While the administration of US President Donald Trump is distancing itself from global climate action, European Union foreign affairs ministers adopted on March 6 conclusions on EU climate and energy diplomacy as part of the implementation of the EU Global Strategy. The objective is to strengthen synergies and links between the relevant elements of EU climate diplomacy and energy diplomacy and to establish priorities for 2017, the European Council said.

A major 2013 report from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences warned that at “the very moment when China and some European nations are seeking to replicate our model of broad education,” including the humanities, the U.S. was instead “narrowing” its focus and abandoning its “sense of what education has been and should continue to be.” The paper caught the attention of policy makers, including members of Congress. 

Russia has been making the headlines of international media for a while now. But none of that had to do with a strong economy or a powerful army because Russia simply doesn't have either. Instead, it has learned to interfere through other means in the politics, media, elections and national security of other countries. [...] The new methods of Russian influence are well-known, but it seems that Western countries have turned out to be unprepared for them.

After meeting with the President of the Republic of Argentina, Mauricio Macri, the Prime Minister of Spain, Mariano Rajoy, said that relations between the two countries “have regained their traditional strength” following the State visit by the Argentine leader. He also committed to making “every effort” to ensure an agreement is reached between the European Union and MERCOSUR.

China and Italy will strengthen their cooperation in multilateral bodies, their leaders agreed during a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Italian counterpart Sergio Matterella on Wednesday. [...] The two leaders witnessed the signing of 13 cooperation agreements, which covered technology and innovation, medical science, cultural exchanges, aerospace, electronics and energy.

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence moved Monday to assuage E.U. fears about the strength of Washington's support for the union and its commitment to European security through the NATO military alliance. In meetings in Brussels, Pence said he was acting on behalf of President Donald Trump "to express the strong commitment of the United States to continued cooperation and partnership with the European Union." 

The anonymity of the internet, he added, makes it difficult to distinguish between ordinary people voicing their genuine opinions and state-sponsored trolls. “There is no smoking gun, only lots of smoke,” Mr. de Jong acknowledged.