A curated selection of public diplomacy-relevant news from a global cross-section of English-language media outlets, including independent, corporate-owned, and state-sponsored sources. The stories featured don't necessarily represent CPD's views nor have they been verified by CPD.

NGO launches global campaign on S. Korean ownership of Dokdo

A Seoul-based nongovernmental organization on Friday declared a massive global campaign to publicize South Korea's ownership of Dokdo, soon after the Japanese government approved revised education guidelines renewing its claim to the East Sea islets. VANK, or Voluntary Agency Network of Korea is a cyber diplomacy organization of 120,000 Korean and international members united under the purpose of properly introducing Korea to the world.

Tags: ngo, non-governmental organization, south korea, global campaign, advocacy, Voluntary Agency Network of Korea, cyber diplomacy, Digital Diplomacy & New Technology

‘Economic Diplomacy Crucial to Enhance Trade & Commerce Relation’

Newly appointed ambassadors to 12 different countries today discussed on adopting economic diplomacy to enhance Nepal’s trade and commerce relations. [...] Newly appointed ambassadors to Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Denmark, Israel, Japan, Myanmar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Sri Lanka and Qatar participated in the programme.

Tags: economic diplomacy, nepal, trade diplomacy, foreign investment, bilateral relations, economic cooperation

Hollywood Welcomes More Film Co-Productions with China

"Film co-productions can help foster greater cultural exchange and understanding between two different countries, such as China and the United States," Hollywoord film director Julia Pierrepont III said at her home in Sunland, Los Angeles.

Tags: united states, hollywood, china, soft power, cultural exchange, Cultural Diplomacy, film diplomacy, film festival

Vietnam, Japan Ink MOU on Tourism Promotion

Vietnam and Japan signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Tuesday to boost tourism cooperation between the two countries. [...] Under the MoU, both nations will work together to promote tourism initiatives, introducing attractive destinations, encouraging visitor exchanges, and sharing experience and information in areas of mutual concern.

Tags: vietnam, japan, mou, tourism, cultural exchange, visitor exchange, Cultural Diplomacy

State Department Cuts Risk Lives: Our View

Contrary to public perceptions, foreign aid represents a tiny fraction of the $4 trillion federal budget. According to the Congressional Research Service, in the past three decades, foreign aid has never accounted for more than 1.4 cents of every dollar spent by Washington. [...] "When you deploy hard power, you actually need more diplomats," says Charles Ries, a vice president at the RAND Corporation who served in diplomatic posts in Iraq and Greece.

Tags: U.S. State Department, Donald Trump, soft power, hard power, foreign aid, foreign aid budget, Opinion

Ethiopia: GERD Public Diplomacy Bearing Fruits - Deputy Premier

The ongoing public diplomacy efforts aimed to promote the positive outcomes of Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) are serving the intended purposes. [...] the deputy premier noted as the visits of public diplomacy delegations of Ethiopia helped clear previously held doubts. Various high ranking officials, resident ambassadors and members of the diaspora also paid visits to the project site, Demeke said, adding it drew favourable results regarding Dam's benefits.

Tags: GERD, ethiopia, business diplomacy, east africa, governance, grand ethiopia renaissance dam, egypt, sudan

‘There’s Still High Culture in America’: Why the National Symphony Orchestra Went to Moscow

The National Symphony Orchestra had just finished its first performance in Russia in nearly a quarter of a century. It arrived at a time when official relations between the United States and Russia are, to put it mildly, fraught. And it demonstrated that, at a time when political rhetoric is heated, music may be offering the real language of diplomacy, formalized and couched in centuries of tradition. Indeed, it wasn’t even clear whether people were clapping for what they had just heard or for what this visit represented.c

Tags: music diplomacy, Cultural Diplomacy, cultural exchange, cross-cultural exchange, national symphony orchestra, u.s., russia, art & music

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Spends His First Weeks Isolated from an Anxious Bureaucracy

Most of his interactions are with an insular circle of political aides who are new to the State Department. Many career diplomats say they still have not met him, and some have been instructed not to speak to him directly — or even make eye contact. On his first three foreign trips, Tillerson skipped visits with State Department employees and their families, embassy stops that were standard morale-boosters under other secretaries of state.

Tags: public image, secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, bureaucracy, U.S. State Department, u.s. department of state, u.s.

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