Gordon Brown prepared the ground for a historic realignment in the "war on terror" yesterday by setting out a four-point plan for withdrawal of British troops from Iraq by the end of next year.

The outlines of a new strategy in Iraq and Afghanistan became clear yesterday as Gordon Brown visited Baghdad and Basra, while Barack Obama, the man he clearly expects to be the new occupant of the White House next January, arrived in Kabul at the start of a foreign tour that will bring him to Britain later in the week.

The tour

As a diplomatic about-turn, Washington's decision to send a US official to the talks in Geneva on Iran's nuclear programme could hardly be called earth shattering. The American representative, William Burns, is a career diplomat. He will neither participate actively in the talks (he will listen only) nor change policy (his brief is specifically to support the UN demands that Iran cease uranium enrichment as a precondition for any settlement).

Moving to avoid war in Iran in the final months of his administration, George Bush has approved the highest-level American diplomatic contact with its ideological enemy since the humiliating US embassy hostage crisis of 1979.

Britain is poised to approve China's application today to become a licensed ivory trader in spite of protests from environmental and animal welfare groups and nearly 150 MPs, and Labour MPs are pinning the blame on Gordon Brown.

The Government will be coming under pressure today to take a stand against a renewed international ivory trade by opposing the attempt by China to become a licensed ivory buyer.

Britain's Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, sought to toughen European Union sanctions against the Mugabe regime yesterday after a bruising diplomatic failure in New York, where China and Russia vetoed action on the Zimbabwe crisis from the UN Security Council.

China and Russia vetoed a UN Security Council resolution last night to impose sanctions on Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe and 13 of his henchmen.