Since the formation of the Afghan National Unity Government in 2014, Kabul has used “Pashtun Diplomacy” as an instrument to bring the bilateral Afghanistan-Pakistan relationship back on track and make grounds for re-initiating normal official talks. The Afghan government also seeks the support of Pakistani Pashtun nationalist and religious parties as facilitators and confidence-builders in the Afghan peace process.

Saudi King Salman’s four-day state visit to Malaysia in late February culminated with an investment deal between Malaysia’s Petronas and Saudi Aramco, as well as key bilateral agreements on the cooperation and exchange of expertise in the fields of trade and economy; labour and human resources; science and higher education; and news exchange. The latter agreements underscore a shift from past engagements.

Russia worked to take down Hillary Clinton in 2016, but it may have been Cuba that delivered Donald Trump the White House. Cuba brought the world Trump? It’s hard to imagine Cuba had anything to do with the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Contemporary America seems so far away for anyone sitting on a Havana tourist rooftop overlooking renovations of its Capitol, listening to the street sounds of rhythmic music, or watching lumbering ’50s Chevys cruise down seaside boulevards.

Saudi Arabia aims to promote itself as an attractive touristic destination owing to its diverse landscape and archaeological treasure, currently little known owing to decade-old lack of state interest. In years to come, Riyadh plans to gradually introduce tourist visa to people of all nationalities, with the condition that the visitors will respect the local culture and traditions. Currently, eight million religious tourists visit the country to perform umrah and hajj.

Under a new foreign policy it adopted last year, Taiwan is seeking to woo more foreign students, including from India, to study in its institutes of higher learning. “The central focus of our New Southbound policy is to strengthen ties with Southeast Asia and India,” Rebecca Lan, Deputy Director General at the Department of International and Cross-Strait Education in Taiwan’s Ministry of Education, said during an interaction with a group of visiting journalists from the region here.

A Chinese Diplomat has recalled the vital role African countries played in ensuring that the People’s Republic of China regained its status at the United Nations, while calling on African journalists to help strengthen the ties between Africa and China. [...] “So China and African countries are forever friends; China has returned to the United Nations mainly due to the support from African friends."