Most important aspect of the New Diplomacy

There are many aspects of the New Diplomacy that have changed the conduct of diplomacy in the post-Cold War era. For me, the most important of these is the role played by NGO's. Evidence of NGO involvement in diplomatic matters over the past twenty years is wide ranging and varied, and also illustrates the necessity of their role in both international relations, and the New Diplomacy today. Within the Old Diplomacy, NGO's were relegated to the back benches of international relations, and instead of working with governments and diplomats to solve problems, had instead to wait until they had solved matters between themselves before being allowed to participate. This is no longer the case. Within the New Diplomacy, NGOs are leading the way when it comes to international affairs, as can be seen in examples such as the Ottawa Convention and the banning of anti-personnel landmines, the creation of the International Criminal Court and the treaty of Rome, and most recently with the Copenhagen Summit on climate change. In all of these cases, NGO's have led the way and have brought important issues, which may otherwise have been ignored (such as Greenpeace's push for a climate change treaty) into the forefront and back onto the political agenda. By working with groups of like-minded states, and forming coalitions, NGOs have been able to revolutionise the conduct of diplomacy today.

For more information on the Landmine ban treaty see the Satow scanned reading on weblearn, and Greenpeace.org has an extensive overview of their involvement with the Copenhagen treaty.