Kabali was released in 8000-10,000 screens across the world. That scale is astonishing given that India’s soft power has largely been powered by the popularity of Hindi cinema and Bollywood.

Despite all the disagreements between the two countries, his government was looking for ways to promote bilateral people-to-people exchanges. That was why he wanted to talk to us so as to better grasp the subtle differences between Hong Kong and mainland China in terms of public sentiment towards his country.

Kawaii has been embraced by the Japanese government as one of its main cultural exports and the linchpin of its “soft power” strategy.

The ruling by the tribunal in the Philippines vs. Chinaarbitration case is no doubt a major setback to Chinese diplomacy. No matter how people evaluate the quality and impartiality of the ruling, [...] it will not only damage China’s image and soft power, but will greatly inhibit China’s claims to territory and maritime rights in the South China Sea, and the consequences will be far reaching. 

Yoga has offered the Indian state unprecedented opportunities for global, media-savvy political performance. In recent years, the nation has made international headlines by creating a national ministry for yoga. It has promoted yoga tourism; staged mass yoga practices and Indian officials have even proposed yoga as a national solution to an astonishing range of social problems, from reducing rape to curing cancer.

In 2014, Indonesia declared it has chosen “soft power” to counterattack ISIS, determined to resort to violence or war only if every other means failed. Later in March 2016, Indonesia emphasized its decision not to join any military alliance in countering terrorism.