When Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his second year in office visited the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar and Turkey, taking diplomatic activism in the region to newer heights, including the special outreach to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, it became clear that Modi’s foreign policy was a studied departure from the outdated ideas of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

When dealing with the Trump administration, China should pay attention to several factors. First, China should get to know Trump's political ambitions, and establish contacts with his core team. China should strengthen the role of non-governmental actors in public diplomacy, and improve Sino-US public diplomacy by using think tanks to effectively control conflicts. Last but not the least, China needs to enhance social media communication and promote international discourse.

China, as befits its status as a current major world power, should play a significant role, both behind the scenes and in front of them, in establishing a new order in Syria. Careful and thoughtful Chinese diplomacy, in conjunction with efforts by the other interested nations, can also create a foundation for a more peaceful Middle East and North African region in the medium- to long-term.

Richard Stengel, the State Department’s undersecretary for public diplomacy, bluntly states the problem that has been worrying him and should worry us all: “In a global information war, how does the truth win?” The very idea that the truth won’t be triumphant would, until recently, have been heresy to Stengel, a former managing editor of Time magazine.

Contemplating Russian nuclear threats during the Cold War, the strategist Herman Kahn calibrated a macabre ladder of escalation, with 44 rungs ranging from “Ostensible Crisis” to “Spasm or Insensate War.” In the era of cyberwarfare that’s now dawning, the rules of the game haven’t yet been established with such coldblooded precision. That’s why this period of Russian-American relations is so tricky. The strategic framework that could provide stability hasn’t been set.

The NGO campaigns, led by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, are vital in this process.  The problem is that journalists, academics, diplomats, political leaders, and Western officials frequently quote these usually uncorroborated accusations in condemning Israeli policies, “reflecting the ‘soft power’ of these NGOs acting to reinforce the Palestinian narrative and the objectives of the OIC.”

Actress America Ferrera has penned an open letter to Donald Trump in response to his controversial comments about Mexican immigrants. Ferrera has been an advocate for Latino causes and a prominent supporter of Democratic candidates for years. Her tongue-in-cheek post puts a unique spin on the uproar over Trump’s claims that “rapists” and “drug dealers” have entered the U.S. border illegally from Mexico. 

In 2005, Binyavanga Wainaina published a brilliantly sarcastic essay in Granta called “How to Write About Africa,” advising people on how to sound spiritual and compassionate while writing a book about the continent. “Always use the word ‘Africa’ or ‘Darkness’ or ‘Safari’ in your title,” Wainaina advised.