Lao Deputy Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Savankhone Razmountry, for his part, said the establishment of Chinese culture center is of great significance which will promote the friendly exchanges between the two nations.

Simon Walker, director-general of the Institute of Directors, said he was "appalled" by how overseas students had been caught up in targets for reducing immigration into the UK.

The Obama administration is pursuing a new approach to public diplomacy that stands to weaken US ties abroad, and delivers its most profound blow to the transatlantic relationship. In March, the administration proposed a 13% cut to the Fulbright fellowship program. Cuts to Fulbright come alongside the expansion of shorter programs that offer less substantive immersion for foreigners, neglect Americans, and shift the diplomatic lens away from Europe during a period that requires greater, not less, transatlantic cooperation. 

Akie Abe, the wife of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, is eager to rub elbows with first ladies from other countries to improve mutual understanding. “I wish to build friendships with the wives of other leaders by going beyond politics and without being bound by political debates by our husbands who are responsible for national interests,” she said.

How the youth hostel represents the essence of public diplomacy.