Obama said Tuesday, offering a glimpse into the administration's review of its policy in the region.

During a meeting with Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, Obama said the US needed a "more comprehensive strategy, a more focused strategy, a more disciplined strategy" to combat terrorism over the coming years.

Washington  - US authorities need broad new emergency powers to take over financial firms whose collapse could threaten the wider economy, the country's top economic officials warned Tuesday in the wake of the controversial bail-out of insurance giant American International Group Inc (AIG).

Facing a groundswell of public anger over Wall Street and AIG's role in the financial crisis, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke defended their rescue of AIG before lawmakers as critical to the stability of the US economy.

Washington - US officials on Tuesday rejected calls from China and Russia for the international community to shift towards a global reserve currency that could replace the dollar.

At a congressional hearing in Washington, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said they opposed the idea that was floated by China's central bank head earlier Tuesday.

Washington - The crew of the International Space Station and space shuttle Discovery received a phone call from US President Barack Obama on Tuesday.

Obama made the call from the White House along with a group of school children and members of Congress, whom he described as just as excited as the kids to speak with astronauts. He said he was proud of the US astronauts, but also of the international cooperation in the building and operation of the space station.

Washington - The United States Monday said it was giving a huge boost to its cooperation with Mexican law enforcement officials to help bring down the illicit drug trade and was even doubling and quadrupling its anti-drug efforts on the border.

The efforts come as Mexico last week beefed up its military presence to 10,000 armed troops in the violence-plagued border city of Juarez.

"The Department of Justice stands ready to take the fight to the Mexican drug cartels," vowed Deputy Attorney General David Ogden at the briefing to reporters at the White House.

New York  - Carnival Corp, the world's largest cruise-line operator, Tuesday reported first-quarter profits after cutting costs and offering heavy discounts.

The Miami-based Carnival said its net income was 260 million dollars, up from 236 million dollars a year earlier. Sales dropped 9.1 per cent to 2.86 billion dollars in the three months ending February 28.

"Considering the economic climate, achieving higher quarterly net income is quite remarkable," Carnival CEO Micky Arison said in a statement.