Power, in the globalised world of the 21st century, is clearly played out through trade relations – the rise of China, for example, or the success of Germany. The EU exists above all for prosperity and soft power, not the cry of war.

A few days after Syrian-American pianist and composer Malek Jandali performed his song, "Watani Ana" ("I Am My Homeland"), outside the White House, Syrian security forces burst into his parents’ home in Homs and beat them. “That was the first time ever realizing the ‘soft’ power of music,” Jandali said in New York, the week of his debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall. 

As China's economic and political clout grows, so does the nation's role in the Middle East. The country has already overtaken the US as the largest oil importer. But can Beijing also bring stability to the region?

The brutal slaying of the two Japanese hostages by the Islamic State (Daesh) is a reminder, if one were needed, that the group remains impervious to universal condemnation of its methods, but also that Japan's ability to influence the group's actions is as limited as that of any other nation.

Why does Pope Francis capture the imagination of vast audiences across the globe as he travels to different parts of the world? Why do the statements he makes leave a deep and lasting impression in the minds and hearts of millions if not billions of people?

The magazine is printed in 15 languages now and is circulated in as many as 170 countries "disseminates interesting information about India's rich culture and tradition", according to the details available on its website.

The Chinese historically have had a steady grasp on the usage of soft power. In an interview with the HPR, Professor Joseph Nye, the foremost scholar on smart power, stated that China’s “basic aim is to combine hard and soft power. 

She carries the spirit of her son, a soft power presence in peaceful principles and humanistic values that Japan needs now. The mother of Kenji Goto, who painfully appeared before the press a week ago pleading for her son's life, was met with a throng of cameras on Sunday in Tokyo to make a statement about his death.