Still the longest State Department sponsored tour in U.S. history, the groundbreaking odyssey was conducted at the height of the Cold War and was only the second cultural mission of its kind to take place during that tense political period.

India is one the most linguistically diverse countries in the world. The Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India recognizes 18 official regional languages in India with a developed script and literary tradition. In addition, there are nearly ‘1576 rationalized mother tongues’ or dialects as per the 1991 census of the Government of India. Linguistic diversity adds to the richness of Indian culture and every region of India has a highly developed literary tradition with excellent writers of national, and a few of international fame.

The American-Russian Cultural Co-operation Foundation was established in 1992. Since then, the annual award is presented to those who commit themselves to encouraging Russian-American cultural exchange and co-operation.

With cultural diplomacy, the idea is to bring people together on an international scale in a more socio-cultural context, rather than on a diplomatic basis.

Upon taking office, he... embraced political means like dialogue, respectful multilateralism, and the use of new media, suggesting that he felt the soft power to change minds, build legitimacy, and advance interests was the key element missing from the recent US approach to the world—and that he would quickly remedy that defect.

Two decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia's failure to cultivate power on the global stage using trade and diplomacy is forcing it back into its costly Cold War addiction to missiles and guns.

...it is time for Europe to adopt a different strategy toward Russia, its biggest and most important eastern neighbor. In practice, it means recognizing that Europe’s interests are best served by pursuing its values with soft-power instruments like trade and visa policy, as its relations with North Africa and the Middle East before the Arab Spring show.

Russia is undergoing a gastronomic revolution. The gastro-boom involves the growth in the number of mid-market restaurants, a trend towards eating locally sourced produce, and the imminent expansion of "new Russian" cuisine into the west.