f the United States wants to get Gaddafi out of power in Libya, communication, rather that military tools, might be more effective. Matt Armstrong, lecturer on public diplomacy at the USC Annenberg School of Communication, told PRI's The Takeaway...

Over 10 days in February, the island of Lampedusa saw its biggest arrival of undocumented immigrants from nearby North Africa. Six thousand young Tunisian men and a handful of women, packed into fishing boats with as many as 200 aboard, made the perilous journey across 70 miles of open ocean to the southernmost Italian outpost.

Chinese leaders repeatedly assure other nations that they have nothing to fear from China's "peaceful rise" - its emergence as a major economic and diplomatic player on the global stage. There are indications, however, that China's increasing economic strength is translating into applications of influence and power that are less benign than Beijing would have the world believe.

As part of the introduction to our ongoing culture series on Chinese soft power and Confucius Institutes, I’ve already touched on the fact that there’s actually very little connection between the ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius and Confucius Institutes, (although from a branding perspective, the name seems to be working well on various levels).

Unfortunately, Euro-pessimism is on the rise in the United States. Large numbers of Americans think that the political, economic, and cultural foundations of Europe are crumbling, and there is widespread talk, even amongst “experts”, of how the adoption of the common currency was a mistake.

Unfortunately, Euro-pessimism is on the rise in the United States.

Head of Iran's Culture and Islamic Relations Organization Mohammad Baqer Khorramshad reiterated that the recent developments in the Middle-East and North Africa have resulted from Iran's soft power.