Can the pianist Yanni do what negotiations between U.S. and Iranian diplomats have failed to accomplish: bring a little harmony to two nations that have been adversaries for 35 years?

The Senate's revelations don't pose much risk of a rupture in transatlantic ties.  Instead, the most common reaction was to praise the report as a sign of American transparency and accountability—two of the values meant to bind the West together—while many European statesmen have so far avoided saying anything at all.

I used to be asked how the US could deploy its soft power in the Middle East more effectively. That was in the days of the Iraq and Afghan wars and President George W Bush’s ill-advised warnings to the world that “you’re either with us or against us”.

An overwhelming majority of Israelis believes relations with the US have been harmed due to the bad relationship between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama, according to a Smith Research poll taken in honor of Thursday’s Jerusalem Post Diplomatic Conference.

The US Senate Intelligence Committee's summary report on the CIA's post 9-11 "enhanced interrogation techniques" – from sleep deprivation to waterboarding – used against suspected terrorists has provoked a domestic furore, but its biggest impact could be outside US shores.

The visit is designed to bolster the “special relationship” between the U.S. and the U.K., a term coined by Winston Churchill after World War II to describe the diplomatic and cultural ties between the two nations.