& nbsp; Outlook article: Opening a New Situation in Public Diplomacy Six months ago, the "Public Diplomacy Division" was upgraded to the "Public Diplomacy Office," a change in just a few words that shows an important new direction in China's diplomatic work - public diplomacy. Wei Xin’s current title is Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Department of Information "Public Diplomacy Office." Just six months ago, the department she oversaw was still called the "Public Diplomacy Division." The upgrade from "Public Diplomacy Division" to "Public Diplomacy Office" reflects a significant new direction in China's diplomatic work—public diplomacy. "Now, all levels of leadership within the ministry have a strong awareness of public diplomacy. As the 'vanguard' of this work within the ministry, we have more and more 'opportunities' to work overtime." During the forty minutes Wei Xin spoke with our reporter, she couldn't be 'focused,' as she received as many as eight work-related calls. & nbsp; The daily work of the Public Diplomacy Office includes: hosting large-scale public diplomacy events such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Public Open Day; introducing China's foreign policy and its stance on international hotspot issues to domestic media; coordinating public diplomacy work between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other ministries; being responsible for the construction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' public information website and its 204 sub-sites, managing diplomatic forums; coordinating and guiding the public diplomacy work of various overseas embassies and consulates; conducting public diplomacy research, etc. "Our personnel has increased, from about eleven or twelve originally to sixteen or seventeen now, but the workload has doubled," she said. The New "Main Battlefield" of Diplomacy in the Internet Era Public diplomacy is a new form of diplomacy led by the government, targeting the general public, using communication and exchange as its main means, and enhancing national soft power, maintaining and promoting national interests as its fundamental goal. In the context of a world becoming increasingly 'flat' and countries becoming increasingly interdependent, public diplomacy, relative to traditional government diplomacy, has become the 'main battlefield' for governments around the world to enhance their soft power and expand their influence. The United States and European Western countries are pioneers in the practice of public diplomacy. The U.S. established the United States Information Agency in 1953, elevating public diplomacy to an important component of national diplomatic strategy. The U.S. invests as much as $1 billion annually in public diplomacy. France has consistently promoted its proud French culture, advocating the French language and French ideas worldwide. Japan also invests substantial resources in public diplomacy. According to incomplete statistics, in recent years, public diplomacy expenses account for more than 10% of Japan's diplomatic budget. Some smaller countries also actively promote public diplomacy, such as Norway's annual Nobel Peace Prize evaluation and awarding ceremony. These public diplomacy measures have, to some extent, helped these countries enhance their international status and establish a considerable level of recognition and goodwill among foreign populations. After 30 years of reform and opening up, China has gradually moved to the center of the world stage. Currently, there are 12 million people traveling abroad each year (with 46 million outbound travelers), and 24 million foreigners coming to China. With the continuous enhancement of China's comprehensive national strength and influence, and the increasingly close ties with the external world, the international community focuses on China, and the attention and participation of the domestic public in diplomacy has reached unprecedented levels. It can be said that today what happens in China often becomes a world event and can quickly become a focal point of global public opinion. Due to various historical and current reasons, Western audiences still have varying degrees of misunderstanding, distrust, and even opposition towards China. Facing these phenomena, China strives to conduct public diplomacy to let the world understand the real China, including Chinese cultural spirit, socialism with Chinese characteristics, and China's domestic and foreign policies, striving for an international public opinion environment conducive to China's development. At the same time, it aims to help the Chinese public correctly and rationally recognize China's current development stage and international environment, cultivating an open, inclusive, peaceful, and rational national mindset. Therefore, conducting effective public diplomacy directly relates to China's international image. According to our understanding, making China "more influential politically, more competitive economically, more likable in image, and more appealing morally" is an objective requirement for improving China's diplomatic layout under new circumstances. Meanwhile, continuously advancing public diplomacy is also a necessary requirement for practicing the Chinese government's people-oriented governance philosophy and building a harmonious society. Additionally, it is an important way to enhance mutual understanding and trust between China and other countries and to promote the construction of a harmonious world. China's Party and state leaders attach great importance to public diplomacy and lead by example. During visits abroad, they use various forms such as speeches, media interviews, press conferences, and exchanges with local citizens to clearly articulate China's positions and propositions on major issues, enhancing the international community's understanding of China's strategic thoughts like peaceful development, mutual benefit and win-win, and a harmonious world. Chinese diplomacy stands at a new historical starting point, shouldering new era missions, and entering a new stage of development. As Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said: Public diplomacy is now "timely, opportune, and full of potential." "The Flagship of Diplomacy" Progresses Amid Exploration "Public diplomacy is a concept originating from the West. We need to develop our own theories while learning and drawing lessons from others. Although the theoretical system is not yet complete, we must act now, exploring and practicing as we go," Wei Xin said. As the "flagship" of China's overall diplomatic efforts, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, together with other ministries, has closely focused on themes such as the 60th anniversary of the founding of New China, 60 years of New China's diplomacy, major domestic and international diplomatic activities, as well as responding to the international financial crisis and climate change. By liberating thought and pioneering进取, it actively explores new ideas and methods of public diplomacy, comprehensively advancing it in multiple layers, fields, and dimensions. Actively innovating working models, using platforms such as the G20 Leaders' Financial Summit and the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference, the Chinese delegation sets up a news center, inviting Chinese officials, experts, scholars, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and entrepreneurs to engage in lively interactions and exchanges with the media and the public, actively promoting the Chinese government's policies and responding to issues of concern from all sides. As the principal authority overseeing foreign journalist affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs fully leverages its role in guidance and coordination, collaborating with various departments and regions to comprehensively implement the "Regulations on Foreign Permanent News Agencies and Foreign Journalists." It engages in more interactions and exchanges with foreign journalists. In addition to nearly a hundred regular press conferences each year, the Ministry organizes or assists in arranging nearly 130 interview activities for foreign journalists, a number that has doubled compared to previous years. On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the founding of New China and the opening of the Shanghai World Expo, the Ministry broke conventions twice by inviting a hundred journalists from developing countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America to come to China to cover relevant activities, enhancing the understanding and friendship of the broad masses of developing countries towards China. Strengthening the mechanism construction of public diplomacy, apart from the "Public Diplomacy Office," a public diplomacy coordination mechanism has also been established to strengthen unified planning, promoting communication and exchange with related institutions. Chinese diplomatic missions abroad also actively carry out public diplomacy. Ambassadors and senior diplomats deliver speeches, publish articles in mainstream media, give interviews, and attend seminars to strengthen communication and exchanges with local figures, building trust and clarifying doubts, promoting achievements and policy stances in China's development. The missions also successfully organize large-scale public diplomacy activities such as "Open Days" for embassies and consulates, China Forums, China-themed seminars, photo exhibitions, film receptions, as well as Chinese Culture Festivals, Film Festivals, artistic performances, and youth exchanges, continuously sparking enthusiasm for perceiving and understanding China in local societies. "Now, the requirements for diplomats are getting higher. They need to be good writers and speakers, able to analyze policies and also explain them," Wei Xin said. For incumbent ambassadors, counselors, and other mid-to-high-level diplomats, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs requires them to be more proactive in conducting public diplomacy, giving more speeches and accepting media interviews aimed at the public in their host countries. Newly appointed ambassadors and counselors also receive training in public diplomacy capacity-building before taking office, including how to give interviews and deliver speeches. "The Chinese Characteristics" of Public Diplomacy Experts believe that although "public diplomacy" is a relatively new academic term, this form of diplomacy has existed in China for a long time. The Sino-US "Ping-Pong Diplomacy" was one of its classic examples, and the Beijing Olympics two years ago, along with the ongoing Shanghai World Expo, both fall under large-scale public diplomacy. The Ministry of Culture's "Happy Spring Festival," the State Council Information Office's "Perceiving China," the Confucius Institutes run by the National Hanban, and activities conducted by the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference all belong to the realm of public diplomacy. Authoritative figures believe that China's foreign policy is based on the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, adhering to peaceful development and mutual benefit, which are also the starting point and ultimate goal of China's public diplomacy. This is China's greatest advantage in public diplomacy and the biggest guarantee for its success. "China's public diplomacy mechanisms are still under construction and adjustment. Currently, the main body of public diplomacy remains the government, but there is increasing emphasis on the role of civil society," Wei Xin said. "We need to strive to open a new situation in China's public diplomacy, gradually forming a model where the government leads and multiple parties participate, creating a pattern that is comprehensive, multi-layered, and wide-ranging, promoting communication, understanding, and mutual trust between China and the rest of the world. This benefits not only China but also aligns with the interests of the entire world." Outlook Article: From Beijing Olympics to Shanghai Expo: Outstanding Highlights in Public Diplomacy Following the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Shanghai Expo, spanning half a year, is becoming another outstanding highlight in China's public diplomacy. Including French President Nicolas Sarkozy and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, among others, 20 heads of state and government attended either the opening ceremony of the Expo or presided over the opening ceremonies of their respective pavilions, a rare occurrence in Expo history, drawing significant attention to "Expo Diplomacy." The Shanghai Expo is not only a grand event in the fields of world economy, society, technology, and humanities, but also an unprecedented global diplomatic gathering. The "Shanghai Expo Diplomacy" is also the largest-scale new attempt in public diplomacy to date. With extensive media focus and millions of visitors experiencing the expo firsthand, China and the world are brought "zero-distance" apart. Within the 5.28 square kilometer area of the Shanghai Expo Park, 189 countries and 57 international organizations are gathered, resembling a vivid "global village." Here, a more genuine China is presented to the world, and a more diverse world is shown to China. The Expo has greatly stimulated the sense of ownership among Shanghai residents. Volunteers dressed in green uniforms can be seen everywhere, ready to offer assistance, and the sentiment of "everyone is a host" resonates deeply with ordinary citizens. The China International Non-Governmental Organization Cooperation Promotion Association also jointly initiated the "Green Travel to See the Expo" campaign with the U.S. Environmental Defense Fund and issued the world's first low-carbon transportation card. Each cardholder will reduce carbon emissions by one ton through the Green Travel Fund. The participation of non-governmental organizations adds a new channel that can play a beneficial role in information feedback. The Expo promotes exchanges and cooperation among non-governmental organizations on the international stage, achieving a win-win result. Several interviewed experts pointed out that whether it is the Beijing Olympics or the Shanghai Expo, both are products of China's national strength development and advantageous opportunities for expanding public diplomacy and enhancing the country's image. However, since China's public diplomacy started late, to fully leverage its role, efforts need to be made in the following areas: Firstly, the whole society needs to enhance its understanding of public diplomacy, incorporating it into the framework of the national foreign strategy and formulating China's public diplomacy strategy accordingly. As the leading force in public diplomacy, the government must strengthen leadership, coordinate uniformly, establish a unified public diplomacy leadership agency, or build a comprehensive diplomatic mechanism integrating forces from various domestic departments, regions, and fields, optimizing public diplomacy resources, and collaboratively conducting public diplomacy. Provide greater space for participation by civilian groups and social organizations, strengthening the construction of foundations, think tanks, and non-governmental organizations, supporting and assisting them in participating in international dialogues and exchanges. Increase investment in public diplomacy, allocating a certain proportion of funds from the diplomatic budget specifically for public diplomacy. Develop research plans, expand research teams, and consolidate the theoretical foundation of China's public diplomacy work. Strengthen public diplomacy education, widely conduct public diplomacy knowledge education, making public diplomacy gradually become a universal consciousness. Humbly learn from and boldly draw on advanced concepts and successful experiences from abroad, actively exploring new paths for public diplomacy with Chinese characteristics.