In the Lisbon Summit (2010), NATO decided to use Soft Power (the term which belongs to Joseph Samuel Nye – Harvard University Professor) for stabilisation of the Western Balkan Countries in the new millenium because it is not only cheaper and effective, but also this strategy brings long-range stability to the region and provides prosperity and more democratic rights to these nations.

Many Europeans realize that their futures are being increasingly dictated by Germany and France...There is grumbling across the continent and an anti-German tone to street protests in Greece..."This crisis is profoundly transforming European integration"

The international ramifications for China's slowly rebuilding reputation would be too much to bear even for the relatively untouchable Communist Party... On the one hand, Europeans are slowly becoming more reliant on Chinese bail-out money – do not bite the hand that feeds you. On the other, Europe must maintain its soft-power credit, even if only on the surface.

Chinese Internet users were split on how to interpret the sudden appearance of IMF managing director Christine Lagarde on Sina Weibo, the country’s dominant Twitter-esque microblogging service. Others...choosing instead to welcome Ms. Lagarde with warnings not to use the service to solicit China’s help in solving the financial mess in Europe.

China’s state-owned broadcaster has launched an aggressive international push to extend the country’s influence, opening a new headquarters in Washington that will broadcast English-language programming from the heart of the US capital. CCTV has also built a studio facility in Nairobi...and plans to open a broadcasting centre in Europe.

EEAS is actually a major innovation in the field of diplomacy as the first supranational diplomatic service of its kind...In this sense, rather than being an offshoot of just one EU institution, the EEAS is set to become the embodiment of common EU foreign policy...

On 1 December 2010, the European Union (EU) inconspicuously launched the new European External Action Service (EEAS). Much of the world was unaware that anything had changed. But despite its quiet beginnings, the EEAS is actually a major innovation in the field of diplomacy as the first supranational diplomatic service of its kind. To be sure, it was not created from scratch. It builds upon the infrastructure of the 136 Commission delegations around the world that were already in place.

APDS Blogger: Mona El Hamdani