Chinese President Xi Jinping's wife has received increasing attention for not only her attire, but also her good-will activities during the presidential visit to four nations, a soft-toned diplomatic gesture to boost China's image. Upon arrival in Moscow last week, Peng Liyuan, in an elegant overcoat, descended the plane arm in arm with President Xi. A photo of her appearance has been widely circulated on the Internet and published in major newspapers.

Across Africa, the growing presence of Chinese investments in economy and infrastructure is evident. In the last ten years, various state-owned firms, even a number of private companies, have become major investors in Africa with China being the single largest bilateral source of annual foreign investment in Africa. Indeed Chinese investment permeates almost every sector of Africa’s economy. As of mid-2012, China’s Ministry of Commerce estimated that cumulated foreign direct investment in Africa had exceeded $14.7 billion.

Chinese President Xi Jinping's wife has received increasing attention for not only her attire, but also her good-will activities during the presidential visit to four nations, a soft-toned diplomatic gesture to boost China's image. Upon arrival in Moscow last week, Peng Liyuan, in an elegant overcoat, descended the plane arm in arm with President Xi. A photo of her appearance has been widely circulated on the Internet and published in major newspapers.

This past week the Washington Post ran a story about the troubles of Russian lawmaker Dimitri Gudkov, assailed by his government for having the temerity to visit the U.S. and address U.S.-Russian relations on Capitol Hill. As the short article explained Gudkov was in the U.S.

Chinese fashionistas and regular folk have been cooing for days over the sky-blue scarf, the handsome handbag and the classic updo of Peng Liyuan, the wife of President Xi Jinping of China, who seemed to shatter a tradition when she stepped out of an Air China plane in Moscow last Friday with her husband, smiling and waving, her outfit matching his. The tradition was that the wives of Communist Party leaders hung about dowdily in the background.

Peng Liyuan's debut on the international stage as China's first lady has put her into the international limelight. Along with her husband, Chinese President Xi Jinping, she has just paid a highly successful state visit to Russia.. China needs a high-profile staging of its new top leader and his family to be presented to the world, to empower its state and public diplomacy.

Peng Liyuan, China’s new First Lady, is glamourous, fashionable and one of her nation’s best-known singers, a startling contrast to her dour-looking predecessors. As she accompanies her husband, President Xi Jinping, on his first trip abroad as China’s leader, Peng appears ready to carve out a new role for herself.