China is expected to overtake the US as the world's largest economy a few years before 2030, while the US will remain the top player in the following two decades thanks to its dominant role in international politics, its technological prowess and its soft power that attracts outsiders, said the latest report released on Monday by the US National Intelligence Council (NIC).

While too rapid a rate of immigration can cause social problems, over the long term, immigration strengthens US power...The fact that people want to come to the US enhances its appeal, and immigrants’ upward mobility is attractive to people in other countries. The US is a magnet, and many people can envisage themselves as Americans, in part because so many successful Americans look like them. Moreover, connections between immigrants and their families and friends back home help to convey accurate and positive information about the US.

The award of the Nobel Peace Prize to the EU did not go unnoticed in Washington, serving as a springboard for several debates on the EU and US’ role in promoting peace and security in the world. "We will need to be more capable of adding to soft power bits of hard power," said EU Ambassador to the US Joao Vale de Almeida, on 7 December, sharing a platform at the Brookings Institution.

Rice, beans, pork – and lots of it. That's a typical restaurant meal in Cuba, widely regarded by travelers as a culinary wasteland where the variety and quality of raw ingredients leave much to be desired.

“We have carried out extensive public diplomacy activities as well as cultural and people-to-people exchanges to encourage deeper understanding and friendship between the Chinese people and people of other countries.”

China is not squeamish about putting a price and index on its culture. In a quirky development last month, China launched its first cultural industry index at the Shenzhen Stock Exchange... The OCT Index, which as of now hasn’t generated much notice, does signal a shifting trend - China’s determination to change its growth model.

Even as Korean tech giant Samsung turns Sony into a has-been, Japan’s erstwhile colony is also beating it in the pop culture sphere: A decade after journalist Douglas McGray famously calculated “Japan’s Gross National Cool” and awoke the country to the potential of capitalizing on the global infatuation with its anime, games, J-pop, and manga, the concept of “Cool Japan” is under assault.