Russian President Vladimir Putin began a six-day Latin American tour aimed at boosting trade and ties in the region with a stop Friday in Cuba, a key Soviet ally during the Cold War that has backed Moscow in its dispute with the West over Ukraine. The two countries signed about a dozen accords in areas such as energy, industry, health and disaster prevention. Russian companies will participate in petroleum projects around Boca de Jaruco on the island's north coast, and that cooperation will extend to offshore oil deposits, Cuban government website Cubadebate said.

The Russian Cultural Centre in the city celebrated the Day of Family, Love and Faith.  The celebration was attended by members of the Russian-Indian Family Club that functions at the Centre. The programme was jointly inaugurated by the president of the Club Kadakampally Sanilkumar and co-chairperson Viktoria Ajay.

The Russian Foreign Ministry and the Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independent States, Compatriots Living Abroad and International Humanitarian Cooperation (Rossotrudnichestvo) plan to present a draft version of Russia’s “soft power doctrine" (entitled “Integrated Strategy for Expanding Russia’s Humanitarian Influence in the World”) to President Vladimir Putin before the end of summer.

The United States must launch a "real war of ideas" with Russia according to Ilan Berman, the Vice President of the American Foreign Policy Council in Washington. The US international broadcasting capacity should be improved and a new public diplomacy strategy ought to be developed by the White House.

In the wake of its military intervention in Ukraine and annexation of Crimea, Russia is widely disliked in Europe, the Middle East and the United States, according to a Pew Global Attitudes poll released on Wednesday. The leadership of President Vladimir V. Putininspires little confidence, the survey found.

Leaders of the five largest emerging economies will meet July 13-16 to finalize their first joint project: a new international development bank. The countries, known as BRICS (Brazil, Russia,India, China, and South Africa) have spent many years trying to find a common goal. Together they have more than 40 percent of the world’s population. And they share an interest in challenging many of the norms set by the West. Yet each nation is quite different in governance and ambition.

As the European Union considers further sanctions on Russia for its role in the standoff in Ukraine, Russia is broadly unpopular in many countries around the globe and increasingly disliked in Europe and the United States. President Vladimir Putin’s leadership also continues to inspire little confidence worldwide, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. The former Cold War power’s negative global image contradicts Russians’ expectations that Putin’s actions in Ukraine would improve their country’s international reputation.

The Ukrainian flag is once again proudly flying above the former separatist bastion of Sloviansk. One by one, the towns and villages of Donbas are being recaptured. But even as Ukraine gains the edge in its military conflict with Russia, the information battle continues to be one of David against Goliath. Whether it’s through the state media giant Russia Today, soft power campaigns or diplomatic backchannels, the Kremlin has implemented what some commentators have dubbed “the biggest information special operation” to date.