[Syrian President Bashar] Assad's balanced position was a surprise. Instead of getting up and cursing Israel for its "aggression" against a Gaza-bound flotilla in May, he acted like a responsible neighbor by trying to calm the dispute.

Canada has a new, confident strut. We held the world spotlight for a few days at the G8 and G20 meetings in Muskoka and Toronto, where we asserted our impressive record on fiscal management and led an international consensus on deficit reduction. Canada, some say, has finally found its footing on the global stage after years of stumbling.

Yesterday at the Aspen Ideas Festival, cosponsored by the Aspen Institute and The Atlantic, I spoke on a panel focused on "Smart Power" with a heavy emphasis on the Afghanistan War.

Recent ambitious global expansion maneuvers by China's State media have brought both acclaim and suspicion, especially in Western nations, whose observation of the Chinese media landscape has been mostly shaped by their understanding of State-owned media.

While there has been much discussion over the U.S. military strategy in Afghanistan, there hasn't been much of a public conversation on U.S. diplomacy there. Daniel Markey of the Council on Foreign Relations talks to Renee Montagne about diplomatic efforts in Afghanistan.

A superpower is generally understood to be a nation, empire, or civilization that can project power globally; that is, a nation that possesses economic, political and cultural or "soft" power along with overwhelming military or "hard" power. It's certainly not hard to appreciate China's emerging economic power.

It was, indeed, a first for a US Secretary of State to visit Dzidzernagapert Armenian Memorial Monument. What was, indeed, puzzling about the visit was that it was dubbed a “private” visit by one of the most visible—public—officials in the world.

There is plenty to be said for the strong Dutch team at the World Cup in South Africa...With a long history built around their “Total Football” style of play, they’re probably the most talented nation never to win a World Cup final. But considering the Dutch role in Apartheid, would the Dutch winning in South Africa be bittersweet?