Mrs. Obama’s dress choices were often labeled “sartorial diplomacy” and “democratic,” and they were that; she made something of an art out of pairing designers with countries during state dinners or trips, wearing, for example, Mr. Khan, an Indian-American designer, to the India state dinner, and Mr. Ford, an American designer then based in London, when she dined with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace.

The U.S. Diplomacy Center will be a 40,000-square-foot state-of-the-art interactive museum and education center. Its goal, according to officials, is “to demonstrate the ways in which diplomacy and the work of U.S. diplomats in over 250 embassies, consulates, and other diplomatic missions are vital to our nation’s power, image, and ability to advance its interests around the globe.”

This year, Vietnam organized cultural exchanges, art exhibitions and Vietnamese cultural heritage days in many countries. Preparations for promoting Vietnamese culture at the APEC Summit 2017 in Vietnam were made. Ambassador Nguyen Nguyet Nga is Senior Consultant to the Secretariat of APEC 2017: “As the host of APEC 2017, Vietnam aims to promote the image and culture of Vietnam, its soft power, tradition of humanity, and cultural values. 

Connecting China and Western Europe, Poland has been tapped as a key link in the Chinese government's "Belt and Road" initiative. Chinese President Xi Jinping made a stop in Poland back in June, overseeing the signing of around 40 different trade and partnership agreements.

In 2016, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India continued to enlarge its foreign policy options and generally pursue the goal of raising the country's international profile. Over the year India exhibited more self-confidence in dealing with challenges, showed more assertiveness in defending its interests, and displayed far more flexibility in exploring compromises on issues of global concern.

The news cycle about Brazil’s abundant economic and political problems – combined with issues during the Olympics – have damaged Brazil’s national brand. Latin America’s largest country dropped to 23rd place in the Anholt-GfK Nation Brands Index. It is Brazil’s worst ranking to date. NBI rates the image of 50 countries based on interviews and panels held in several parts of the world. It evaluates nations in six different criteria: politics, culture, population, tourism, the potential for immigration, and business friendliness.