Rudd’s resignation, a deliberate retaliation strike against the current Prime Minister Julia Gillard and the ruling Australian Labor Party for the unceremonious leadership coup they pulled off against him some 24 months ago, while fascinating to the political observer, is potentially devastating for Australia’s international image projection.

Monocle's annual survey on soft power - assessing the influence of nations in spheres including politics, diplomacy, business, culture and education - names Australia as the fifth-most influential nation in the world and singles out Mr Rudd's performance on the global stage in explaining its decision.

Mr Rudd has had strained relations with Jakarta, particularly over the passage of asylum seekers heading by boat to Australia. As the website news.com.au noted: "Kevin Rudd can't do it – no matter how hard he tries – but Australian diplomat Adelle Neary, from Adelaide, has won over the hearts and minds of Indonesia."

He pointed that the visit paid by the Sudanese Public Diplomacy delegation recently to Egypt clearly shows the overwhelming Egyptian feelings, at both public and official levels, regarding the necessity to enhancing bilateral cooperation between the two brother countries in the upcoming stage.

The restoration of mosques carried out by the Foundation of Turkey’s Religious Affairs Directorate (Diyanet Vakfı) and the Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA) constitute solid ground for Davutoğlu’s public diplomacy in the Balkans.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed al-Orabi said Egypt would adopt the principle of "soft power" in its foreign policy, taking into account the social, economic and cultural dimensions of relationships. The minister also said the foreign policy would be in complete harmony with the 25 January revolution, adding that it aims to retain Egypt’s leading regional and international roles.

...the approach adopted by El-Arabi in pursuing this renewed focus on Africa, as well as the public diplomacy initiatives launched by Egypt post-revolution, had much greater credibility.

Australia’s Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd is pressing ahead on a high profile public diplomacy campaign to secure support for Australia’s bid to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for 2013-14.