Rob Gravina just wants to grow the sport he loves. For that reason, and that reason alone, the 47-year-old engineer for IBM organized a 148-person strong travelling party from Great Britain to come to the tri-state area for a week of hockey and cultural exchange.

Last Saturday night, in a gala featuring 62 bands and singers, the Mandarin pop extravaganza "Chinese Music Chart Awards," often dubbed China's Grammys, took place - in slightly toned down form? in Taiwan's packed 15,000-seat Taipei Arena...The awards, announced unilaterally by China, were opposed by Taiwan's anti-unification opposition. They appear to be the latest in an unflagging string of stratagems by Beijing to waft soft-power blandishments across the 160-km Taiwan Strait.

Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf said on Tuesday that present Government of Pakistan People’s Party is determined to take every possible step to promote and project the culture of Pakistan not only at home but also abroad because we understand that culture is a tool which can be used for creating a soft image of the nation.

Federal Minister for National Heritage and Integration Samina Khalid Ghurki has stressed for the exchange of cultural programmes with Iran to strengthen the ties between both the countries. In a meeting here on with Iranian Cultural Counselor Taghi Sadeghi, they both discussed the matters of mutual interests and for promotion and projection of culture of both countries through cultural exchange programmes among masses and youth.

In an effort to give a fresh push to its African diplomacy, India is set to welcome Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag later this week where the discussions with leaders will include enhanced trade and investment and counter-terror cooperation.

For starters, we could have never used this headline for an Ashes series. The reason, if I may add, is pretty simple — there are no political overtones to the Ashes whereas an India-Pakistan series is seldom without a political “tarkaa.” Perhaps, that is what raises the excitement quotient of India-Pakistan cricket.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton was supposed to be back at work in Washington this week, after coming down with a stomach virus early last month, then falling and suffering a concussion. Instead, she was hospitalized Sunday with what doctors say is a blood clot related to her concussion.

In a New Year coming on the heels of waning economic growth and all-round policy paralysis, India will be hard-pressed to meet the expectations of its own people and those of the comity of nations. The facts that we have a democratic polity, a relatively peaceful multi-ethnic and multi-religious society, and a pro­mising emerging economy are all subject to constant testing rat­her than being set in stone. Status in world affairs is earned, not given, on a continuous basis.