Iran hosted the Tehran Dialogue Forum on May 18–19 with 200 delegates from 53 countries, showcasing its soft power through diplomacy while also highlighting military strength—an approach echoing the "smart power" concept of balancing dialogue and deterrence.
Iran hosted the Tehran Dialogue Forum on May 18-19 participated by 200 high-ranking delegates from 53 countries by which it showcased its diplomatic soft power while the Islamic Republic has in the past weeks also unveiled its underground bases of ballistic missiles and drones.
Joseph Samuel Nye Jr. (January 19, 1937 – May 6, 2025), American political scientist and co-founder of the international relations theory of neo-liberalism, developed the notion of soft power including cultural and academic strengths in the late 1980s distinguishing from hard power such as the military might.
In the early 2000s, he co-developed the term smart power as the ability to combine hard and soft powers to secure a successful strategy.
Although Iranian statesmen have been at loggerheads with their US counterparts since the 1979 Islamic Revolution which toppled the pro-west Shah monarchy, they appear to have implemented Nye’s smart power notion in more viable ways by hosting such dialogue forums.
Organized by Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the fourth Tehran Dialogue Forum brought in prime ministers, presidential aides, foreign ministers, and former government officials from regional countries including Azerbaijan and Armenia from South Caucasia, Afghanistan and Tajikistan from Central Asia, Oman, Qatar, Iraq, and Iraqi Kurdistan from the Persian Gulf and Middle East, and the secretary general of Shanghai Security Organization as speakers of the event.
The main message sent by convening this year’s forum was that Iran is able to organize a regional platform for discussions on key issues simultaneous with wielding its military power and while at the bargaining table in the ongoing negotiations with the US on its nuclear enrichment program.
The Iranian Health Ministry said at least 18 people were killed and 142 others injured in U.S. airstrikes carried out between 30 August 30 and 2 Se...
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that he thinks there is a chance of a peace being reached with Ukraine. He told ...
Hua Hong Semiconductor, China's second-largest contract chipmaker, is investing $2 billion to build a new fabrication plant in Wuxi, China as p...
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that he thinks there is a chance of a peace being reached with Ukraine. He told the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia that he believed there was "a chance of finding a solution," to the conflict.
The U.S. has launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iran, targeting Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) sites as Tehran retaliated against U.S. positions across the region, while Iranian officials said at least five people were killed and dozens wounded at a wedding near Sirik.
The Iranian Health Ministry said at least 18 people were killed and 142 others injured in U.S. airstrikes carried out between 30 August 30 and 2 September.
The European Union's foreign policy chief Kaia Kallas says the bloc will tighten enforcement of sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine. EU foreign ministers were meeting in Ireland following renewed Russian strikes on cities across Ukraine.
Start your day informed with the AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top stories for the 3rd of September, covering the latest developments.
The Iranian Army has again struck at U.S. bases in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates in retaliation for U.S. attacks on southern and western parts of Iran late on Tuesday, which reportedly killed 18 people and injured more than 100 others.
Georgia's economy grew by eight per cent in July, and if you're wondering what's behind the surge, the answer is the same one that's been doing the heavy lifting all year: oil.
Russia’s Rosatom and Kazakhstan Nuclear Power Plants have signed a contract to build two units at the Balkhash nuclear power plant, with a combined capacity of 2.4 gigawatts.
The Higher Presidential Committee for Church Affairs in Palestine has called on churches around the world to intervene after teachers and school staff from the West Bank were prevented from reaching Christian schools in Jerusalem.
Israel is ready to move Palestinians from Gaza as soon as the U.S. approves, the country’s Defence Minister Israel Katz has said. He told a conference hosted by Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth on Wednesday that there was “no real solution” for Gaza without migration.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment