It's the latest attempt at cultural diplomacy for two long-estranged neighbors with similar tastes in arts and entertainment. For two consecutive nights, Cubans packed Havana's Karl Marx Theater to watch more than 50 American dancers leap, twirl and float across the stage.

U.S. President Barack Obama was treated to a stirring cultural performance organised by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) at the Rashtrapati Bhawan here on Monday evening. The programme began with a five-minute recital by a renowned percussionist group led by Guruvayur Dorai and V. Raja Rao.

"Cultural revolution is the main source of the Islamic Republic of Iran's power," Deputy Head of the Joint Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Brigadier General Massoud Jazayeri said. "If we didn't enjoy such a soft power, enemies would not launch so many invasions and they would not do such a vast lineup against us," Jazayeri added.

“I hope that the Spanish people will be able to garner a great interest in traditional Korean culture through the creative, embroidered works of Korean women,” said collector Huh Dong-hwa, director of the local museum, in a statement.

As an effort to attract Chinese tourists to the US or improve America's image in China, the pavilion was an epic failure; but as a symbol of Obama's America, it wasn't bad. It's not very surprising that Shanghai Expo 2010, which just ended (coincidentally) on Halloween night, never attracted much interest in the US.

Finding cross-cultural bridges between both countries reflects human warmth in transmitting the real image of both countries' identities, he added expressing appreciation of bilateral cooperation and coordination in the cultural and educational fields.

In previous editions, the Asian Games have provided fertile ground for the two Koreas to engage in sports diplomacy as they seek to repair ties 60 years after war broke out between north and south.

The power of culture can often be underestimated as a diplomatic tool, but cultural exchange can not only serve as a universal icebreaker, it can tear down walls and build bridges between the most hardened of enemies. It may not turn foes into instant friends, but it does allow nations to find points of commonality that transcend politics.