Diplomacy 101: Undiplomatically Speaking
Where Beliefs Clash and Stories Flash
Security Theatre and Soft Power Tests
President Xi Jinping concluded a rare multistate tour of Central Asia, finalizing new security cooperation agreements with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. The deals formalize a “regional counterterrorism architecture” under Chinese leadership, raising questions about Russia’s waning influence in its traditional backyard.
Back in Europe, France hosted a Ukraine donors' summit, securing €22 billion in fresh reconstruction pledges—though some governments privately admitted the funds will be delayed or redirected due to domestic fiscal pressures. German Chancellor Merz, in his first major diplomatic speech, emphasized that “support must be sustainable, not symbolic.”
Meanwhile, Kenya and India signed a major defense cooperation pact, expanding joint training and naval patrols in the Indian Ocean. The move reflects both nations’ ambitions to shape regional security architecture beyond traditional Western-led frameworks.