The Department of State is well on the way to meeting the President’s goals of increasing visitor visa processing capacity in China and Brazil by 40 percent in 2012...The State Department is committed to facilitating travel to the United States as part of broader “Jobs Diplomacy” goals. Visas for legitimate travelers are an important tool to help accelerate America’s economic revival.

On education, Patrick said, “Brazil has an initiative to fund the overseas science and technology instruction of 100,000 Brazilian students and we’d like to get as many here in Massachusetts as possible.”...During his last visit, Patrick was involved in launching an academic exchange program with Brazilian faculty and students involving several Massachusetts universities.

President Obama’s “100,000 Strong in the Americas” and Brazilian President Rousseff’s “Science without Borders” ...strengthen U.S. and Brazilian institutional partnerships, develop a workforce prepared for 21st century opportunities, and contribute to long-term economic growth for both countries.

razil and Turkey are two nations that espouse soft power as a means of winning influence on the global stage. Both countries seek friendly relations with their neighbors, even when neighbors behave badly on the international scene.

With Brazil's pride hurt by Washington's heavy handed public diplomacy there are new signs that Dilma could resist renewed White House pressure to buy Boeing during her other than state visit and opt for the Rafale or possibly save face and put the whole matter on hold.

The Obama Administration stresses shared commonalities—diversity of populations, cultural vibrancy, innovative societies, and presumably similar political values. The Administration has placed strong emphasis on a potpourri of low-cost soft power initiatives, dialogues, and partnerships. It proposes to support these initiatives.

“The cultural dynamism, the monetary stability, the process of social inclusion — all of that makes Brazilian culture a very valid pathway for the exercise of soft power, a way to make our society better known and better understood by others,” said Celso Lafer, a former foreign minister who is also an author and a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters.