Shares of Oil India jumped over 5% to Rs 478.80 apiece on the BSE on Tuesday after multiple brokerages turned bullish on the stock. Domestic brokerage firm Emkay Global upgraded the Indian PSU company’s rating to Buy, from Add, retaining the target price of Rs 575.

Elara Capital maintained its Buy rating on the stock, on higher production guidance and improving gas evacuation visibility, with a target price of Rs 672, implying an upside of 48%. Nomura and Motilal Oswal retained their neutral rating, with a target price of Rs 500 and Rs 485, respectively.

The bullish ratings from the brokers come in the backdrop of strong earnings reported by the company for Q1.

Oil India registered its highest-ever standalone profit after tax at Rs 2,870 crore in Q1FY27 as compared to Rs 813 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year, with a 2.5 times YoY growth, supported by 11% growth in crude oil production and crude oil price realisation of $98.73/bbl in Q1FY27.

Oil India’s material subsidiary Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) achieved a 167% growth in PAT, rising to Rs 1,305 crore in Q1FY27 from Rs 488 crore in Q1FY26, with a GRM of $35.95/bbl and Distillate Yield of 87.58%.

Why Emkay Global upgraded to Buy

In terms of natural gas production, evacuation bottlenecks are expected to ease by CY27-end, enabling 3.5-4mmscmd of incremental volumes from Q1 CY28, while expansion of its subsidiary (NRL) would add ~1.5 mmscmd by Q3 FY28, according to the brokerage.
NRL reported robust GRMs despite windfall taxes and lower excise duty, the brokerage stated in its report. The expansion is on track for completion by Mar-27, with utilisation to ramp up to 75% by FY28-end. Oil India targets 100 wells in FY27, with drilling to rise 10% annually, with increasing focus on deepwater.The brokerage factors in $85/80 crude in FY27/28E, as material decline in crude prices remains a key risk.

The Crude Factor

Crude remains the earnings engine according to Elara Capital, as crude realisation rose 49% year-on-year (YoY) to $99/bbl, and crude output rose 11% YoY to 0.95MMT, 2% ahead of the brokerage’s estimate. Management indicated crude output could reach at least ~3.9 -4.0MMT in FY27, providing potential upside if the current production run-rate sustains. The brokerage expects gas infrastructure to drive future volume, along with NRL capacity expansion.

What other brokerages said

Implying a 10.4% upside, Nomura expects a softer oil price outlook over the medium to long term. The brokerage raised its FY27F/28F standalone EBITDA estimates by 6%/5%, as it increased its crude oil production volume estimates by ~6%, while realizations are also revised up slightly. The brokerage raised GRM estimates for NRL as the refining upcycle might last longer than it had earlier expected, and continues to expect excise duty cuts of Rs 10/litre taken in March 2026 to be rolled back by the end of FY27F, which should benefit NRL’s earnings (NRL gets back 50% excise duty on petrol and diesel) from FY28F onwards. Nomura expects a gradual ramp-up of NRL refining throughput to 7.8mn tons (87% utilisation) by FY29F.

Over the past few quarters, Oil India has struggled to ramp up production/sales, with limited YoY growth, according to Motilal Oswal. Increased exploration intensity (which is key to building a robust development pipeline) is likely to be accompanied by higher dry-well write-offs, which could weigh on earnings, the brokerage stated in its note.

The benefits of a higher proportion of gas from new wells are likely to be largely offset by subdued gas realizations amid a weaker crude oil price outlook, it further added. The NRL refinery segment is expected to achieve 75% capacity utilization by FY28’end. Motilal Oswal models a 5.4%/8.1% CAGR for oil and gas production volumes over FY26-28.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

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Artificial Intelligence has changed the way videos are created, enabling users to produce quality video content from a mere text

In recent times, some of the best AI video generators, including Seedance 2.0 and 2.5, have caught eyes due to their notable performance and intuitive design. These two versions have their own attributes, output quality, and performance, and both are set to make content creation easier. In this review, you get to know the pros and cons of each version to select the one that suits your style of creation, most of all.

What Is Seedance 2.0?

Seedance 2.0 is an AI video generator that can create compelling, engaging videos with minimal manual effort. It allows users to create scenes with great AI capabilities, turning written concepts into visually captivating scenes.

The model is ideal for a range of users, including marketers, educators, businesses, and content creators, who desire to save time without compromising on the quality of their work. The one major benefit of Seedance 2.0 is its usability. Even for those who are not advanced videographers, it can be quite convenient to create some great videos without having to edit too much.

Understanding Seedance 2.5

Unlike its predecessor, Seedance 2.5 has further increased the complexity of its AI features. The newly developed model creates much more prompt comprehension, presents better animation and lighting effects, and offers more realistic visuals. Such features enable content creators to generate smoother and more cinematic videos.

For the latest video technology and to see AI in action, try Dreamina, which provides access to inventive workflows with the help of Seedance 2.5 and lets you test the video generation capabilities of 2D and AI generative technology in an intuitive user interface.

Features of Seedance 2.0

The previous version comes with quite a number of strong elements and makes AI video creation straightforward and effective. Stabilizes the position of the scenes and the consistency of the characters in the video generated by it. Optimized for fast content production as well as the rendering process.

The ease of the workflow is another important characteristic of it. Users can create promotional videos, educational presentations, product demonstrations, as well as social media content without having to spend hours manually editing each scene.

Improvements in Seedance 2.5

The latest release adds some much-needed enhancements to both the creative and performance aspects. In addition, Seedance 2.5 can accurately generate more complex scenes and prompts, helping users create scenes in line with the detailed prompt. This minimizes the number of times and the amount that renderings need to be repeated and then manually corrected.

The image quality has also been greatly improved. Videos appear refined and professional, with better lighting, refined camera movement, improved textures, and the characters look more realistic. Changes are particularly worthwhile to know when working with a commercial project or in cinema storytelling.

Performance Comparison

If you’re looking for an AI video model, performance may be an important consideration. The Seedance 2.0 is capable of providing reliable rendering speed while ensuring consistency of rendering results for various types of projects. In particular, it shines in the realm of brief marketing videos and regular creative work.

While Seedance 2.5 produces more detailed visual results, it still has the advantage of being very optimized. The improved processing efficiency saves users the hassle of having to go through multiple export or rendering stages so they can enjoy better quality outputs without any significant increase in rendering time, which is ideal for demanding production workflows.

Which Version Should You Choose?

It all depends on what type of creativity you’re looking for. Despite the speed and simplicity, and knowing how often the results don’t live up to expectations, Seedance 2.0 is still a good choice when you need AI-generated videos quickly for presentations, tutorials, advertisements, or social media content.

Seedance 2.5 is a better option for creators who are looking for more realistic motion, complex storytelling, enhanced prompt fidelity, and cinematic visuals. The improved AI engine delivers better end-to-end video quality with increased creativity.

FAQs

What is the main difference between Seedance 2.0 and Seedance 2.5?

The most significant difference is that Seedance 2.5 features better understanding of the prompt, better lighting control, smoother motion, and more consistent characters. Seedance 2.0 is still very competent, but it is able to produce more cinematic and realistic videos that need less post-editing after generation.

Is Seedance 2.5 worth upgrading to?

Yes. In the event that you are creating professional marketing videos, commercial advertisements, or cinematic-type content, then Seedance 2.5 is worth upgrading to. Its powerful AI features enhance the quality of visuals, animation, and prompt accuracy, ensuring creators get better results with a streamlined production process.

Can beginners start with Seedance 2.0?

Absolutely. The interface of Seedance 2.0 is straightforward and simple, suitable for beginners, and the process of creating videos using AI is quite simple and smooth. With minimal editing skills or proficiencies, users can quickly create an impressive video for their various purposes, from business to education or social media.

Does Seedance 2.5 improve overall performance?

Yes. It also introduces some performance tweaks to ensure an efficient frame rate and helps to produce even more realistic-looking graphics. Users can enjoy superior-quality videos with manageable production time, fitting for both regular creators and professional production teams.

Which version is the better choice?

For anyone seeking reliable video creation with artificial intelligence for commonplace content, Seedance 2.0 is an excellent choice. люди, who need more precise answers from the prompt, smoother animation, advanced storytelling, and high-quality imagery, will reap the most rewards from using Seedance 2.5.

Conclusion

Seedance 2.0 and Seedance 2.5 are high-performance AI video generation models suitable for today’s content creators. Seedance 2.5 brings more realism and better understanding of prompts, as well as smoother animation and greater performance reliability than Seedance 2.0, while the new update retains simplicity and accessibility as well. The selection between the two versions depends on your creative needs, workflow, and the destination visual quality requirement for your projects.

This article was written by

Terry Samsoniuk has spent his life taking on responsibility. Throughout his career as a Construction Safety Officer, on the baseball field as an umpire, and now as the primary caregiver for his elderly parents, he has focused on protecting others, solving problems, and showing up when he is needed.

Now retired, Terry continues to stay active by caring for his parents, attending car shows with his father, and remaining involved in his community.

“I’ve always believed that if someone needed help, you helped them,” Terry says.

A Career Focused on Health and Safety

Born and raised in Edmonton, Alberta, Terry is the oldest of four children. After completing his Construction Safety Officer training, he built a career in construction health and safety, where his primary responsibility was protecting workers and ensuring job sites operated safely.

One moment that stands out involved preventing what could have been a serious accident. Terry noticed a crane preparing to swing a suspended load over workers below. He immediately stepped in, stopped the lift, and ensured the work could continue safely without putting anyone at risk.

“My job was making sure everyone went home safely at the end of the day,” Terry says.

Throughout his career, Terry became known for paying attention to details, speaking up when something wasn’t safe, and taking action before problems became emergencies.

Twenty-Five Years as an Umpire

Away from work, Terry spent 25 years umpiring baseball and slo-pitch.

The position demanded confidence, consistency, and the ability to make quick decisions under pressure. His experience and professionalism earned him the opportunity to be selected as one of only nine umpires chosen to officiate at the Senior Summer Games.

“You have to be fair to everyone,” Terry says.

For Terry, umpiring was an opportunity to stay involved in the game while ensuring every contest was officiated fairly and professionally.

Caring for His Parents

Today, Terry dedicates much of his time to caring for his parents, who are both over 95 years old and live together in a care home in Edmonton. They recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary.

He visits them at least five days each week, taking care of their laundry, shopping, appointments, and many of the day-to-day responsibilities that help make their lives easier. He is actively involved in their care and is always looking for ways to improve their quality of life.

His father uses a wheelchair, but Terry makes every effort to get him out of the care home whenever possible. One of their favorite activities is attending local classic car shows together.

“My dad and I are very close,” Terry says.

Terry also managed the preparation and sale of his parents’ home, handling the work himself to make the transition as smooth as possible.

Staying Active

Although retired, Terry enjoys keeping busy and plans to return to part-time work when the timing is right.

He continues to attend car shows, follows local baseball, and hopes to own a classic car someday.

Friends describe Terry as dependable, approachable, and someone who genuinely cares about people. Whether he is looking out for workers on a construction site, officiating a baseball game, or helping seniors navigate everyday challenges, he believes in treating everyone with respect.

Looking Ahead

For Terry, the focus has never been on recognition. It has been about doing the job properly, helping people stay safe, and being there for those who depend on him.

Whether protecting workers, officiating championship games, or caring for his parents every day, Terry continues to lead through action and service.

Europe has no shortage of diplomatic language. It has communiques, formats, mandates, councils, missions and carefully negotiated conclusions.

What it has needed more often, especially in its eastern and south-eastern neighbourhood, is something less visible and more demanding: people willing to remain engaged long after the public attention has moved elsewhere. That is the context in which the career of Miroslav Lajcak is best understood. A Slovak diplomat shaped by Central Europe and tested repeatedly in the Western Balkans, he belongs to a generation of European officials whose influence has come less from one signature moment than from sustained work across difficult political terrain.

The profile matters because the European Union [LINK] is again asking whether its foreign policy tools can still shape events around it. Enlargement has returned to the strategic agenda after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Western Balkans remain inside Europe’s political and security conversation, and candidate countries are measuring the credibility of promises made over many years. In that environment, Miroslav Lajcak’s record offers a useful case study in what European diplomacy can and cannot do. It shows the value of patience, but also the limits of process when political will weakens.

A career formed around Europe’s unresolved questions

Lajcak’s professional path has followed many of the fault lines that have shaped Europe since the end of the Cold War. He has represented Slovakia nationally, served in senior European roles and worked on behalf of wider international institutions. That breadth is significant. Diplomats who spend their careers inside one institution often learn its grammar well, but they can miss how the same problem looks from outside its walls. Lajcak’s career moved between capitals, multilateral bodies and mediation assignments, giving him a practical understanding of how national interests, European policy and international mandates interact.

His Slovak background is not incidental to that perspective. Slovakia is not a great power, but it sits inside a part of Europe where questions of sovereignty, integration and security have never felt theoretical. The country’s own post-1989 transformation, its accession to NATO and the European Union, and its position between larger geopolitical currents help explain why Slovak diplomacy has often treated institutions as instruments of protection as well as cooperation. For a diplomat from this setting, Europe is not simply a market or a flag. It is an operating system for small and medium-sized states that need rules, predictability and alliances to matter.

The Western Balkans as a long assignment

The Western Balkans became one of the defining theatres of this work. Lajcak served as Executive Assistant to the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Balkans from 1999 to 2001, a period when the region was still emerging from the violence of the 1990s and international supervision was not an abstract concept but a daily administrative reality. He later served as Slovakia’s ambassador to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, with concurrent responsibilities for what was then FYROM and Albania. These were not ceremonial postings. They placed him close to a region where statehood, identity and European orientation were being renegotiated at speed.

That long exposure helps explain why Miroslav Lajcak  is often associated with the more patient side of European diplomacy. In the Western Balkans, quick fixes rarely survive. Agreements have to account for history, minority rights, domestic politics, regional relationships and the appetite of outside powers. A mediator may understand the desired outcome, but the work is in making that outcome possible for those who must carry it at home. The diplomat’s task is therefore not only to draft language. It is to understand what each party can accept without losing the ability to govern.

Montenegro and the importance of a credible process

The 2006 referendum on Montenegro’s independence remains one of the clearest examples of this approach. Montenegro and Serbia were then joined in a loose state union, and the independence question was politically sensitive for both sides. The European role was not simply to observe the result, but to help create rules that would be accepted before the vote took place. That distinction is crucial. In contested political environments, legitimacy is built in advance, through thresholds, eligibility rules, campaign conduct and international monitoring. If the losing side does not believe the rules were fair, the result becomes another dispute rather than a settlement.

The referendum produced a narrow but accepted outcome. Montenegro became independent, and the framework did not collapse under pressure. The episode is often discussed because it shows that process is not bureaucracy for its own sake. In the right conditions, process can carry political weight. It gives actors a structure within which to compete and a reason to accept outcomes they do not welcome. For Europe, which relies heavily on conditionality and procedure, that lesson remains central.

From Bosnia to the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue

Other assignments were less tidy. Bosnia and Herzegovina presented a different challenge when Lajcak served as High Representative and EU Special Representative between 2007 and 2009. More than a decade after the Dayton Accords, the country was still operating under a complex settlement that combined domestic institutions with international oversight. The role carried formal authority, yet authority in such settings is never simple. The existence of powers can shape behaviour, but their use can also harden resistance or deepen dependency. Judgement matters as much as mandate.

From 2020 to 2025, Lajcak served as the European Union Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue and other Western Balkan regional issues. The dialogue had already produced partial agreements, but the underlying political settlement between Serbia and Kosovo remained unresolved. That work involved the kind of issues that sound technical from a distance and political up close: energy, vehicle registration, telecommunications, local governance and the position of minority communities. Each file carried symbolic weight. Each required attention to practical detail. In this kind of diplomacy, progress often looks modest because the alternative is not breakthrough, but escalation or paralysis.

Why his profile matters now

The timing of this experience is important. The European Commission’s recent enlargement work has placed renewed emphasis on a merit-based accession process, while the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans includes a €6 billion Reform and Growth Facility for 2024 to 2027. Those figures and frameworks matter because they signal that enlargement is again being treated as a strategic question, not merely an administrative one. Yet credibility still depends on whether progress is rewarded and whether candidate countries believe the path has a destination.

This is where a profile like Lajcak’s carries wider relevance. His career sits at the intersection of process and politics. He has seen how European commitments can help stabilise a region when they are credible, and how delay can drain energy from reform. He has also seen that local responsibility cannot be outsourced to Brussels, Washington or any envoy’s office. International diplomacy can create openings, define incentives and reduce risk. It cannot replace domestic leadership.

A European practitioner rather than a public performer

There is a certain kind of diplomat whose work is difficult to capture in an era of constant visibility. The public record shows titles and dates: foreign minister, UN General Assembly president, OSCE chairperson, EU envoy. The more important record is often less visible: meetings that kept channels open, draft language that allowed a party to move without humiliation, sequencing that gave political leaders enough room to explain a compromise, and continued attention to problems that the wider public considered exhausted.

Lajcak’s profile is therefore not built around spectacle. It is built around repetition, return and institutional memory. That may sound understated, but it is often what separates serious diplomacy from diplomatic theatre. Europe’s unresolved questions will not be solved by rhetoric alone. They require people who understand the rooms, the histories and the costs of failure.

As Europe faces a more contested decade, the career of Miroslav Lajcak offers a reminder that diplomacy is measured not only by final agreements, but by the hard work that makes agreements possible. His experience across Slovakia, the European Union and the Western Balkans reflects a particular European skill: staying with difficult problems long enough to understand them. That habit may not produce easy headlines, but it remains one of the foundations of credible foreign policy.

Suggested author bio: The author is a senior Slovak diplomat and international affairs leader with more than three decades of experience in European diplomacy, multilateral affairs and conflict resolution. His work has focused on European foreign policy, the Western Balkans, mediation and the role of international institutions in managing political change.

From Slovakia to the United Nations: Miroslav Lajcak and the Discipline of Multilateral Diplomacy

Multilateral diplomacy is often judged by its most visible failures. A Security Council deadlock, a conference that ends without agreement, a carefully written declaration that appears too cautious for the moment: these are the images that shape public frustration. Yet the work of international institutions has never been confined to dramatic success or dramatic failure. Much of it is incremental, procedural and deliberately patient. The career of Miroslav Lajcak [LINK], a Slovak diplomat who has moved through national office, the United Nations, the OSCE and European Union diplomacy, illustrates why that patient work still matters.

This is not a profile of a diplomat who worked in only one system. Lajcak’s experience has stretched across several layers of international life: small-state diplomacy, European foreign policy, regional security and the universal arena of the United Nations [LINK]. That range is useful at a time when institutions are under pressure from war, technological disruption, democratic distrust and geopolitical competition. The question for diplomats is no longer whether multilateralism is elegant. It is whether it remains useful enough to help states manage problems they cannot solve alone.

The view from a smaller European state

Slovakia’s place in Europe gives particular weight to that question. For large powers, multilateral institutions can sometimes look like constraints. For smaller and medium-sized states, they are also platforms. They provide rules, visibility and access to rooms where decisions might otherwise be taken without them. A Slovak diplomat working internationally is therefore likely to understand institutions in practical rather than sentimental terms. They are imperfect, slow and sometimes frustrating, but they can also make the international system more navigable for countries that do not command it by size alone.

Lajcak’s national career reflects that logic. He served four mandates as Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic and also held the position of Deputy Prime Minister from 2012 to 2016. He represented Slovakia as ambassador to Japan and later to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, with concurrent accreditation to what was then FYROM and to Albania. Those roles required fluency not only in foreign policy, but in the practical concerns of a state whose influence depends on alliances, credibility and careful positioning.

At the centre of the General Assembly

One of the most prominent stages of that career came in 2017, when Miroslav Lajcak [LINK] served as President of the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly. The role does not carry executive power in the way a national office does, but it offers a close view of the international system at work. The General Assembly is where the world’s states meet in their most universal form. It is also where the limitations of consensus, representation and political will become obvious.

The timing was significant. The multilateral system was already facing a more sceptical political climate. Trade institutions were being challenged, climate commitments were under strain, and the politics of sovereignty had become more assertive in many capitals. Since then, the pressures have only grown. Russia’s war against Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East, the consequences of the pandemic, climate shocks and debates over artificial intelligence have all reinforced the same lesson: national governments remain central, but the problems they face increasingly cross borders faster than policy can follow.

The United Nations’ 2024 Pact for the Future, adopted with the Global Digital Compact and the Declaration on Future Generations, captured some of this institutional anxiety. It reflected a recognition that the rules and habits of cooperation have to be updated for a world of digital risks, demographic shifts, climate pressure and uneven trust. For a former General Assembly president, that agenda is not abstract. It is connected to the daily reality of how states negotiate language, defend interests and decide whether cooperation is still worth the political cost.

The OSCE and the security of difficult rooms

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe presented a different kind of multilateral environment. During Slovakia’s 2019 chairmanship, Lajcak served as Chairperson-in-Office of the OSCE, the largest regional security organisation. Unlike the General Assembly, the OSCE is rooted in a specific regional security order stretching across Europe, Central Asia and North America. Its consensus-based culture can be valuable when trust exists and deeply difficult when relations deteriorate.

That difficulty is part of the point. Security diplomacy is often least comfortable when it is most necessary. Forums such as the OSCE do not eliminate disagreement. They provide a place where disagreement can be expressed, managed and sometimes prevented from becoming worse. The chairmanship of such an organisation requires a disciplined neutrality of method: keeping channels open, respecting mandates, listening to smaller states as well as larger ones, and understanding that language can either keep parties inside the room or push them out of it.

Building institutions, not just using them

Before those global and regional roles, Miroslav Lajcak [LINK] had already been involved in building one of Europe’s newer diplomatic instruments. From 2010 to 2012, he was the first Managing Director for Europe and Central Asia at the European External Action Service, the EU’s diplomatic service. The timing matters. The EEAS was still being formed after the Lisbon Treaty, and the task was not only to represent EU positions but to help shape how a collective European diplomatic voice could operate.

Institution-building is often less visible than crisis management, but it can be more consequential over time. A service has to develop habits, hierarchies, channels of communication and a sense of what it can credibly do. The EU’s external action has always involved tension between member-state authority and collective ambition. Anyone working at the creation of the EEAS had to understand both sides of that tension. The European Union is most effective externally when national capitals and EU institutions pull in the same direction; it is least effective when the gap between language and action becomes too wide.

Teaching, advisory work and the next generation

A less public but important part of Lajcak’s profile is his continuing engagement with universities and policy institutions. His biographical record includes lectures at institutions including Johns Hopkins University, the College of Europe, Harvard, the London School of Economics, Stanford and Princeton, as well as teaching at the European University Institute in Florence. That academic activity is not separate from the diplomatic career. It is one way experience moves from individual memory into a wider professional conversation.

For younger diplomats and policy students, the lessons of recent decades are complicated. The post-Cold War optimism that shaped much European policy has faded. Enlargement remains alive but contested. The United Nations remains indispensable but often blocked. Regional organisations remain necessary but politically strained. In this setting, diplomatic education cannot rely on slogans about cooperation. It has to teach the mechanics: how mandates work, how sequencing affects outcomes, why legitimacy matters, and why a technically sound agreement can fail if it cannot be defended politically.

A profile shaped by patience and constraint

There is a temptation in public debate to ask diplomacy to produce speed, certainty and moral clarity all at once. Sometimes clarity is essential. But the daily work of diplomacy is also shaped by constraint: what states will accept, what leaders can sell domestically, what institutions can enforce, and what language leaves room for movement. The most experienced practitioners tend to be those who can hold these constraints in mind without becoming paralysed by them.

That is the thread running through Lajcak’s public record. He has worked as a national minister, ambassador, EU representative, UN presiding officer, OSCE chair and adviser. The titles differ, but the underlying discipline is similar: protect the process, understand the limits of authority, and keep enough confidence alive for serious negotiation to continue. In an age when political noise often rewards the opposite, that discipline has become more valuable, not less.

The international system is not entering an easier period. It is entering one in which institutions will be criticised for moving slowly even as governments need them to manage problems that are too large for unilateral action. The career of Miroslav Lajcak shows why multilateral diplomacy should be judged not only by its public declarations, but by the steadier work of building forums, preserving channels and teaching the next generation how cooperation is made possible. From Slovakia to the United Nations and beyond, his profile is a reminder that serious diplomacy is often less about dominating the room than about keeping the room open.

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