24 February: President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan signed a decree on Thursday appointing 6 May 2012 as the the date of parliamentary elections in Armenia. (agencies)

Borrell underlined that the European Union will make every effort to support the peace process and to remain a committed partner to the Afghan people. "Of course, we will have to take into account the evolving situation, but disengagement is not an option.  We are clear on that: there is no alternative to a negotiated political settlement, through inclusive peace talks.

The United Nations Secretary-General has warned that the war in Sudan is “spiralling out of control” after a paramilitary force seized the besieged and famine-stricken Darfur city of el-Fasher. Speaking in Qatar during the opening of the World Summit for Social Development on 4th November, Antonio Guterres called for an immediate ceasefire in the two-year conflict that has become one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.