Saturday 1 May 2010

My view now...

My opinions of diplomacy have broadened significantly as a result of this module. Before taking the module, I was under the impression that diplomacy was simply the art of conducting peaceful negotiations. Since that first lecture I have learnt that there are many aspects of diplomacy that I previously knew nothing about. For example, the huge role played NGOs, especially in areas of the environment, is vital to the success of the new diplomacy. In addition to this, I always imagined diplomacy to be a secretive and closed-off state of affairs, and now know that multilateral diplomacy and conference diplomacy are also vital to achieving success. Further to this, I was under the impression that diplomats were concerned only with negotiations, but have now seen that they are also involved in many other areas, for example, within a public diplomacy role their tasks can also include promoting a good image of the country they represent. It seems that diplomacy is a far more complex art than I first imagined, and is a vital part of a states' foreign affairs.
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3 comments:

  1. Alex1 May 2010 at 11:02

    Also, sorry this is a bit late, my internet has been down :(

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  2. Steven Curtis3 May 2010 at 15:26

    Thank you for your thoughts. Could you perhaps say something about where you now situate yourself in the debate between traditionalists (e.g., Berridge) and the more transformationalist approaches to diplomacy (e.g., Cooper, Hocking and Riordan)?

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  3. Alex11 May 2010 at 08:43

    Wanting to remain diplomatic, I would probably situate myself somewhere in the middle of the traditional vs. transformational debate. I do not believe diplomacy to be as narrow a field as Berridge, but on the other hand, I also do not agree that there can be citizen diplomats. I feel it is important to attach the concept of diplomacy to the state, as if everyone could be a diplomat it would reduce the great importance involved in the role. With that in mind however, I do feel that NGO's are carving themselves a vital role in the conduct of diplomacy and that their actions will be of huge importance for many years to come.

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