I believe one of the greatest tasks of ASEAN lies in people to people. We are all agreed that a 21st century ASEAN, to be dynamic and relevant, must be people-centered and people-driven. For the first time, and in contrast to just four decades ago...

It is therefore important that the debate on how diplomatic missions can facilitate trade relations between Kenya and their host countries considers several other factors, including capacity-building at the ministry level and the ability of Kenyan suppliers to deliver goods on time.

Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UAE Jamil Ahmed Khan has emphasised the need for pursuing economic diplomacy to benefit from the international opportunities available to Pakistan in the field of economy and trade.

The potency of mangoes — and their — mythical reputation in Pakistan and many other parts of South Asia, was brought home to me last week when, as it does most years, the Pakistani embassy in Brussels held a ‘mango extravaganza’ in a prestigious local hotel whose chef has finessed the art of turning mangoes into pieces of culinary magic.

With rising Sinophobia and calls for an anti-China boycott, the Philippines has openly spurned China's earlier soft power, trade and investment-oriented advances. Whether those sentiments materialize into concrete anti-China policies and actions is unclear.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is making the case against deep cuts in the international affairs budget, arguing that diplomats provide critical support to American businesses overseas. She said diplomats helped American businesses by promoting U.S. exports, negotiating trade agreements and fighting regulations and practices that discriminated against U.S. firms.

Just days after South Sudan achieved independence, the Chinese government has already established a vocational training program for welders in Juba. The establishment of a program to train welders suggests that China would like to reduce South Sudan's dependency on Sudanese infrastructure.

Part of Israel's strategy is an attempt to decouple our relations with other countries from our conflict with the Palestinians. Israel is signing agreements for academic exchanges and joint research with many nations, and has been accepted as a new member of CERN, the OECD of the scientific world.