What is Diplomacy?

Governments of national states employ many methods to attain

foreign policy objectives. Their choice of method reflects the
elements of strength or influence at their disposal, their estimate of
corresponding elements arrayed against them, the importance they
attach to the objective, and their judgement of the consequences of
using one method or another in terms of immediate results and long-
term international relations. Upon these considerations a government
may choose to employ persuasion and negotiation, propaganda,
economic pressure, mediation and conciliation, invocation of
international judicial procedures, collective action through
international security agencies, threat or demonstration of force,
forceful measures short of war, war, or self-imposed isolation. The
method generally chosen to facilitate the conduct of recurrent
international transactions, to adjust differences which are susceptible
of compromise, or to explore possibilities of action in more difficult
situations, is diplomacy.

The word "diplomacy" is derived from the Greek verb "diploun"

meaning "to fold". Diplomacy, used in relation to international
politics, is the act of forwarding one's interest in relation to other
countries. The basis of diplomacy is communication between the
governments of states and the primary objective of all diplomatic
relation is the safeguarding of the interest of a diplomat's own state or
sending state. The function of diplomacy is the management of the
relations between independent states by process of negotiation and it
is essential for safeguarding the territorial, political and economic
integrity of the state.

Harold Nicolson defines it as "the ordered conduct of relations

between one group of human beings and another group alien to
themselves".

According to the Oxford Dictionary, diplomacy is "the

management of international relations by negotiations; the method by
which these relations are adjusted and managed- by ambassadors band
envoys; the business or art of the diplomatist".

Sir Earnest Satow calls it " the application of intelligence and

tact to the conduct of official relations between the governments and
independent States".

According to Wood and Scores of Columbia University,

diplomacy is "the art of resolving international difficulties peacefully.
It is also the technique or skill which reigns over the development, in
a harmonious manner, of international relations".

Diplomacy is both art and science. As the alternative to war, it is

an integral component of national and international security and
central to the effective exercise of power.
The Implementation of Foreign Policy

The conduct of a nation's foreign affairs by its diplomats is for

national power in peace what military strategy and tactics by its
military leaders are for national power in war. It is the art of bringing
the different elements of national power to bear with maximum effect
upon those points in the international situation which concern the
national interest most directly.

Diplomacy is the brains of national power, as national morale is

its soul9. Geographical location, self-sufficiency in food, raw
materials, and industrial production, of military preparedness, of size
and quality of population. In the long run, it is likely to squander the
natural assets by activating them incompletely, haltingly, and
wastefully for the nation's international objectives.

Diplomacy of high quality will bring the ends and means of

foreign policy into harmony with the available resources of national
power. By giving direction to the national effort, it will in turn
increase the independent weight of certain factors, such as industrial
potential, military preparedness, national character, and morale.

The implementation of foreign policy has two facets: the

building abroad of a favourable image of one's country and its foreign
policy, and negotiations with foreign governments.

The image which foreign governments and peoples have of

another nation, its regime, its ideology, and, and its external
objectives, is extremely important.

In 1979, Egypt tried in vain to persuade African and Arab

countries to view its recognition of Israel as a wise and necessary
step. Great Britain was more successful in restraining other
governments from supporting Argentina in the Falkland Islands War
of 1982, painting Argentina as an aggressor and a violator of one of
international society' most hallowed rules.
 Another facet for implementation of foreign policy is the
negotiation.

The most important of all the interests of states, which are the
real business of diplomacy, is independence, the very survival of the
state.

Triangular Diplomacy

If there are three parties to a conflict, triangular diplomacy - the

attempt by one party in a dispute to exploit differences between two
others - is used.

Multilateral Vs Bilateral Diplomacy

Multilateral diplomacy has become increasingly prevalent in the

twentieth century, owing to a number of factors: (1) the existence of
many problems that spill over several national boundaries and do not
lend themselves to purely bilateral solutions; (2) the proliferation of
intergovernmental organizations at the global and regional levels,
such as the United Nations and the European Community; (3) the
existence of many less developed countries that have come to rely on
the UN and other multilateral forums for the bulk of their official
diplomatic contacts.

Strains in Modern Diplomacy

The problem with open diplomacy is that diplomats cannot be

effective in a 'fishbowl' environment.

Resource Constraints

Diplomacy's potential can be limited by resource constraints,

which affect the size and quality of a country's diplomatic
establishment.
Expense

The rapid rise in the number of states since the 1960s has
required expanded diplomatic operations for many states and involves
a serious financial burden for most of them.

War

When leaders suspend negotiations to make war, the role of

diplomacy is severely limited. The use of military force implies that
the goals of the warring states are irreconcilable.

Power

While diplomacy is ongoing, military strength may be useful to

support diplomacy.

Frederick the Great, King of Prussia (1740-1786), once

remarked, 'Diplomacy without an army is like music without
instruments'. From the other perspective, Karl von Calusewitz, a
Prussian general and military philosopher of the early 19th Century, he
said, 'War is the continuation of diplomacy by other means'.