Rizwan Mudassir
Diplomacy, the established method of influencing foreign governments and peoples, has a rich history that traces back to the post-Renaissance European state system. It has evolved from the conduct of official relations between sovereign states to encompass summit meetings, international conferences, parliamentary diplomacy, and the international activities of supranational and subnational entities, among others. This historical evolution of diplomacy is a fascinating journey that will enlighten you about its origins and development.
The term “diplomacy” is derived from the ancient Greek word “diplōma,” which referred to a folded document conferring a privilege, often a permit to travel. Later, it applied to all solemn documents issued by chancelleries, especially those containing agreements between sovereigns. In the 18th century, the term “diplomate” came to refer to a person authorized to negotiate on behalf of a state.
It’s important to note that diplomacy is not synonymous with foreign policy. While foreign policy may include the use of force or other forms of violence, diplomacy is the principal substitute for such means in statecraft. It is the peaceful application of comprehensive national power to the adjustment of differences between states, reassuring us of its role in maintaining peace in international relations.
The purpose of foreign policy is to further a state’s interests, safeguarding national independence, security, and integrity, followed by preserving a wide freedom of action for the state. On the other hand, the purpose of diplomacy is to strengthen the state, nation, or organization it serves in relation to others by advancing the interests in its charge. It aims to maximize a group’s advantages without the risk and expense of using force and preferably without causing resentment, and habitually strives to preserve peace.
Diplomacy may involve coercive threats of economic or other punitive measures or demonstrations of the capability to impose unilateral solutions to disputes by the application of military power. However, it normally seeks to develop goodwill toward the state it represents, nurturing relations with foreign states and peoples that will ensure their cooperation or their neutrality.
Diplomacy is useful even during war, as it conducts the passages from protest to negotiation, ultimatum to reprisal, and war to peace and reconciliation with other states. It builds and tends the coalitions that deter or make war, disrupts the alliances of enemies, and sustains the passivity of potentially hostile powers. Over the long term, diplomacy strives to build an international order conducive to the nonviolent resolution of disputes and expanded cooperation between states.
Diplomats, as the primary practitioners of diplomacy, play a crucial role in carrying messages, negotiating adjustments in relations, and resolving quarrels between states and peoples. Their weapons are words which are backed by the power of the state or organization they represent. The wise use of diplomats is a key to successful foreign policy, underscoring the importance of their work in the international arena.
Diplomacy plays a crucial role in international relations by serving as the principal means for peacefully managing and resolving differences between states. It is instrumental in maintaining peace, building trust, and fostering cooperation among nations. Diplomacy helps to further a state’s interests, safeguard national independence, security, and integrity, while also preserving a wide freedom of action for the state. It is the peaceful application of comprehensive national power to the adjustment of differences between states, reassuring us of its role in maintaining peace in international relations. Diplomacy also aims to maximize a group’s advantages without having the risk and expense of using force, and preferably without causing resentment, while habitually striving to preserve peace. Through the work of diplomats and diplomatic channels around the world, nations are able to communicate, negotiate, and collaborate and ultimately contributing to a more stable and interconnected world.
