Despite having several decades of history, New China's public diplomacy still lags behind many other countries, affecting its international image and soft power, senior diplomats said at a forum at the weekend.

China has postponed a senior official's visit to Japan amid a diplomatic row over the arrest of a Chinese skipper after a collision in disputed waters.

China is on course to build a record number of cinemas this year in a burst of movie infrastructure development that is partly aimed at rivalling the "soft power" of Hollywood. Following the state-backed expansion of China's TV and newspaper industries since 2009, the government is promoting a major push of film production and distribution.

Vietnam has "huge potential" for further collaboration with Africa on agriculture as part of its policy towards the continent.

The overseas expansion of Chinese companies not only is a commercial activity, but also bears the responsibility of expanding China's public diplomacy. In this regard, Chinese enterprises should not only look for short-term profits, but also bear more corporate social responsibility.

"Having public diplomacy is like playing a football match. Playing a game is good even when you don't care about winning or losing. One gets the chance to present his side and allow others to feel his existence. But one will definitely lose if he doesn't play at all," said Fu Ying, the vice foreign minister.

The populace is becoming an extra variable to a country's diplomacy. Decades ago, diplomacy was largely a mysterious game played by politicians within certain inner circles. However, with the rise of mass media, especially the Internet, diplomacy is not just the jurisdiction of diplomats anymore.

China's Communist Party finds itself in a bind. Although it still views cinema as an ideological tool and maintains a tight leash on local productions, it also wants the domestic film industry to develop into a global commercial player.