here is no question that there is a lot of corruption inside the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). Bribes and behind the scene deals have been going on for decades. The sport federation is responsible for the most watched and popular sport in the world and is part of a lucrative business venture that has a lot of soft power and prestige attached to it.

“It will blow over” tends to be Qatar’s unofficial response to criticism of its World Cup bid, but with a FIFA corruption scandal exploding onto the world’s front pages, the Gulf state has glumly realised it may have a real fight on its hands.

Super-rich Qatar would suffer no economic pain if it lost the right to host the world’s top soccer event. At stake is influence, including its use of sport as a platform to operate on the global stage, opening doors to finance, media, diplomacy, property and tourism.

President Barack Obama’s reliance on soft power and engagement as his principal foreign policy tools faces a test, as he joins a summit of world leaders in Germany this weekend with multiple unfolding international crises. Leaders of the Group of Seven nations gather at the exclusive Schloss Elmau resort, at the foot of the Bavarian Alps, with an agenda of worries: Russia’s backing of Ukraine separatists, the spread of Islamic State, Chinese saber-rattling in the Pacific, Greece’s attempt to reach a deal with its creditors and negotiations on Iran’s nuclear p

For years, Chinese communist ideologues have complained that the People’s Republic of China does not have enough “discourse power” (from the Chinese term, “huayu quan”)—meaning, the ability to speak and have others listen, and determine the bounds of debate—in international affairs. [...] China was the guest of honour at BookExpo America, held at the Javits Center from May 27 to May 29. There were over 500 hundred Chinese exhibitors occupying 25,000 square feet of floor space.

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms, Prof. Ahsan Iqbal Wednesday said at least 7% Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate was required to provide proper health, education and employment opportunities to youth. He was giving his opening remarks at meeting of US-Pakistan Education, Science and Technology Sixth Working Group here at "P" Block Auditorium here. 

Mike Tabor and Esther Siegel have had a tough time settling back into their lives in Fulton County after visiting rural villages in Tanzania.

"It was like visiting another planet," Tabor said. "I just feel bad for the people."

Tabor and Siegel aren't missionaries. The married couple operates an organic farm near Needmore and their customers live in the Washington, D.C., area.

They volunteered for a two-week visit to farm villages at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro as part of the Farmer to Farmer program funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development.