International exchange students who have a good experience while in the country become friends of the United States. “That’s the goal of the J-1 Visa Program,” said Sharon Peters, Council for Education Travel manager.

A few days ago, the New York Times reported on a leaked memo written by Richard Stengel, the State Department's under secretary for public diplomacy, who criticized America's foreign partners in the effort to counter the Islamic State's propaganda. It's the latest chapter in the U.S. government's decade-long saga to counter jihadist propaganda, which Greg Miller and Scott Higham documented so thoroughly last month in the Washington Post. 

The artists visit Botswana for the second time and this time around through an invitation by the United States (US) Embassy.  Speaking to the music stakeholders and musicians at Old Naledi on Tuesday, the leader of the group Antony Stanco said they were excited to be in Botswana for yet another gratifying experience.

He advised the local musicians to learn from others who came before them. He said in America they have music schools but not everyone was fortunate enough to go there.

At U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s side when he negotiated a framework nuclear deal with Iranian diplomats this spring was physicist Ernest Moniz, U.S. secretary of energy. His presence spoke to the rise of “science diplomacy,” which can take the form of scientists helping diplomats, diplomats helping scientists, or scientific cooperation promoting diplomacy. The Iran case is the most vivid recent example of the first form.

The public will have a chance to meet Russians from Waterville’s sister city, Kotlas, on Tuesday at Waterville Public Library as part of the 25th celebration of the relationship between the two cities. The reception will be held at 3:30 p.m.

Can sports be the key to strengthen diplomatic ties between sovereign states? According to Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong, the so-called "basketball diplomacy" may very well be the solution for increased mutual understanding and friendship between Chinese and American citizens.

Like music and art, sports transcend various boundaries, and the Chinese Vice Premier believes it plays a significant role in people-to-people exchanges, particularly China-U.S. ties.

The American Heart Association and China Tuesday formalized a partnership to educate the Chinese about cardiovascular disease and train people in CPR as ways to reduce deaths in the country. The agreement provides for exchanges of researchers, doctors and public health specialists to work alongside counterparts in the U.S. and China. It also provides for teams of scientists to work together to advance scientific knowledge of cardiovascular health.

On January 28, 1979, Mr. Deng Xiaoping, then China’s vice premier, started his nine-day official visit to the United States, the first such visit by a top Chinese leader since the founding of the People’s Republic. There are many memorable moments from his tour, but the most iconic is undoubtedly when he put on a ten-gallon cowboy hat and waved to the audience in a Texas rodeo. That moment humanized Chinese leaders, who had been demonized by American leaders and mass media for nearly two decades.