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.

On August 31st, little noticed outside naval analyst circles, China’s first purpose-built hospital ship left port on her inaugural mission... Peace Ark’s deployment marks the start of a new phase of Chinese soft power: medical assistance to win hearts and minds.

Indian Defense Minister A.K. Anthony was visiting South Korea last week at the invitation of his South Korean counterpart to boost defense cooperation between the two states. His visit comes two months after the Indian external affairs minister visited Seoul.