Given its lesser standing in terms of international public opinion compared to the West, China should strive for the right to speak in public diplomacy in cyberspace, strengthen the universal participation of the public diplomacy on the Internet, formulate a public diplomacy strategy for cyberspace and proactively build up a national brand.

But there is more to the story than the simple lack of violence. Earlier this month, a call for a public strike by Syed Ali Shah Geelani, the hard-line patriarchal separatist leader at the forefront of last year's anti-India protests, evoked a feeble response in Kashmir.

Authorities in Inner Mongolia sought to calm some of the worst ethnic strife in two decades by pledging to address concerns of the local Mongol population about the environmental costs of mining in the resource-rich region, and by announcing that a Han Chinese will be tried for murder over the death of a young Mongol man.

Pressure is building from governments, companies and nonprofit groups to lift sanctions and “engage” with the regime. With U.S. companies and diplomats mostly absent, China has become the dominant power. The Burmese people remain poor and isolated from the world.

The scandal that embroiled IMF chief Dominic Strauss-Kahn has shocked France in more ways than one. While the allegations themselves were a revelation, the Frenchman's treatment by US media left some observers stunned.

While the story of the goofy panda who sets out to be a kung fu master enthralled audiences three years ago, the second edition of this animated feature has run into controversy with the Chinese public. Many feel that the film twists the premise and base of Chinese culture to its convenience.

The American president has certainly made an impression on Britain. Obama is boosted by coverage on US networks looking relaxed and authoritative on the world stage. It does no harm being pictured with America's favourite British couple – not Dave and Nick, but the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Along the sidewalks of Warsaw on Friday, as Poland prepared for a 24-hour visit by President Barack Obama, that change was most clearly seen in the divergent voices of the older and younger generations of Poles.