As the Obama administration rethinks its strategy for South Asian engagement, and Senator John Kerry assumes his duties as Secretary of State, a more "naturalized" approach to diplomacy should be considered. Despite their many differences, South Asia's acrimonious nations are tied together by ecological factors which can provide fertile ground for regional cooperation, thereby building trust in other areas and reducing chances of greater conflict.

Despite growing up in the birthplace of hip-hop, Bronx resident Ronalda Livingston traveled all the way to Germany to learn more about her borough's biggest export. "It was a mind-blowing experience," said Livingston, now 21, of her first-ever overseas experience, a visit to Berlin in 2010. "I have grown so much since the trip."

The exchanges between Santiago Zabala and Hamid Dabashi published in Al Jazeera brings about one of the crucial issues of the 21st century: the increasing process of re-westernisation (the revamping of Western ways of thinking, from Christianity to Liberalism and Marxism), de-westernisation and decoloniality in all sphere of life, politics, economy, religions, aesthetics, knowledge and subjectivity.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida), an emerging leader in the Republican Party who is considered one of the likely candidates for the 2016 US presidential race, is scheduled to meet on Wednesday in Jerusalem with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

Mayor Annise Parker has named former Houston Rockets' star Yao Ming as an Honorary Goodwill Ambassador for the city of Houston. In a Feb. 15 ceremony at City Hall, Yao was given a key to the city. Yao, who was in town to attend the NBA All-Star Game, will promote the city on the international stage.

Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke for nearly 30 minutes Sunday about the civil war in Syria and North Korea's recent nuclear test, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. The two agreed to look for a date in the next several weeks for their first meeting since Kerry took over as the top U.S. diplomat, Nuland added.

The itinerary and agenda for President Obama's trip to Israel next month is still being hammered out by teams on both sides. But the visit already has an official name, and by the end of the week, it will have a logo too. Past presidential or dignitary visits to Israel have been named, but mostly by the police, who code-named their operation to secure President George W. Bush's visit "Clear Skies" and Pope Benedict XVI's tour as "White Robe."

“IT is not going too far to say that American foreign policy has become completely subservient to tactical domestic political considerations.” This stern verdict comes from Vali Nasr, who spent two years working for the Obama administration before becoming dean of the John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.