Yes, English will to be the universal language far into the future. Even so, learning languages like Mandarin is imperative. It is a matter of respect for the people with whom we are increasingly engaged in the new global economy.

He presides over a one-party state that jails more journaliststhan any other on the planet, silences its critics ruthlessly and censors the Internet extensively. But China’s President Xi Jinping is not only wildly popular in his own country, he could be the most popular world leader globally.

Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao said on Tuesday that the holding of China-ASEAN Cultural Exchange Year-2014 was to enhance the spiritual link between peoples in the region, increase traditional friendship and push China-ASEAN relations to a higher stage.

A survey of African stakeholders carried out in 40 African countries by the OECD for the African Economic Outlook 2011 found that emerging partners such as China were ranked as having a comparative advantage for cooperation in infrastructure, innovation, and even health compared with Africa’s traditional bilateral and multilateral partners.

Pope Francis is more than a religious leader — he’s also a politician. And that’s led him to controversially deny an audience to the Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibet.  During his still young and highly ambitious papacy, Francis has made it clear he would like to broaden his church’s appeal.

Officials from Iran and China in a meeting in Beijing agreed to strengthen cooperation between the two Asian nations in the field of media and public diplomacy.

This week, as the Nobel Peace Prize was formally handed to a teenage Pakistani activist and an Indian child-rights campaigner, a Chinese group issued an alternate award to the retired Cuban leader, long regarded by Western counterparts as a tyrant and Cold War nemesis.

BRICS could emerge as a voice for an alternative world view and development model as there is a good scope to take the relationship forward, Rajiv Sikri, former secretary at India’s Ministry of External Affairs, told RT.