Since the Australian Government’s last White Paper on defense in 2009, there have been rapid changes within the Asia-Pacific region. As a consequence, the forthcoming Australian defense white paper will be perhaps the most important that has ever been prepared. With a rising assertive China, the US adopting an "Asia Pivot" doctrine, and a host of rising Asian powers, the Australian Government cannot defer the strategic complexities of the region to the ’never never’ of 2030 like the 2009 paper did.

If a scientific global ‘perceptions survey’ were to be carried out today about the country, the most powerful images that come to mind are probably these: Kenya as the land of ‘Kitu Kidogo’, Kenya as the country of great long-distance runners (last year Kenyans won 31 of the 43 IAAF marathons – an impressive 72%); and Kenya as the country of M-PESA and Ushahidi technological innovations.

The U.S. government has even run ads in various newspapers in Myanmar showing crashed World War II aircraft and posting a phone number (09-541-9569) where locals can call and share information, stories and coordinates. The World War II-MIA card will be played close to the vest by the ruling junta in the ensuing years, just has it has in the past.

“The British Council has responded to challenging financial conditions since the 2010 Spending Review and we are glad that the Committee has recognised that we have continued to successfully deliver our work and be “a major instrument of UK public diplomacy and ‘soft power’”.

“The Indonesian government has always been active in various international forums to push other countries to do the same thing, including ASEAN. We also discussed the issue in the Palestine Committee [in Tehran] during the Non-Alligned Movement meeting,”

China’s efforts to project its soft power in the West are widely seen to have fallen flat. Not so in Taiwan, where concerns over the mainland’s cultural influence have flared once again after some local TV stations abridged their regular news programming on Friday to broadcast a Chinese singing competition.

The financial city will see participation of over 300 global experts, policy makers and marketing gurus all come together to deliberate on the theme “The New Economic Order and World Trade Centers” at the noteworthy event that ensues from Apr 21 to 24.

Russia declared an Estonian diplomat persona non grata two weeks after the Baltic nation’s prime minister visited the country for the first time. Franek Persidski, Estonia’s consul general in Russia’s second-biggest city of St. Petersburg, has returned home, Minna- Liina Lind, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, said today in an e-mailed response to questions.