In a pioneering initiative to promote India's soft power, the Public Diplomacy Division of the external affairs ministry has launched a global video contest entitled 'India Is' that is open to anyone in the country and around the world.

Soft power and public diplomacy activities were rammed up ahead of the East Asian Summit (EAS) in Bali to lay the engagement groundwork. In Indonesia, a Department of Defence-funded integrated maritime surveillance system has just been handed over to the Indonesian government, with the US committed to supporting the programme until 2014.

As part of its cultural diplomacy initiative, the US State Department invited the FEW (Fifth Element Warriors) Collective, a multi-disciplinary performance troupe, to Islamabad...FEW troupe seeks to engage and address contemporary issues through music, dance and art.

In a survey expected to be released next week by London-based consulting firm Brand Finance, Canada gets high marks for the value and equity of its “brand.” And during tough economic times, stability has been a cornerstone of our success.

Romney, advised by a committee professedly oriented toward Latin America.. called the Campaign for Economic Opportunity in Latin America (CEOLA), in order to promote “a vigorous public diplomacy and trade promotion effort in the region.”

The U.S. State Department significantly lacks expertise, diplomatic and intelligence tools. Inadequate developed techniques to propel its overseas diplomatic missions for wider reach to engage with diverse community leaders and communities in the periphery.

So Obama has left his mark on the Australia-US alliance:...an historic speech on Asia strategy, an important shift towards US military access... But as a major public diplomacy opportunity to consolidate America's closest Asia Pacific alliance, it could have been done considerably better.

The US Embassy in Jakarta has generated a fan base of 430,000 Indonesians with its two-year-old Facebook page. Embassy staffers have been operating the Facebook site as a base for public engagement, conversation, news, culture and tourism promotion.