President Donald Trump congratulated Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on his hard-won peace deal with leftist rebels who terrorized the South American nation for 50 years. But Trump did not explicitly endorse the plan that has divided the Colombia, left gaping questions about future U.S. financial support. [...] During a joint appearance in the East Room, Trump did pledge to continue to work with the Colombian government to target drug trafficking networks and reduce coca cultivation and cocaine production

President Trump on Monday expanded the Mexico City Policy that bans funding for abortions outside U.S. borders to include a broader range of international aid programs.The policy applies to approximately $8.8 billion in funds appropriated to the Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Department of Defense. Under previous administrations, the ban was applied on a more limited basis to $60 million in foreign aid programming.

President Trump’s decision to visit the Vatican on his first overseas trip underscores the importance of United States diplomatic relations with the Holy See. History shows that the moral persuasion, or “soft power” diplomacy, of the Holy See is an important resource for successful pursuit of American foreign policy goals. Going forward, the United States and the Holy See should work together on their common objectives of defeating Islamic extremism and promoting human rights.

Hillary Clinton mocked President Donald Trump’s Twitter diplomacy on Tuesday, warning that it’s ineffective in pressuring North Korea to stop its saber-rattling.Clinton stressed in an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour during a Women For Women International charity luncheon in New York that negotiating is key in getting the North Korean regime under control.“Negotiations are critical, but they have to be part of a broader strategy, not just thrown out on a tweet some morning

President Trump must avoid at all costs a direct military confrontation with North Korea, which has a long history of engaging in brinksmanship. The United States has been successful in defusing past crises by working in partnership with U.S. allies in the region. Today, China calls for restraint, and South Korea is urging a diplomatic solution. [...] President Trump could demonstrate his art of deal making by advancing the only solution that’s ever worked: diplomacy and engagement.

A month after Trump was elected, Republicans in Congress changed the VOA’s governing structure, replacing its independent and bipartisan board of governors with a CEO appointed directly by the president. [...] Taken together, the moves indicate that Trump is poised to turn the government news service—which reaches a global audience of 236 million every week through its radio and TV broadcasts—into a mouthpiece for his personal brand.

President Donald Trump faces his most critical week of statesmanship so far -- and it will reflect sharp changes of direction he has already wrought in US foreign policy. Trump will hold his most important meeting with a world leader yet when he welcomes Chinese President Xi Jinping to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Friday, after putting Beijing on notice that if it does not do more to rein in its ally North Korea over its nuclear program, the US will take tough action.

Glamorous, popular and passionate about fighting AIDS, Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan is Beijing’s diplomatic not-so-secret weapon spreading Chinese soft power around the world. A former singing star in the People’s Liberation Army, “Mother Peng”, as she is affectionately known in China, will be at President Xi Jinping’s side as he meets US President Donald Trump in Florida next week.