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.

France Inks $3 Billion Deal with Saudis to Arm Lebanon

France and Saudi Arabia signed an agreement on Tuesday for Paris to provide the Lebanese army with $3 billion worth of weapons paid for by Riyadh, the French foreign minister said.

Tags: lebanon, france, saudi arabia, military aid, aid diplomacy

The Largest Showcase of Irish Food Wows Eva Longoria at Web Summit

Over 400 producers and chefs from all over the country have gathered for the Food Summit which is being run with Good Food Ireland at this year’s conference.  “What we are doing at the Food Summit is not just important for each individual business, but for the reputation of the whole country as a food island.”

Tags: gastrodiplomacy, celebrity diplomacy, Cultural Diplomacy, ireland

Australia and the AIIB: A Lost Opportunity

The debate about whether Australia should join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has gone beyond the realm of economic development and investment to hit at the core of Australia's apparent security dilemma.

Tags: australia, china, international development, foreign investment, non state pd

Rule of Law Will Boost Soft Power

As China grapples with the question of how it can strengthen the rule of law, it might be interesting to consider the rule of law's soft power dividends.  Rule of law refers to a condition where law prevails in the governance of a country and where no one is above the law.

Tags: rule of law, china, soft power, global opinion

China's Foreign-Language Oscars Pick, 'Nightingale,' a Surprise Move

For years, mainland China has thrown the big-budget movies of its most-heralded directors into the Oscars' foreign-language film race. (...) This season, China is trying something different — very different. It has selected a film directed by a Frenchman as its foreign-language candidate. 

Tags: oscars, film, china, united states, Cultural Diplomacy, soft power

SA’s Soft Power at Work in Zimbabwe Judgment

The judgment will be analysed and cited extensively. It will be held up as a model for courts in other countries to follow when interpreting their own international law commitments. Through such citation and examination, the court’s influence will be spread and its values promoted, demonstrating the persuasive nature of soft power and of how we might realise Mandela’s ideal of making human rights the light that guides our foreign affairs.

Tags: south africa, soft power, zimbabwe, human rights, mandela, International Criminal Court Act

A new Type of Great Power Dialogue?

U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping are preparing for their most important series of meetings since the Sunnylands summit in June 2013 in California. (...) Since many of the differences will not disappear any time soon, China and the United States should focus more on expanding cooperation; when cooperation expands, it helps the two to manage and control their differences. 

Tags: china, apec, united states, obama, xi jinping, cyber-security, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank

Behind the Surge of Unaccompanied Child Migrants to the US

Officials estimate more than 57,000 unaccompanied children have been detained after entering the US so far this year, a one hundred percent increase from 2013. This led US President Barack Obama, among others, to label this flow of under-aged immigrants a “humanitarian crisis.” 

Tags: central america, united states, immigrants, unaccompanied minors, us central-america relations, humanitarian crisis, human rights

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