Engagement (diplomacy)
Encyclopedia
Engagement is applied in diplomacy as a synonym for a wider range of more specific practices of contact between an international actor and a foreign public, including public diplomacy
, communication and the deployment of international aid. It is associated with the approach to foreign policy that some have dubbed smart power
. It was the title of a 2008 anthology of essays on the future of public diplomacy published by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office
.
Since January 2009 it has been widely used by the administration of President Barack Obama
in the United States. In May 2009 the Obama administration announced the creation of a unit within the National Security Council
responsible for coordinating diplomacy, aid and international communication called the Global Engagement Directive.
Variations on 'Engagement' include 'Strategic Public Engagement' which was first seen in June 2009 in a report by the Washington-based Think Tank Center for a New American Security
entitled Beyond Bullets: A Pragmatic Strategy to Combat Violent Islamist Extremism.
The term engagement is used in both military and marketing contexts and thus has the advantage for the Obama administration of reassuring both these constituencies. Other terms might imply less neutrality or greater continuity with the approach of previous administration.
Public diplomacy
In international relations, public diplomacy or people's diplomacy, broadly speaking, is the communication with foreign publics to establish a dialogue designed to inform and influence. There is no one definition of Public Diplomacy, and may be easier described than easily defined as definitions...
, communication and the deployment of international aid. It is associated with the approach to foreign policy that some have dubbed smart power
Smart power
Smart power is a term in international relations defined by Joseph Nye as "the ability to combine hard and soft power into a winning strategy." According to Chester A. Crocker, Fen Osler Hampson, and Pamela R...
. It was the title of a 2008 anthology of essays on the future of public diplomacy published by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO is a British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom overseas, created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.The head of the FCO is the...
.
Since January 2009 it has been widely used by the administration of President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
in the United States. In May 2009 the Obama administration announced the creation of a unit within the National Security Council
United States National Security Council
The White House National Security Council in the United States is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials and is part of the Executive Office of the...
responsible for coordinating diplomacy, aid and international communication called the Global Engagement Directive.
Variations on 'Engagement' include 'Strategic Public Engagement' which was first seen in June 2009 in a report by the Washington-based Think Tank Center for a New American Security
Center for a New American Security
The Center for a New American Security is a Washington, D.C.-based think tank established in 2007 by co-founders Michèle Flournoy and Kurt M. Campbell which specializes in U.S. national security issues...
entitled Beyond Bullets: A Pragmatic Strategy to Combat Violent Islamist Extremism.
The term engagement is used in both military and marketing contexts and thus has the advantage for the Obama administration of reassuring both these constituencies. Other terms might imply less neutrality or greater continuity with the approach of previous administration.
See also
- Engagement (military)Engagement (military)A military engagement is a combat between two forces, neither larger than a division and not smaller than a company, in which each has an assigned or perceived mission...
- Engagement (marketing)Engagement (marketing)Engagement measures the extent to which a consumer has a meaningful brand experience when exposed to commercial advertising, sponsorship, television contact, or other experience....
- Public DiplomacyPublic diplomacyIn international relations, public diplomacy or people's diplomacy, broadly speaking, is the communication with foreign publics to establish a dialogue designed to inform and influence. There is no one definition of Public Diplomacy, and may be easier described than easily defined as definitions...
- Smart powerSmart powerSmart power is a term in international relations defined by Joseph Nye as "the ability to combine hard and soft power into a winning strategy." According to Chester A. Crocker, Fen Osler Hampson, and Pamela R...
External links
- Cam Simpson, ‘Obama Revamps National Security Posts,’ Wall Street Journal, 27 May 2009
- http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/pd-engagement-jul-08 PDF of Engagement: Public Diplomacy in a Globalised World (UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, London , 2008)
- http://www.cnas.org/node/975 Kristin M. Lord, John A. Nagl & Seth Rosen, Beyond Bullets: A Pragmatic Strategy to Combat Violent Islamist Extremism. (Center for a New American Security, Washington DC, 2009)