Introduction To Diplomacy

Introduction to Diplomacy
Introduction
• Diplomacy can be defined as a process between actors (diplomats,
usually representing a state) who exist within a system (international
relations) and engage in private and public dialogue (diplomacy) to
pursue their objectives in a peaceful manner. It is the established
method of influencing the decisions and behavior of foreign
governments and peoples through dialogue, negotiation, and other
measures short of war or violence.
• Diplomacy is not foreign policy and must be distinguished from it. It

may be helpful to perceive diplomacy as part of foreign policy. When a
nation-state makes foreign policy it does so for its own national
interests. And, these interests are shaped by a wide range of factors.
Introduction
• In basic terms, a state’s foreign policy has two key ingredients; its
actions and its strategies for achieving its goals. The interaction
one state has with another is considered the act of its foreign
policy. This act typically takes place via interactions between
government personnel through diplomacy.
• To interact without diplomacy would typically limit a state’s

foreign policy actions to conflict (usually war, but also via
economic sanctions) or espionage. In that sense, diplomacy is an
essential tool required to operate successfully in today’s
international system.
Introduction
• Diplomacy is the main instrument of foreign policy, which
represents the broader goals and strategies that guide a state's
interactions with the rest of the world.
• International treaties, agreements, alliances, and other

manifestations of foreign policy are usually the result of
diplomatic negotiations and processes. Diplomats may also help
shape a state's foreign policy by advising government officials.
Introduction
• Modern diplomatic methods, practices, and principles originate
largely from European customs since the 17th century. Beginning
in the early 20th century, diplomacy became increasingly
professionalized; the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic
Relations, ratified by most of the world's sovereign states,
provides a framework for diplomatic procedures, methods, and
conduct.
• Most diplomacy is now carried out by accredited career diplomats
through a dedicated political institution (such as a ministry or
department of foreign affairs), usually with the support of staff
and diplomatic infrastructure, such as consulates and embassies.
Introduction
• Diplomacy is also conducted through other offices, such as envoys
and ambassadors. The term diplomat is thus sometimes applied
broadly to diplomatic and consular personnel and foreign ministry
officials more generally.
Etymology
• The term diplomacy is derived from the 18th century French term
diplomate (“diplomat” or “diplomatist”), based on the ancient Greek
diplōma, which roughly means “an object folded in two".
• This reflected the practice of sovereigns providing a folded document to

confer some sort of official privilege; prior to invention of the envelope,
folding a document served to protect the privacy of its contents.
• The term was later applied to all official documents, such as those
containing agreements between governments, and thus became
identified with international relations.
Diplomatic Immunity
• The sanctity of diplomats has long been observed, underpinning the
modern concept of diplomatic immunity. While there have been a
number of cases where diplomats have been killed, this is normally
viewed as a great breach of honor.
• Diplomatic rights were established in the mid-17th century in Europe
and have spread throughout the world. These rights were formalized by
the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which protects
diplomats from being persecuted or prosecuted while on a diplomatic
mission.
• If a diplomat does commit a serious crime while in a host country he or
she may be declared as persona non grata (unwanted person). Such
diplomats are then often tried for the crime in their homeland.
Diplomatic Immunity
• Diplomatic communications are also viewed as sacrosanct, and
diplomats have long been allowed to carry documents across
borders without being searched. The mechanism for this is the so-
called "diplomatic bag" (or, in some countries, the "diplomatic
pouch").
• In times of hostility, diplomats are often withdrawn for reasons of
personal safety, as well as in some cases when the host country is
friendly but there is a perceived threat from internal dissidents.
Ambassadors and other diplomats are sometimes recalled
temporarily by their home countries as a way to express
displeasure with the host country. In both cases, lower-level
employees still remain to actually do the business of diplomacy.
Diplomacy in the Modern Era
• Diplomacy in the modern era, an era sometimes called the ‘long
peace’ due to the absence of major war since 1945, has deepened
and widened in complexity. Nowadays, it would be ill advised to
base a description of diplomacy on actions short of, or in response
to, war between states.
• Diplomacy today is integral to ensuring that our period of long

peace gets longer and that the world we live in is as conducive as
possible to the progress of the individual, as well as the state.
Diplomacy in the Modern Era
• As today’s world is more linked and interdependent than ever
before, effective and skillful diplomacy is vital to ensure that
humankind can navigate an ever-growing list of shared challenges
such as climate change, pandemics, transnational terrorism and
nuclear proliferation that may be our undoing if left unresolved.
• So, while you may not know the names of many of those engaged
in diplomatic endeavors, nor see much of their hard work credited
in the media, their work is more important than ever to all of us.
Conclusion
• Diplomacy has evolved greatly, coming to mean different things, to

different persons, at different times, ranging from the elegant to
the inelegant. Whatever one's definition, few could doubt that the
course and consequences of the major events of modern
international diplomacy have shaped and changed the global
world in which we live.
END

Introduction To Diplomacy

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Introduction to Diplomacy

• Diplomacy is not foreign policy and must be distinguished from it. It

• To interact without diplomacy would typically limit a state’s

• International treaties, agreements, alliances, and other

• This reflected the practice of sovereigns providing a folded document to

• Diplomacy today is integral to ensuring that our period of long

• Diplomacy has evolved greatly, coming to mean different things, to

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