In spite of September’s deadly attack on the American consulate in Benghazi that claimed the lives of an ambassador and three others, the U.S. Foreign Service has more applicants than ever.

Experts said China and Zambia are expanding the scope of their cooperation and their ties are a symbol of the deepening win-win cooperation between China and Africa. Sata is among the more than 10 foreign leaders in China to visit the new leaders and attend the Boao Forum for Asia in Boao, Hainan province. Meeting with Xi in the coastal city of Sanya, the Zambian president said China's development provides important opportunities for Zambia and Africa.

Now that the dust has settled on President Barack Obama’s much-anticipated trip to Israel, it is possible to analyse the significance of the visit. The trip – the first foreign visit of his second term – carries important implications for US foreign policy. Rather than providing the breakthrough for which many had hoped, it demonstrated that Obama – unlike other second-term US presidents, who have staked their legacies on foreign policy – is interested primarily in securing a domestic legacy.

China is earnestly striving to become a respected world power, one that finally surpasses the United States. The day could come when its economy, even its military, is larger than America's. But its biggest problem right now, one that's much harder to correct, is the nation's “soft power.” China appears to have very few true friends in the world.

For decades, presidential elections in Latin America have often involved that well-known fixture in the cable news landscape of the United States: the American political consultant. But in a development reflecting the waning clout of one powerful nation in the hemisphere and the rising influence of another, Brazilian political consultants have begun to compete handily with their American counterparts, orchestrating campaigns throughout Latin America and beyond.

When the Russian Foreign Ministry released its updated Foreign Policy Concept in February, codifying Russia’s global strategies, Washington yawned. Yet this document reveals much about the emerging “Putin Doctrine.” It further separates Russia from Western Europe and is especially critical of the United States. It also leaves no doubt: President Barack Obama’s “reset” policy cannot possibly survive his second term. Here’s the reality check.

APDS Blogger: Jennifer Yael Green

Nearly twenty years after the end of Apartheid, South Africa is still a country of controversy and conflicting narratives.

eInterns (American students working virtually) are an initiative of the U.S. Department of State's Virtual Student Foreign Service. The goal, according to the State Department website, is "to harness technology and a commitment to global service among young people to facilitate new forms of diplomatic engagement." The eInterns work from their own campuses in the U.S. and are partnered with our U.S. diplomatic posts and other organizations on "digital diplomacy." The program began in 2011