Closer economic ties will top the agenda during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visits to Egypt, Iran and Saudi Arabia this week. However, Chinese mediation in the feud between Tehran and Riyadh is unlikely, say experts.

While drinking tea by the Bosphorus a few days ago, I looked up and there sailing past me was the Moskva, a formidable-looking Russian missile cruiser returning home from its mission in support of Russia's Syrian pal, Bashar Assad. [...]Turkey possesses the political stability, economic vitality and military strength to play an ever greater role in its tumultuous region and beyond.

Two friends start climbing the world’s peaks, higher and higher. During the process, they discover the mountains inside them. [...] The two men are the creators of Adventure Diplomacy, a project that wants to combine networking with mountain climbing.

In the areas of foreign policy and diplomacy, technology has brought about a tremendous amount of change. [...] In our point of view, the impact of breakthrough technologies on foreign affairs can be seen through accelerating transformation in five significant areas: security, institutions, participation, dialogue, and leadership.

The Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Saturday launched a global thought leadership platform to help frame and stimulate regional and global debate on vital development issues shaping the Middle East.

The tiny café was set for an event: Chairs were arranged in a semi-circle, and on each table were plates of pie and cheesecake. [...] The guest of honor, Elias Zananiri, had made the trip from Ramallah on behalf of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as part of recent initiative by Palestinian officials to hold parlor meetings with Israelis.

In an effort to broaden international understanding of the contemporary Native art experience, the Institute of American Indian Arts recently collaborated with the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Art in Embassies to produce a limited edition print series showcasing the art of IAIA alumni.

First Lady Michelle Obama recently published a piece inThe Atlantic, making the case for the White House’s Let Girls Learn initiative. She wrote, “Right now, 62 million girls worldwide are not in school. They’re receiving no formal education at all.”