soft power

Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak has warned that the country could face a “diplomatic tsunami” later this year. He was referring to an effort by the Palestinians to win recognition from the United Nations as an independent state.

The revolutionary upheaval in the Southern neighbourhood and the failures of reforms in most of the Eastern neighbourhood are begging for a revised EU approach to the neighbourhood policy (ENP). In March the EU presented some ideas on ‘a partnership for democracy and shared prosperity’ with the Southern Mediterranean.

April 4, 2011

With Kim Jong-il, the Reverend Moon and military coups grabbing headlines, Korea has not always been the kingdom of cool.But since the South Koreans sent their generals back to the barracks and became the world's most internet-wired people, the transformation has taken place...

Foreign military interventions seldom run a smooth course; they have been particularly messy, if not counterproductive, in the vast swathe of lands stretching from the Maghreb to Indonesia.

China is not getting its message across effectively to the rest of the world, said Zhao Qizheng, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

Taiwan's private sector is trying to involve more industries in its effort to promote medical tourism, with the latest trial balloon drawing interest from a local airline, according to a local travel agency.

Given China’s decisive influence on the global economy, and its increasing ability to project military power, understanding the sources of Chinese conduct has become a central issue in international relations.

At the beginning of the year, few would have predicted that Britain and the United States would be involved in another military intervention. Britain, the United States and European nations were – and still are- cutting their defence budgets.

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