For more than two decades, Russia has been trying to regain its Soviet-era economic influence in Africa, but such efforts have regularly hit stumbling blocks. Policy experts and Russian authorities attribute this to inadequate knowledge of investment and economic possibilities in the continent.

Expos, the quinquennial display of national, corporate and cultural hegemony started as commercial fairs more like today’s trade shows than the theme parks they are today. [...] Subsequent expos evolved into highly branded affairs in which participants sought a revivified international identity as nations and did so with increasingly bombastic pavilions.

As India's economy has revived, its international trade and military posture around the world have grown. With the election of Narendra Modi, who has pursued an active foreign policy both within the South Asia region and around the world, India has emerged as an increasingly important player on the world stage. 

Since its premiere in Beijing in 2013, the 90-minute show has become something of a cultural calling card for China as the country seeks to bolster its efforts to project soft power abroad. Having already toured in Europe, the production will move to New York in January and then to the Kennedy Center in Washington.

Justin Trudeau will address the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, delivering his maiden speech as Canadian prime minister at the high-level diplomatic forum that had an acrimonious relationship with this country's previous government.[...] "With Trudeau, they're trying to re-engage," [...] "They're saying Canada is back in the world."

The role of country images and knowledge of their constitution and effects is of major interest not only for scholars and professionals in the domain of public diplomacy, but also for various adjacent fields such as international relations, international marketing, or inter-group relations. 

While much is made of Iran’s hard power, the recent nuclear deal hints at the prospect of the country’s untapped soft power being far more central to its long-term success in the 21st century. As the 13th-century Persian poet, Jalal ad- Din Muhammad Rumi, wrote: “Raise your words, not voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder.”

Kateryna Smahliy, the director of the Kennan Institute in Ukraine and a moderator on one of the panels at the World Communication Forum Davos in Kyiv. Kateryna Smahliy reveals to the UT correspondent about the country's image abroad in the context of Ukraine's cultural diplomacy and a win-win strategy as a response to conflicts, which is the leading topic of the upcoming Conference.