...Azerbaijan’s desire to pursue more active public diplomacy was driven primarily by the constant concerns over falling behind Armenia in the “information war” front of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which remains to be the most important issue for Azerbaijanis. Having achieved economic success, Azerbaijan is keen to use it oil revenues in order to promote its image abroad and influence foreign audiences.

High levels of anti-Americanism in Pakistan have “handicapped” U.S. efforts to support development in the South Asian nation, according to a new study. The Center for Global Development, in a report released Monday, urged the United States to work with the World Bank and other international aid agencies with programs in Pakistan.

The following list of current, ongoing, and planned Department of Defense Science and Technology Strategic Communication (SC) programs was taken from the 2009 Strategic Communication Science and Technology Plan compiled by the Defense Research and Engineering Rapid Reaction Technology Office.

Secretary Clinton’s remarks will always strike a chord for 21st Century Statecraft and open Internet initiatives... Let’s not forget the digital uprisings that came as a result of the SOPA/PIPA protests in the United States earlier this year, topped off with the shut down of Wikipedia and Reddit among others.

President Obama's decision last year to call for the fall of the Assad regime, in which he was followed by Britain and other allies, was, it can be argued, a mistake. The reasons were understandable. First, the regime was behaving appallingly. Second, the US did not want to be behind the curve in another phase of the Arab spring, particularly as the Damascus government was, unlike the Mubarak government in Egypt, one which it had always disliked and which was tied to regional foes of America in the shape of Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Jamaican-born Dr. Claire A. Nelson, founder and president of the Institute of Caribbean Studies (ICS), will be honored by the White House today as a "Champion of Change."

On July 25, Department Secretary of State Bill Burns announced the creation of Networks of Diasporas in Engineering and Science, or NODES, at an event organized by the Office of the Science and Technology Advisor to the Secretary of State (STAS). At the same event, Under Secretary of State of Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Tara Sonenshine launched the Science, Technology, and Innovation Expert Partnership.

The U.S. State Department has recently decided to cut all funds for the George J. Mitchell Scholarship program for fiscal year 2013. Born out of the peace process in Northern Ireland in which former Sen. George Mitchell played a pivotal role, the Mitchell program at its inception was intended to strengthen and modernize the relationship between the island of Ireland and the United States.