Top Central and Eastern European diplomats came to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to urge lawmakers to support nonmilitary and military means to counter Russian influence in the region. Representatives of Poland, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Ukraine accused Russia of waging hybrid warfare against them: cyberattacks, propaganda, threats of force and other means just shy of conventional warfare. 

Minister Bartlett, has announced that the World Bank has agreed to partner with Jamaica and the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in staging the historic Global Conference on Building Partnerships for Sustainable Tourism for Development, which will be staged from November 27 to 29 at the Montego Bay Convention Centre, St. James. The move is aimed at boosting the global impact and positioning of the conference.

"Cultural cooperation, youth exchanges and interaction between public organizations play an important role in bilateral cooperation," the ministry added. "The Russian-German Year of Youth Exchanges is worth mentioning, its closing ceremony due to be held in Berlin on July 13-16. New possibilities for bilateral years are under consideration."

Another area in which Iranian soft power is uncontested is in the construction of museums to promote its world view. In the aftermath of the Iran hostage crisis, Iranian authorities transformed the former US embassy into a museum to illustrate both supposed Iranian victories over America as well as grievances against the United States.

The Dubai Government Media Office on Monday announced the agenda for the Public Diplomacy and Government Communication Forum (PDGCF) that will be held next Sunday in Dubai. [...] Aims to support government organisations in optimising their communication strategies through a discussion of global best practices and success stories from around the world.

Saudi Arabia aims to promote itself as an attractive touristic destination owing to its diverse landscape and archaeological treasure, currently little known owing to decade-old lack of state interest. In years to come, Riyadh plans to gradually introduce tourist visa to people of all nationalities, with the condition that the visitors will respect the local culture and traditions. Currently, eight million religious tourists visit the country to perform umrah and hajj.

While the administration of US President Donald Trump is distancing itself from global climate action, European Union foreign affairs ministers adopted on March 6 conclusions on EU climate and energy diplomacy as part of the implementation of the EU Global Strategy. The objective is to strengthen synergies and links between the relevant elements of EU climate diplomacy and energy diplomacy and to establish priorities for 2017, the European Council said.

The Embassy of the United States of America today partnered with United Village Transformation (UVT), an American NGO, to present a “Culinary Diplomacy” program highlighting the orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP). [...] “There’s another first in Malawi: Malawi is the first country in Africa to host a “culinary diplomacy” program. Culinary diplomacy is a wonderful way to share culture and traditions.