After a decade, in the 2000s, in which China aggressively pursued warmer relations with many Southeast Asian nations, using a combination of diplomacy, aid, and soft power to woo its neighbors, the past five years have seen a significant chill in China-Southeast Asia relations. 

Sino-Kenya cooperation in education, arts and culture has blossomed as evidenced by establishment of four Confucius institutes in the country.  The Counselor of Chinese Embassy to Kenya Yao Ming said cultural diplomacy is a critical component of a comprehensive cooperative partnership endorsed by President Xi Jinping and his Kenyan counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta in 2013. “People to people exchanges have thrived due to establishment of Confucius Institutes in four Kenyan Universities. Understanding Chinese language and culture is an eye opener to Kenyan youth,” Yao remarked.

The Asia Pacific is the most dynamic digital landscape in the world, home to the fastest adopters of new technologies and the largest concentration of mobile and social media users. An escalation in online activism, changing cyber dynamics, developments in digital diplomacy and the exploitation of big data are shaping the region's engagement with the world.

Painting a sanguine outlook for China’s endeavors to enhance soft power, Kim Heung-kyu, political science professor at Ajou University, said that China might be “actively” seeking to utilize its soft power diplomacy including public diplomacy as a tool to expand its influence well beyond East Asia.

India’s cultural capital is enough and more to not let Chinese Confucius institutes win the soft-power game. But, can [India] use it in the proper manner?

The original American dream appealed to adult men and women willing to commit themselves to a risky path of hard work, sacrifice, and hope for a better future. The new dream panders to adolescents and post-adolescents who are fearful of growing up. This is not an accurate or full picture of American life, and neither is it appealing to many people whom America needs on its side.

China with a growing economy and military power has started to become a serious threat for United States of America, as there are several reports indicating that Beijing is involved in covert operations against White House through a soft power strategy that Washington never thought would be used against it to such good effect.

What we are actually seeing is Diplomacy 2.0 on the Korean peninsula: a nuanced, three-dimensional foreign policy strategy designed to alter Chinese strategic thinking, engage U.S. interests, and ultimately build Northeast Asian cooperation where there was little in the past.