“Bienvenue en France, la Startup Republique!” For the past 18 months or so, since LaFrenchTech began to make noise abroad, I began hearing talk of the Startup Republique. [...] Most attempts at finding patriotism in France have been dismissed as personal branding; however, when BPIFrance’s Romain Serman published “France, the new Startup Factory” last month, it garnered enough positive momentum that I had to sit down and have a chat with Romain. 

Tags: france, tech startup, startup république, nation branding, romain serment, bpifrance, united states, israel

The foreign ministers of South Korea and Japan on Monday achieved an agreement meant to resolve a decades-long impasse over Korean women forced into Japanese military-run brothels during World War II. [...] The deal, which included an apology from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and an $8.3 million aid fund from Tokyo for the elderly former sex slaves, could reverse decades of animosity and mistrust between the thriving democracies, trade partners and staunch U.S. allies.

Tags: south korea, japan, comfort women, apology diplomacy, government pd, international aid

It must be noted that since US Ambassador Glyn Davies took up the position, the use of social media as a means of public diplomacy has been greatly reduced — a clear break from his predecessor. Davies prefers to use conventional public diplomacy that involves meeting and talking with stakeholders. 

Tags: thailand, united states, us-thai relations, government pd, young southeast asia leaders’ initiative, glen davies

By building ever larger institutions, non-profits, regional religious federations, and promoting cooperation between the democracies of the West, you can (and you must) model a new form of Muslim unity, one which enables Muslims to pool their resources without setting them at odds with each other, or holding one another hostage to mutually exclusive claims. That can be your answer, your way forward, your way of empowering your community, and your country.

Tags: islam, muslim, western islam, faith diplomacy, countering violent extremism, people to people diplomacy, civil society

“Among the decisions taken was that ties between the two countries and people-to-people contacts would be strengthened so that the atmosphere can be created in which the peace process can move forward.” [...] The two leaders called for ‘innovative diplomacy’ to resolve the thorny issues between their countries, said a Prime Minister House official, who remained with Nawaz throughout Friday. 

Tags: narendra modi, people-to-people diplomacy, nawaz sharif, pakistan, india

Hyseni stated that this project will involve more young people from Albania and Kosovo, who have the potential to promote their countries through implementation of their creative ideas. Albanian Deputy Foreign Minister further said that this memorandum will promote network of “digital diplomats” and will also assist in the implementation of public and cultural diplomacy.

Tags: albania, kosovo, digital diplomacy, norway, Cultural Diplomacy, government pd

The Dodgers arrived in Cuba Tuesday on a goodwill mission for the first time in 16 years, inspiring hope that Cuban-American relations are headed for better. [...] If Cuban-American relations eventually allow Cubans to freely leave, it wouldn’t initially have a huge impact on the MLB, says Joe Kehoskie, the first non-Cuban, American baseball agent to sign Cuban defectors. 

Tags: Dodgers, cuba, baseball diplomacy, joe kehoskie, government pd

The announcement of a Turkish military base in Qatar was accompanied by the powerful symbolism of a  friendly match played by the national soccer teams of  Turkey and Qatar in Doha. The match, which the Turks won 2-1, provided a sports diplomacy momentum to the ongoing political and security rapprochement between the two countries, while at the same time confirming Turkey’s support for Qatar[.] 

Tags: turkey-qatar relations, sports diplomacy, doha, government pd