More than five centuries after King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella expelled Spain’s Jewish population, the still-spoken language of the exiles is to be formally honored by the country’s leading linguistic authority. The Spanish Royal Academy (RAE) has announced plans to create a Judeo-Spanish branch in Israel that will sit alongside the 23 existing academies dedicated to the Spanish languages across Latin America and in countries such as Equatorial Guinea and the Philippines.

For the last day of her state visit to the UK,  which included an official farewell to The Queen and Prince Phillip at Buckingham Palace followed by a tour of the Francis Crick Institute, Letizia wore an ivory prom-style skirt by one of the UK's best-loved high street labels, Topshop. [...] Diplomatic dressing is a favored sartorial tactic of many of the world's most high-profile women, who use their style choices to pay tribute to the places and countries they visit.

With the International Olympic Committee (IOC) set to have chosen Paris over Los Angeles as the site for the 2024 Olympics, it is timely to ask: Is hosting the Olympics good for a nation’s brand, and do they provide a good financial return on investment? [...] He also noted that the concept of nation-branding pervaded China’s handling of the 2008 Beijing games. “In China their goal was broad recognition as a leader on the global stage.” He said that China was largely successful, but that in terms of political reputation, the country was thrown into a negative light.

The economic and commercial relations between Romania and Spain will also be promoted through the recently established Commercial Diplomacy Chamber with the Kingdom of Spain, an NGO that is aiming to also support the collaboration in tourism, agriculture, scientific research, healthcare, telecommunications, fight against corruption, intellectual property and consumers' protection. [...] Currently, over one million Romanian nationals live and work in Spain, and the Spanish business milieu is represented in Romania by over 6,000 legal entities.  

Protecting cultural diversity is vital for peacebuilding in the Middle East, the head of the UNESCO Irina Bokova said at Madrid Conference today. [...] “Violent extremists target both heritage and human lives – they target victims and minorities from all backgrounds, Shebak, Turkmen, Yezidis, Muslims, Christians..." [...] “Violent extremists target schools, because they know the power of knowledge to counter their rhetoric drawing on false visions of faith and history," Irina added. 

For more than 300 years, Spain and Philippines shared a deep history in food. Colonizing the Philippines from 1521 to 1898, the Spaniards brought to the country not only Catholicism but also its cuisine and meticulous cooking methods, something that is still evident in Filipino kitchens, especially during feasts. It’s not surprising to see lechon, paella, [...] during birthdays and Christmases—all of which are adaptations of dishes passed down from Spain to its former colony.