The public aspects, trade, culture, science, are all strong and Britain was one of Israel’s main supporters during last month’s Operation Pillar of Defense against Gaza. Last year, Britain changed its universal jurisdiction law, greatly limiting (though not totally ending) the possibility of senior Israeli officials being prosecuted in London.

Monocle may call it 'soft power', but there's nothing soft about the economic dividends that sharing culture can bring. Our own 10 Country British Council research shows that sharing English, education, and culture helps build trust for the UK worldwide, and that trust translates into people worldwide wanting to study in the UK, visit, and do business with us for mutual benefit.

The United Kingdom has been given the world’s top rating by the international magazine Monocle for its use of Soft Power... The magazine singles out everything from Harry Potter to the new James Bond movie to give Britain its top ranking. By contrast it says the United States has slipped from number one because of an introspective year caused by internal politics and the US elections.

The empire strikes back! Britain for the first time has toppled the US to emerge as the most powerful nation in the world when it comes to "soft power", according to a new UK survey. The survey found that Britain projects more positive influence around the world than any other nation.

It has taken well over sixty years, but after a traumatic divorce that unraveled an empire, India and Britain now seem to be having some kind of cultural honeymoon. The landmark exhibition “Mummy: The Inside Story,” which opens on Nov. 21 at the biggest museum in Mumbai, the CSMVS, is the result of a new collaboration between the British Museum, whose collection forms the display, and the CSMVS.

For the past five years, the Delfina Foundation has been facilitating cultural exchange with the greater Middle East and North Africa from its headquarters in London.

VisitBritain’s ‘GREAT Britain’ campaign also draws together major events, sporting achievements and commercial partners to promote the UK as a great country in which to live, study, invest and do business – as well as to visit. In my book, the GREAT Britain campaign is a real winner. So what can it teach those of us in branding and brand management about the principles of country branding?

Remember the UK's swinging Cool Britannia nation branding effort under Prime Minister Tony Blair? Now Mulberry is looking to revive pride in all things British with its just-launched Brilliant Britain Guide. Sub-titled "a guide to a truly great nation," it's a branded content marketing move to continue the celebratory year that 2012 represents for the United Kingdom, from the Queen's Diamond Jubilee to a successful Olympics and Paralympics