Under its new foreign policy adopted last year, Taiwan hopes to share its expertise with India in areas like smart cities and clean energy, a senior official has said. [...] Clean energy goes without saying,” she said. “Your country and mine are going in the same direction.” The Asian Silicon Valley project is a major part of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen’s economic reforms aimed at infusing new life into Taiwan’s economy.

Bad guys can possess soft power. I know—I wrote a book about it. But over most of the past century the U.S., as the soft power hyperpuissance, has largely set the standards of what constitutes effective national image projection. The United States has drawn its soft power, the “ability to shape the preferences of others,” as put by Joseph S. Nye, who devised the term. 

The Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation, the highest level of bilateral cooperation between China and Singapore starts today, February 27. Singapore Deputy PM Teo Chee Hean arrived in Beijing on Sunday for a three day visit at the invitation of China's Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli. Both leaders are co-chairs of the platform, which is for promoting dialogue between China and Singapore.

The Government of Dubai Media Office (GDMO) announced on Sunday the launch of the Public Diplomacy and Government Communication Forum (PDGCF). The forum, which was launched under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, aims to help government organisations explore more effective communication strategies through a discussion of global best practices and success stories from both the region and the world.

Launching a startup is no easy feat. Launching one outside your native country is even harder. But for certain French startups, the French government is there to help. A government-sponsored competition that began last year offers startups marketing and promotional assistance. The Creative Next Challenge is a series of competitions sponsored by Business France, the nation’s international business development agency. 

After meeting with the President of the Republic of Argentina, Mauricio Macri, the Prime Minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy, said that relations between the two countries “have regained their traditional strength” following the State visit by the Argentine leader. He also committed to making “every effort” to ensure an agreement is reached between the European Union and MERCOSUR.

State-to-state relationships are not grounded in emotions, but based on shared interests. No one is a friend or a foe forever; the convergence or divergence of mutual interests decides the nature of the relationship between two countries. Though relations between Russia and Pakistan remained turbulent over the years, they have been warming up over the last decade, with top political and diplomatic meetings. 

Turkey and Pakistan marked the 70th year of exemplary diplomatic relations, with both countries aiming to advance relations to strategic cooperation. [...] Relations between Pakistan and Turkey have also witnessed notable growth and dynamism in recent years, ranging from enhanced economic ties to deepening defense collaboration, and growing educational and cultural links.