Although the Sochi Games were by many measures a success, any global afterglow quickly dimmed a few weeks later when Russia annexed more Black Sea property: the Crimea in neighboring Ukraine.

To those pulling out their tin foil hats and claiming that Sony managed to pull one over on the planet by manufacturing this whole scandal – just remember that the thing about soft power is that you can’t always control how it goes down.

While Japanese cool hunters might lament the lack of pop cultural exports in recent years — all the more conspicuous when compared to K-Pop’s successful forays westward — kawaii (cute) culture has quietly permeated into global consciousness with all the effortless grace of singer Kyary Pamyu Pamyu farting out a rainbow.

China and Egypt on Wednesday pledged to promote bilateral cooperation on big construction projects during the first China visit by President Abdel-Fattah Sisi. The premier also called for closer cultural exchanges between the two countries.

As the U.S. and Cuba begin to normalize relations for the first time in half a century, some Americans are already roaming the streets of Old Havana, attending dance exhibitions and talks on architecture as they take part in scripted cultural tours that can cost more than a decent used car back home.

Like the Chinese title 'Silk Road and the Great Wall,' the Silk Road' symbolizes the country's soft power, while the Great Wall represents the country's hard power. National prosperity must be achieved on the basis of supreme integration of hard and soft power.

As the numbers have grown, so too has the concern of Western academics who believe the project presents a serious threat to freedom of thought and speech in education.