America still has much soft power from the sales of weapons to Iraq, the need of Iraqi counterterrorism forces to work with U.S. Special Forces. Then there's the issue of America helping Iraq with investment, getting foreign companies in, and the issue of ending Iraq's Chapter Seven status at the UN...

The clash between the two has led to a nationwide debate over the merits and flaws of the "Chongqing model" and the "Guangdong model". Liu said the debate had focused on defining socialist "core values", "cultural soft power" and universal values, which was raised and soon muffled by the top ideological machinery - the Central Party School.

In recent years, the Chinese regime has proposed establishing soft power. But Beijing’s understanding of soft power is “money diplomacy plus grand overseas propaganda.” Actually, this kind of soft power can only be effective for a short period.

Faith based law, tribal traditions, the secondary status of women and tolerance for human trafficking and corruption explained away as social inclusion contradict some of the principles and values of Arab Spring and other public diplomacy products Washington brands and markets to sell American-style democracy to the world.

Perhaps it arrived too early for Turkey, which was following a soft power strategy of "zero problems with neighbors", accompanied by a restless army of exporters. Visa restrictions were lifted, trade boomed, and millions of tourists including the citizens of Iran and Syria poured into Turkey to see the places where popular Turkish TV series were shot.

“In a world where soft power is so important, the United States is counterproductively compromising its position in a forum that really matters,” said Ronald Koven, who monitors Unesco for the World Press Freedom Committee, an American nongovernmental organization.

For Clinton, who came into office vowing to promote U.S. "smart power" by ramping up both U.S. aid and civilian engagement around the world, the threatened downscaling of U.S. involvement is both dangerous and disappointing.

The financial crunch threatens to undermine a foreign policy described as “smart power” by President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, one that emphasizes diplomacy and development as a complement to U.S. military power.