But Europe is not speaking with one voice, despite appeals from the likes of Javier Solana, the former high representative for European Union foreign policy, who has called for unanimous European support for Palestinian membership.

The cultural days in Sydney had a wonderful resonate with the Australian people as it witnessed the presence of the masses and the elite intellectuals... interested in the heritage, cultural and intellectual aspects of Oman.

Sunday is going to open up a very interesting period in Saudi history because now, for the next four years, people are going to be debating in the press and in tweets and on Facebook how exactly this is going to work and how much power or freedom the women have to be campaigning just like men.

By asking for recognition at the U.N. while scrupulously avoiding violence, the Palestinians are, finally, pursuing an intelligent foreign policy that has the prospect of isolating their adversary and bringing international opinion on their side.

Critics may wonder how willing...Turkish leaders are to actually admit to the empire's "not so beautiful parts"... Still, it's noteworthy that the Turkish P.M. sees in the Ottoman past a...soft-power cachet, based presumably on the empire's extraordinary diversity and tolerance of many faiths...

Cosplay – in which participants dress up as fictional, typically sci-fi or manga characters – is becoming increasingly popular in the United States. It’s a potential source of soft power that Japanese policymakers should be keeping a better eye on.

Citizens also appreciate the principles on which his foreign policy agenda is founded - openness to all, excluding so called diplomatic tourism, turning deeds into actions, public diplomacy, economic segment of his foreign policy and most importantly, credibility of his diplomatic engagement.

Officials in Beijing are of the opinion that supporting the Palestinian cause is a "valuable public diplomacy tool" which will not only help China improve its standing amongst Muslims, but will, at a minimum, fend off any potential Arab criticism of Beijing's unsympathetic attitude towards Uighurs.