Not so long ago students and graduates who hadn't found a job would spend their summer holidays searching for their souls in some far-flung corner of the globe, but it seems in cut-back Britain that is a luxury many feel they can no longer afford.

Despite its rich cultural resources, China has a relatively weak capacity of cultural transmission. Enhancing such capacity is a pragmatic approach to strengthen China's national cultural soft power. China should positively engage in international cultural exchange, and endeavor to build branches of the Confucius Institute all over the world.

Now the forum is a major platform for public diplomacy between the two nations. It will see nearly 200 leaders from the political, business, academic and media fields take part in a two-day discussion starting Monday in Tokyo. More than 800 students and journalists have applied for a seat to listen to the panel discussions.

Three groups from the 25th Infantry Division Band will travel to Russia and China Sept. 3-13 to perform at different events and represent the United States military.

India summoned China's ambassador Friday to protest against the refusal of a visa to an Indian general from the disputed Kashmir region, the latest spat between two Asian giants jostling for global influence and resources.

Germany largely has China to thank for its current economic upswing, given the Asian powerhouse's demand for German machine tools and other such products. But many German industrialists are asking themselves how long the symbiotic relationship can go on, given Beijing's ambition to become a high-tech economy itself.

Beijing Foreign Studies University recently announced that it has established a Public Diplomacy Research Center during a press conference in Beijing on Aug. 26. This is China's first institution to specialize in public diplomacy research and its establishment will promote China's public diplomacy research to provide intellectual support for the practice of the government's public diplomacy and a platform for the public to participate in public diplomacy.

A small storefront leads to an English-language school run by Disney...Most students seem happy and engaged. As they ask each other questions, their English sounds no less articulate than that of similarly-aged Americans. Thousands of Chinese children have signed up for Disney’s schools since the first one was opened in October 2008.