- Diplomacy, International Relations, Political Science, International Relations Theory, Security Studies, Constructivism, and 15 moreGlobal Governance, Social Ontology, Arctic Social Science, Use of force in international law and international relations, Digital Diplomacy, Public Diplomacy, Indian foreign policy, Antiquities Looting, International Negotiation, Cultural Heritage Management, Global Ethics, Arctic, Foreign Policy Analysis, Cultural Heritage, and Nation Brandingedit
Is there a strategy behind the digital disinformation campaigns attributed to the Russian government, and if so, what conceptual tools can make better sense of the objectives of the strategy and how can one build resilience against it?... more
Is there a strategy behind the digital disinformation campaigns attributed to the Russian government, and if so, what conceptual tools can make better sense of the objectives of the strategy and how can one build resilience against it? Drawing on the literature on Russian information warfare, the chapter argues that the theory of reflexive control offers a good framework for understanding how a state can be strategically influenced to pursue a pre-determined course of action in international affairs. More precisely, reflexive control creates the conditions by which one party can ‘hack’ the diplomatic game so that it can shape the preferences of the other actors towards a desired outcome.
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This edited volume, the first of its kind on the subject of digital diplomacy, brings together leading scholars and experienced policy-makers to theorize about what digital diplomacy is, assess its relationship to traditional forms of... more
This edited volume, the first of its kind on the subject of digital diplomacy, brings together leading scholars and experienced policy-makers to theorize about what digital diplomacy is, assess its relationship to traditional forms of diplomacy, examine the latent power dynamics inherent to digital diplomacy, and assess the conditions under which digital diplomacy informs, regulates, or constrains foreign policy. The volume is organized around a common theme of investigating digital diplomacy as a form of change management in the international system. By combining diverse theoretical, empirical, and policy-oriented chapters centered on international change, the book presents a comprehensive understanding of digital diplomacy while informing broader debates on the nature of change in international relations theory.
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The text summarises and discusses the major trends in the field of diplomacy, developing an innovative analytical toolbox for understanding diplomacy not as a collection of practices or a set of historical traditions, but as a form of... more
The text summarises and discusses the major trends in the field of diplomacy, developing an innovative analytical toolbox for understanding diplomacy not as a collection of practices or a set of historical traditions, but as a form of institutionalised communication through which authorised representatives produce, manage and distribute public goods. The book:
- traces the evolution of diplomacy from its beginnings in ancient Egypt, Greece and China to our current age of global diplomacy;
- examines theoretical explanations about how diplomats take decisions, make relations and shape the world;
- discusses normative approaches to how diplomacy ought to adapt itself to the twenty-first century, help remake states and assist the peaceful evolution of international order.
- traces the evolution of diplomacy from its beginnings in ancient Egypt, Greece and China to our current age of global diplomacy;
- examines theoretical explanations about how diplomats take decisions, make relations and shape the world;
- discusses normative approaches to how diplomacy ought to adapt itself to the twenty-first century, help remake states and assist the peaceful evolution of international order.
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Providing a unified theoretical framework, the contributors to this volume utilise argumentation research, broadening the concept by identifying the concerns about agency, lifeworld and shared reasoning that different strands of... more
Providing a unified theoretical framework, the contributors to this volume utilise argumentation research, broadening the concept by identifying the concerns about agency, lifeworld and shared reasoning that different strands of argumentation research have in common. Furthermore, they develop the concept of argumentative deontology in order to make sense of the processes through which argumentation comes to shape global governance.
Empirically, the book demonstrates how ideas define actors’ interests, shape their interactions with each other, and ground intentions for collective action. Normatively, it provides an excellent theoretical platform for unveiling less visible manifestations of power in global politics and thereby improves our understandings of the ethical implications of global ordering.
Empirically, the book demonstrates how ideas define actors’ interests, shape their interactions with each other, and ground intentions for collective action. Normatively, it provides an excellent theoretical platform for unveiling less visible manifestations of power in global politics and thereby improves our understandings of the ethical implications of global ordering.
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Drawing on communicative action theory, the book provides a provocative answer to the hotly contested question of how to understand the legitimacy of the use of force in international politics. The author argues that the concept of... more
Drawing on communicative action theory, the book provides a provocative answer to the hotly contested question of how to understand the legitimacy of the use of force in international politics. The author argues that the concept of 'deliberative legitimacy', understood as the non-coerced commitment of an actor to abide by a decision reached through a process of communicative action, offers the most appropriate framework for addressing this problem. The theoretical originality and empirical value of the concept of deliberative legitimacy comes fully into force with the examination of two of the most severe international crises from the post Cold War period: the 1999 NATO intervention in Kosovo and the 2003 US military action against Iraq.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has forced diplomats to embrace virtual platforms and to learn to combine virtual and physical meetings in their work. In this article, we investigate how this process has taken place and with implications for the... more
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced diplomats to embrace virtual platforms and to learn to combine virtual and physical meetings in their work. In this article, we investigate how this process has taken place and with implications for the conduct of diplomacy. Specifically, we ask how diplomats have adapted to the transition to the virtual medium, what lessons have they learned from this, and how these lessons may inform the conduct of diplomacy in the post-pandemic period? We argue that diplomacy is about to enter a new phase, which we call hybrid diplomacy, in which physical and virtual engagements are expected to integrate, complement and empower each other. We begin by distinguishing between digital adaptation, a forced process brought about by external changes, and digital adoption, a strategic decision by diplomats to use specific technologies towards specific goals. Building on the results of a survey disseminated to 105 diplomats during the pandemic, we then examine how diploma...
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Der faszinierendste und bemerkenswerteste Aspekt technologischer Umwälzungen ist ihre gleichermaßen zerstörerische wie kreative Kraft. Durch die Marginalisierung oder sogar Abschaffung bestimmter Arbeitsweisen in spezifischen... more
Der faszinierendste und bemerkenswerteste Aspekt technologischer Umwälzungen ist ihre gleichermaßen zerstörerische wie kreative Kraft. Durch die Marginalisierung oder sogar Abschaffung bestimmter Arbeitsweisen in spezifischen Tätigkeitsfeldern rufen neue Technologien einerseits ein weitverbreitetes Abwehrverhalten hervor, einen gegen diese Technologien gerichteten aktiven und andauernden Widerstand. Andererseits bilden sie die Grundlage für neue wirtschaftliche und gesellschaftliche Chancen und stimulieren dadurch neues Denken und innovative Praktiken, die diese Technologien auf lange Sicht stärken und erhalten. Inwieweit umwälzende Technologien in der Gesellschaft verankert werden, hängt daher davon ab, wie sich die Balance zwischen den von ihnen ausgelösten Trends und Gegentrends letztlich entwickelt. Diese Beobachtung könnte sich als besonders nützlich erweisen, wenn es darum geht, die Entwicklung digitaler Diplomatie und die Auswirkungen der unlängst erfolgten Einführung digital...
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INTRODUCTION: Making Sense of Digital Diplomacy. Corneliu Bjola I:DIGITAL DIPLOMACY: THE POLICY DIMENSION 1. Digital Diplomacy and International Change Management. Marcus Holmes 2. Digital Diplomacy: Between Promises and Reality. Sabrina... more
INTRODUCTION: Making Sense of Digital Diplomacy. Corneliu Bjola I:DIGITAL DIPLOMACY: THE POLICY DIMENSION 1. Digital Diplomacy and International Change Management. Marcus Holmes 2. Digital Diplomacy: Between Promises and Reality. Sabrina Sotiriu 3.'Secrecy is for Losers': Why Diplomats Should Embrace Openness to Protect National Security. Alexis Wichowski 4. Social Media and Public Diplomacy: A Comparative Analysis of the digital diplomatic strategies of the EU, U.S. and Japan in China. Corneliu Bjola & Lu Jiang. 5. America's Selfie: How the U.S. portrays itself on its digital diplomacy channels. Elad Segev and Ilan Manor II: DIGITAL DIPLOMACY: THE INSTITUTIONAL DIMENSION 6. Business as Usual? An Evaluation of British and Canadian Digital Diplomacy as Institutional Adaptation, Amanda Clarke 7. Evolution not revolution: The 'digital divide' in the American and Australian contexts. Stuart Murray 8. The International Criminal Court: Using Technology in Network Diplo...
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La diplomacia digital, entendida como el uso de tecnologias para apoyar los objetivos diplomaticos, ya no es mas un campo de especializacion en cierne en busca de equilibrio en un mundo trastornado y desafiado por el avance de las... more
La diplomacia digital, entendida como el uso de tecnologias para apoyar los objetivos diplomaticos, ya no es mas un campo de especializacion en cierne en busca de equilibrio en un mundo trastornado y desafiado por el avance de las tecnologias de los medios de comunicacion social. Es probable que la diplomacia digital penetre hasta el fondo del ADN diplomatico si los ministerios entienden la aceleracion tecnologica como una oportunidad de adaptacion proactiva, basada en el ecosistema y enfocada en la red. Si, por otro lado, la digitalizacion no logra contener el contagio emocional, el determinismo algoritmico y la entropia estrategica, es muy probable que los ministerios desaceleren sus esfuerzos de integracion de las tecnologias digitales a sus actividades
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Cyber-intelligence operations attract significant media exposure and public accusations when they come to light and they often lead to important diplomatic repercussions for the implicated states. Yet, it is not easy to respond to an... more
Cyber-intelligence operations attract significant media exposure and public accusations when they come to light and they often lead to important diplomatic repercussions for the implicated states. Yet, it is not easy to respond to an activity that is secretive, difficult to attribute to the responsible party and which is not clearly defined in international law. In the absence of a common set of rules for addressing cyber-intelligence transgressions, states have exhibited a range of formal and informal responses that appear to be ad hoc and reactive in nature. Therefore, there is a need for a comprehensive framework for understanding how and why states respond diplomatically to cyber-intelligence operations. This study addresses these questions by comparing diplomatic responses to two types of cyber-intelligence operations, sabotage and espionage. These are investigated through a dual case study of the Stuxnet worm deployed against Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility and the rising number of hacking incidents attributed to China. It is thus argued that formal and direct diplomatic responses to cyber-intelligence operations are influenced by three factors: the degree of exposure of the incident in the public sphere, the nature of the relationship between parties, and considerations regarding the constraints the response might place on future actions.
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In Corneliu Bjola and Markus Kornprobst (eds) Arguing Global Governance: Agency, Lifeworld and Shared Reasons. London: Routledge This book chapter develops an analytical framework for understanding how political tensions undermine the... more
In Corneliu Bjola and Markus Kornprobst (eds) Arguing Global Governance: Agency, Lifeworld and Shared Reasons. London: Routledge This book chapter develops an analytical framework for understanding how political tensions undermine the viability of the transatlantic security community. I argue the legitimacy of the security communities is primarily shaped by its public sphere through two critical status functions, will- and opinion-formation. Deficient performance of these two components erodes members’ confidence in the identity and institutions of the community. The empirical validity of the theoretical framework is confirmed by the analysis of the diplomatic crisis involving the European Union and the United States over the latter’s intervention in Iraq in 2003.
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Abstract Drawing on the case of Finland and its model of ‘resilience’ to digital disinformation, the article provides an original framework for understanding the logic of digital propaganda and the conditions that may facilitate an... more
Abstract Drawing on the case of Finland and its model of ‘resilience’ to digital disinformation, the article provides an original framework for understanding the logic of digital propaganda and the conditions that may facilitate an effective response. Building on recent research connecting digital propaganda to the disruption of the public spheres in democratic societies, the study argues that the logic of digital propaganda could be unpacked by examining the mechanisms that facilitate the diffusion of disinformation from the microsphere of the daily individual experience to the macrosphere of political decision-making. It is thus argued that the connection between the two spheres is enabled by the formation and political mobilization of ‘unruly’ counterpublics, that is, of arenas of textual and visual contestation of politically marginalized groups promoting issues aligned with the disinformation agenda. Using this framework, the study shows that Finland’s resilience progress has mostly occurred on the macrosphere level, where effective institutions have been applying transparent and proactive policies grounded in collaboration and research. However, these efforts are at risk of being weakened by the rise of influential counterpublics unless Finland takes further measures to protect its public sphere by reducing divisions in the microsphere.
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Secret diplomacy may at first glance appear to be the antinomy of public diplomacy. Diplomats have traditionally been discouraged from participation in the domestic or foreign politics of the state in which they exercise their functions,... more
Secret diplomacy may at first glance appear to be the antinomy of public diplomacy. Diplomats have traditionally been discouraged from participation in the domestic or foreign politics of the state in which they exercise their functions, and their official communications are, according to Articles 12 and 13 of the Havana Convention (1928), to be channelled through the host Foreign Ministry. By consequence, diplomatic studies scholars have tended to view public diplomacy as “foreign propaganda conducted or orchestrated by diplomats,” an activity which is manifestly “not diplomacy” (Berridge 2002: 17 & 125). Since the 1990s, however, scholars have observed the impact of new communication technologies on diplomatic conduct, and the necessity of multiple stakeholders from across and outside of government being able to share in the co-creation and co-delivery of policy. Thus, diplomacy is now seen as an integrated field, drawing upon a range of techniques and strategies including public diplomacy (Sofer 1998; Hocking 2006; Kelley 2010). (Less)
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How can a state react to being a target of disinformation activities by another state without losing the moral ground that it seeks to protect? This essay argues that the concept of moral authority offers an original framework for... more
How can a state react to being a target of disinformation activities by another state without losing the moral ground that it seeks to protect? This essay argues that the concept of moral authority offers an original framework for addressing this dilemma. As a power resource, moral authority enables an actor to have its arguments treated with priority by others and to build support for its actions, but only as long as its behavior does not deviate from certain moral expectations. To develop moral authority, an actor engaged in combating digital propaganda must cultivate six normative attributes:truthfulnessandprudencefor demonstrating the nature of the harmful effects of disinformation;accountability,integrity, andeffectivenessfor establishing the normative standing of the actor to engage in counter-intervention; andresponsibilityfor confirming the proportionality of the response.
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1. The Concept of Legitimacy in International Relations 2. The Moral Legitimacy of the Use of Force 3. The Legal Legitimacy of the Use of Force 4. The Deliberative Legitimacy of the Use of Force 5. Humanitarianism revisited: the NATO... more
1. The Concept of Legitimacy in International Relations 2. The Moral Legitimacy of the Use of Force 3. The Legal Legitimacy of the Use of Force 4. The Deliberative Legitimacy of the Use of Force 5. Humanitarianism revisited: the NATO intervention in Kosovo 6. Defensive necessity vs. war of choice: the United States-led military action against Iraq 7. Conclusions: Institutionalizing Deliberative Legitimacy Bibliography
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Research Interests: Propaganda, Public Diplomacy, Political Science, Information Warfare, Cold War, and 13 moreEuropean Foreign Policy, Strategic Communication, Diplomacy, European Union, Digital Communications, Communication Studies, Global Affairs, Soft Power and International Relations, Digital Diplomacy, Media and Communication Studies, NATO-Russian Relations, Disinformation, and Exploit
Drawing on the literature of technical analysis in financial markets, this article introduces an original framework and methodology for explaining and forecasting the outcome of international negotiations based on two concepts: the... more
Drawing on the literature of technical analysis in financial markets, this article introduces an original framework and methodology for explaining and forecasting the outcome of international negotiations based on two concepts: the relative strength negotiation index (rsni) and the negotiation contextual conduciveness index (ncci). By comparing the parties’ levels of interest in the negotiations, rsni serves as a powerful indicator of the direction and intensity of the momentum accompanying international negotiations. ncci, on the other hand, helps to explain why certain potential breakthroughs may fail to materialize. These insights are being asessed empirically in the case of climate change negotiations, first, by testing retrospectively the viability of the model to explain the outcomes of past climate meetings and, second, by forecasting the likelihood that a breakthrough will be achieved in the next rounds of climate talks.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has altered international diplomacy, with many negotiations now conducted in ‘virtual venues’ facilitated by videoconferencing platforms such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Webex, and Interprefy. Drawing on a survey of... more
The COVID-19 pandemic has altered international diplomacy, with many negotiations now conducted in ‘virtual venues’ facilitated by videoconferencing platforms such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Webex, and Interprefy. Drawing on a survey of diplomats with experience in virtual venue negotiation, we analyze respondents’ perceptions of efficacy, tactics, and legitimacy in these venues. We find that virtual venues not only affect the format, but also the substance of negotiations. In general, perceptions of efficacy are related to diplomats’ ability to ‘read the room’. Virtual venues also impact negotiations at the tactical level. We find that coercive approaches (including novel tactics) are more common than persuasive approaches. Overall, these venues are afforded the same legitimacy as face-to-face negotiations. We conclude that, as virtual venues will be a feature of international diplomacy for the foreseeable future, further research is required to inform increased diplomatic adaptatio...
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Summary The corona crisis is also a disinformation crisis for the global community in general, and for the European Union (EU) in particular. What is less clear is how adequate the EU’s response to the ‘infodemic’ has been. This essay... more
Summary The corona crisis is also a disinformation crisis for the global community in general, and for the European Union (EU) in particular. What is less clear is how adequate the EU’s response to the ‘infodemic’ has been. This essay exposes the dangers of disinformation for the EU, which have intensified in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and reviews relevant EU responses. It then zooms in on two challenges exacerbated by the corona crisis: one internal, revolving around the toxic effect of conspiracy theories, particularly the corona-5G hoax; and one external, relating to the public diplomacy campaigns of competing geopolitical actors, especially China. The essay argues that the future of European stability will rest not only on ensuring societal resilience to disinformation and conspiracy theories but also on designing ethically guided pre-emptive mechanisms and confronting external sources of disinformation which jeopardise European health provisions, economic recovery an...
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Modern diplomacy is extending its activities into many spheres and is itself being exposed to unprecedented influences: the factors that are shaking up our societies are having an impact on governance as well, be it digitisation, the... more
Modern diplomacy is extending its activities into many spheres and is itself being exposed to unprecedented influences: the factors that are shaking up our societies are having an impact on governance as well, be it digitisation, the emotionalised sensitivities of the public or non-diplomatic international actors. Such developments need to be absorbed by diplomacy in order for it to continue to function as part of modern governance and for it to inform both governments and the societies they represent. Governments would do well to develop forms of mediation and ways of reconciling interests. The objective must be to allow states to continue to work effectively as sovereign and legitimate actors and, at the same time, to make use of the potential inherent in the changes our countries are experiencing. With contributions by Volker Stanzel, Sascha Lohmann, Andrew Cooper, Christer Jönsson, Corneliu Bjola, Emillie V. de Keulenaar, Jan Melissen, Karsten D. Voigt, Kim B. Olsen, Hanns W. Ma...
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Summary As data fast become the ‘new oil’, the opportunities for public diplomacy to grow as a field of practice are real and game-changing. Drawing on social informatics research, this article seeks to advance our understanding of how... more
Summary As data fast become the ‘new oil’, the opportunities for public diplomacy to grow as a field of practice are real and game-changing. Drawing on social informatics research, this article seeks to advance our understanding of how digital technologies shape the context in which public diplomacy operates by reshaping the medium of public communication, blurring the boundary between foreign and domestic affairs and empowering new actors. Despite inevitable challenges, the future of public diplomacy in the digital age remains bright, as digital technologies create tremendous opportunities for public diplomacy to build stronger, more diverse and more enduring bridges between offline and online communities.
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This article: Introduces the concept of world disclosure to diplomatic studies; Advances a new logic of diplomatic action that combines pre-reflective and reflective modes of reasoning; Explains why international crises are defined by... more
This article: Introduces the concept of world disclosure to diplomatic studies; Advances a new logic of diplomatic action that combines pre-reflective and reflective modes of reasoning; Explains why international crises are defined by fractal not linear patterns; Suggests a world disclosing method for making sense of and managing international crises. Drawing on Heidegger’s concept of ‘world disclosure’, the article advances an original analytical framework for studying diplomatic crisis management. It argues that international crises are not linear but fractal developments characterised by a set of self-similar events that repeat themselves at micro and macro scales in an endless loop unless stopped. As interpretations of fractal conditions are shaped by both pre-reflective and reflective considerations, diplomatic resolutions of crises require ‘authentic’ disclosures that challenge the epistemic framework that allows crises to reproduce. Examples from recent crises, especially the one ...
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The objective of this forum is to provide a framework for intellectual exchange and debate about the role of diplomacy in negotiating global crises and the impact of such crises on the evolution of diplomatic leadership, identity and... more
The objective of this forum is to provide a framework for intellectual exchange and debate about the role of diplomacy in negotiating global crises and the impact of such crises on the evolution of diplomatic leadership, identity and method. Drawing on theories of leadership, decision-making, power and crisis management, the five contributions to this forum invite readers to reflect upon the analytical implications of theorizing crisis diplomacy.
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Summary This article invites diplomatic scholars to a debate about the identity of diplomacy as a field of study and the contributions that it can make to our understanding of world politics relative to international relations theory (IR)... more
Summary This article invites diplomatic scholars to a debate about the identity of diplomacy as a field of study and the contributions that it can make to our understanding of world politics relative to international relations theory (IR) or foreign policy analysis (FPA). To this end, the article argues that the study of diplomacy as a method of building and managing relationships of enmity and friendship in world politics can most successfully firm up the identity of the discipline. More specifically, diplomacy offers a specialized form of knowledge for understanding how to draw distinctions between potential allies versus rivals, and how to make and unmake relationships of enmity and friendship in world politics.
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Research Interests: Sociology, Ethics, Epistemology, Pragmatism, Applied Ethics, and 3 moreDiplomacy, Global Ethics, and Judgement
The article addresses an important gap in the literature on climate negotiations, namely, the question of breakthroughs: what exactly counts as breakthroughs in climate negotiations, how do you measure them empirically, and what practical... more
The article addresses an important gap in the literature on climate negotiations, namely, the question of breakthroughs: what exactly counts as breakthroughs in climate negotiations, how do you measure them empirically, and what practical implications do they have for the negotiation process? To address these questions, the article draws on market trading theory and develops a framework of negotiation breakthrough analysis for defining, recognizing and measuring negotiation breakthroughs. The article argues that breakthroughs in climate negotiations occur when the outcomes breach the resistance or support level of parties’ expectations regarding the results of climate talks. It concludes with a discussion of the broader contributions that technical analysis can make to the theory and practice of international negotiations.
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In this presentation, I discuss my current research projects on Satellite Remote Sensing and Diplomatic Crisis Management, Secret Diplomacy in the Age of Global Disclosure, and Digital Diplomacy
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In this interview, we explain the main contributions of our book, highlight a few areas of cutting-edge research for students, and outline publication plans for the New Diplomacy Studies book series with Routledge.
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In this conversation, I discuss the use of illegitimate force, the role of morality in global governance and what kind of international community we wish to build. The conversation ends with advice to early career professionals looking to... more
In this conversation, I discuss the use of illegitimate force, the role of morality in global governance and what kind of international community we wish to build. The conversation ends with advice to early career professionals looking to engage with these issues within their own work.