Michele Kelemen

President Obama gave one of his final news conferences as president on Friday. Here, NPR reporters provide context on five different Obama quotes.

Donald Trump will take the oath of office five weeks from Friday. He has almost completely filled out his Cabinet and White House staff. His latest pick, David Friedman, is grabbing headlines.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power says "Aleppo will join the ranks of those events in world history that define modern evil." Russia accuses the U.S. of spreading "fake news."

Exxon Mobil's Rex Tillerson will likely have to divest from his vast holdings in the energy giant to become secretary of state. But even that may not address concerns about conflicts of interest.

In a statement early Tuesday morning, President-elect Donald Trump announced that ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson is his choice to become secretary of state, the country's top diplomat.

Rex Tillerson, a 64-year-old oil executive, has no government experience. His longtime ties to Russia, including President Vladimir Putin, are already drawing scrutiny from critics.

There are fears of a genocide in South Sudan, a country just five years old. Activists say the world is ignoring the crisis as the United Nations and the U.S. go through leadership transitions.

Cubans who have benefited from the Obama administration's opening to the communist island are nervous about what lies ahead with the incoming Trump administration.

United Nations human rights investigators say the stage is set for a Rwanda-like genocide in the world's newest nation, South Sudan.

President Obama reached out to Cuba mostly through executive orders. But those can easily be undone by Donald Trump, who is much more critical of the Cuban leadership.

President Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro achieved what many thought impossible — a warming of relations between the U.S. and Cuba. What role did Fidel Castro play in that process?

The Obama administration has little time left to shore up the Iran nuclear deal, a key part of the president's legacy at risk with the incoming Trump administration. Critics of the deal are watching.

President-elect Donald Trump named South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley his ambassador to the United Nations. The two-term governor has little foreign policy experience.

United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson reflects on his time in office and shares his concerns about the incoming Trump administration and the anti-globalism movement elsewhere.

Trump's first meeting with a foreign leader, Japan's Shinzo Abe, comes during a week when he's been taking calls from leaders around the world — but hasn't asked for input from the State Department.

As diplomats await news of their new boss, all eyes are on Rudy Giuliani, a longtime Trump friend with little foreign policy experience. Former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton is also in the running.

If Trump keeps his promise to do away with the Iran deal, it won't be the first time a Republican administration drops an arms deal inked by Democrats. Something similar happened under George W. Bush.

The election of Donald Trump is expected to bring a major change to U.S.-Russian relations, since the president-elect says he wants a less confrontational approach to Moscow.

Being the top U.S. diplomat means a lot of global travel — roughly a million miles and 100 countries these days. Yet Kerry is the first to see Antarctica and all seven continents.

The United Nations Security Council gets an update on Yemen Monday. The U.S. is hoping for a diplomatic solution after backing a Saudi-led air campaign that has devastated the country's infrastructure and left thousands dead.