In a speech delivered at the reception he hosted late on Sept. 10, British Ambassador Richard Moore emphasized his belief in the value of educational and cultural exchange between the United Kingdom and Turkey in helping create the conditions for success in business and diplomacy, and the important role of the British Council over the past 75 years in building trust and understanding between the two countries. 

Not all Indians need be vegetarian for vegetarianism to be wielded as another manifestation of India’s soft power — alongside yoga, ayurveda, cuisine, classical arts, and religious pluralism. [...] From Gandhi to Pramukhswami and from Prime Minister Modi to Jain munis, no civilization is synonymized with a value that happens to be healthy for the body and planet, but is repudiated by its media and intelligentsia.

Arguing that it had a mission to uphold the values of “democracy and liberty”, the corporation said it would set up new shortwave services to broadcast into those countries with a deficit of both, namely North Korea, Eritrea, and Ethiopia. It will boost its digital presence in Russia, where it may set up a satellite-television channel, and beef up its Arabic service. 

It’s a multiple crisis and Germany’s answer is to be nice. During Greek protests, rioters painted toothbrush moustaches on posters of Merkel. Now migrants, passed on from Greece to Germany, arrive with photos of her as their patron saint. That’s brilliant PR, a triumph of soft power, and not enitirely cynical. There really are many Germans — Gutmenschen — who wish to give a helping hand.

Soft Power as opposed to Hard Power is not at all new to the developing world. The concept of Non-alignment, for example, is a manifestation of this species of power which, essentially, is an expression of a country’s or a group of countries’ humanistic values as opposed to their military or coercive capability. Accordingly, Soft Power has its origins in spirituality and religion and pertains to those qualities of heart and mind which play a key role in fostering world solidarity.

With hosting and qualifying for the World Cup finals listed as long-term goals, the authorities plan to substantially increase the number of young people playing football, with the number of special “soccer schools” raised to 20,000 after five years and to 50,000 in a decade.