Education has long been a tool to transmit a culture’s values to its own citizenry as well as conquered territories.  The concept of soft power, developed by political scientist Joseph Nye, can be defined as a persuasive approach to international relations, typically involving the use of economic or cultural influence. 

As long as nation-states have distinctly different levels of energy-dependent economic development, and their self-interests are so varied, there is really no basis for the mutuality of interest required for a meaningful treaty.