August 16

"'Know thyself'? If I knew myself, I'd run away!"

--Johann Wolfgang von Goethe; image from

VIDEO ON CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATIONS

Italian Hand Gestures Explained

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

US hopes Pakistan aid will polish image - Eric Schmitt, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "[W]hen senior officials from the White House, State Department, Pentagon and Agency for International Development hold their daily conference calls to coordinate American assistance, they are also strategizing about how that aid could help improve long-term relations with Pakistan. According to a poll conducted last month by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, 68 percent of Pakistanis have an unfavorable view of the United States. So U.S. officials hope that images of Navy and Marine Corps helicopters ferrying supplies and plucking people from rain-swollen rivers will at least begin to counteract the bad will generated by American drone strikes against militants in Pakistan. ... American officials say they are trying to rekindle the same goodwill generated when the U.S. military played a major role in responding to an earthquake in Kashmir in 2005 that killed 75,000 people.


Many of the same American and Pakistani leaders who worked together during that crisis have reunited in this calamity, including Nadeem Ahmad, a retired Pakistani lieutenant general, and Vice Adm. Michael A. LeFever, the senior American officer in Pakistan. But American officials warn that the glow from the earthquake assistance faded quickly without more enduring development programs. 'LeFever clearly understands the PR value of flood assistance, but he also knows that absent other high-profile public diplomacy efforts, the half-life of any improvement to Pakistani impressions of the U.S. will be short,' said John K. Wood, a retired Army colonel who was senior director for Afghanistan on the National Security Council in the George W. Bush and Obama administrations." Image from

MEA reaches out with Twitter to users' surprise - Times of India: "Over a month after the ministry of external affairs (MEA) debuted on Twitter, the response from denizens of the fast-growing social networking site has generally been welcoming, although tinged with some surprise that the stodgy Government of India was finally waking up to the power and reach of new media. MEA's public diplomacy division created its Twitter account, indiandiplomacy, on July 8. It has since written 94 tweets - some of them being links to press releases and speeches and others being interactions with the tweeting crowd. By August 14, there were 1,972 people who had linked up to the MEA website, purely through word of mouth and media reports."

Obama's Latest African Public Diplomacy - Philip Seib, Huffington Post: "Sometimes effective public diplomacy can be conducted through a simple and unambiguous gesture.


Such was the case when President Barack Obama recently commemorated the 50th anniversaries of 17 African nations' independence at the White House. The gesture - or really a non-gesture - was to not invite a single African head of state to the event. ... The White House event was a very visible slap at the "strongmen" Obama had criticized, and it was noticed in Africa. ... If public diplomacy involves reaching out to people rather than to governments, this was an excellent example. In terms of illustrating America's commitment to democratic governance, Obama's choice of guests sent a clear message, which he knew would be conveyed by news and social media to the larger African public." Image from

Report highlights challenges of US missions in Turkey - Today's Zaman: "A US report prepared after inspection visits to US diplomatic missions in Turkey underlines the increasing challenges facing diplomats as both Turkey's complexity and importance for Washington grow. 'Turkey has grown in complexity and importance for the United States at a faster rate than the mission's public diplomacy resources, especially people,' the report, prepared after inspections from January to March in Washington, Ankara, Adana, İstanbul and İzmir, said. 'A continuous balancing act between competing priorities is required.' According to the document, released on Friday, US diplomatic missions in Turkey manage 'the complex and very important relationship between Turkey and the United States at a time when the Turkish government is demonstrating a new level of activism, both regionally and on domestic issues.' ... Public diplomacy is also a challenge, the document says, because public opinion toward the US is largely unfavorable. Other challenges regard dealing with media, where 'sensational treatment of issues having to do with the United States is a constant risk,' and with a Turkish society that has been undergoing a transformation."

The Military Fights and All We Have to do is Shut Up – tmk, For What it's Worth. . .: A discussion of the current events that matter (and some that don't): "[B]umper-sticker-phrase we heard in the days after 9/11 was that we as Americans need to win the 'hearts and minds' of Muslims around the world.

So in that spirit, Mr. Bush dropped hundreds of pounds of food for starving Afghans before commencing the swift and (initially) successful invasion of their country. Public diplomacy in this regard was on full display when the American Navy rushed to the aid of Muslims in Indonesia after the devastating Tsunami. And it's on display today as the American Navy and Marines take a leading role in the widespread and deadly flooding in Pakistan, hoping to restore the moral image of the American military as more than just a drone campaign in Northwestern Pakistan. So with the country so focused on 'winning the hearts and minds' of Muslims around the world, how does one justify this blatantly nativist and xenophobic attack on a mosque [the construction of a Mosque on Ground Zero], one that over 60% of the country supposedly agrees with?" Image from

Obama to build American Houses in Muslim World to clean bad Amaerica image? Will it go thru fanatic brains? - RC Model Video Clips: "According to the Pew Global Attitudes Survey, 80 percent of citizens of predominantly Muslim countries have solidly negative views of the United States. NO KIDDING! Barack Obama will launch a coordinated, multi-agency program of public diplomacy. He will open 'America Houses' in cities across the Arab world. Modeled on the successful program the United States launched in Germany following World War II, America Houses would offer state-of-the-art English-language training programs, discussions, and a wide selection of current periodicals, newspapers, and literature. They would offer free Internet access and moderated programs that promote direct exchange with Americans through the use of modern information technology."

VOA Persian News Network weekly satiric program is an internet hit – Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting

Knesset Outsources US Campus Public Diplomacy to Militant Christian Zionists - Didi Remez, Intifada Palestine: "MKs [Members of Knesset] who are members of the lobby to promote relations with Christian communities around the world, concluded that the best response to the powerful show of force put on by Muslim students on campuses overseas

could not be provided by the Jewish students but, rather, by the Christian students, who are no less eager to help Israel. The lobby, which is headed by MK David Rotem (Yisrael Beiteinu), began finding and training Christian students in prestigious universities and colleges in North America and Europe. The goal is to establish non-Jewish support groups for Israel on each campus so as to have the Israeli position presented." Image from

The Blame Game - Ari Bussel, NewsBlaze: "What is the purpose of the Tirkel 'Public Commission to Examine the Maritime Incident of 31 May 2010?' The Commission headed by Israeli Judge Tirkel consists of seven members, of whom two are foreign observers with full access to all (including classified) materials. ... [T]he scope of the Commission should have been the legal aspects, but it quickly expanded in questioning and testimony into a political framework, military war doctrine and issues of public diplomacy. None of these is under the strict purview of the Commission. ... A coherent message cannot flow from Jerusalem, from this testimony, because the Public Diplomacy is improper. It is both a wasted opportunity and a theater of the ridiculous. ... The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, entrusted with Israel Public Diplomacy outside of Israel, is taking cover with respect to its failure to prepare the world during the month preceding the Turkish Terrorist Flotilla of Lies' arrival and the hours and days following. ... All roads lead to the MFA's continued Public Diplomacy failures. Do not blame the IDF."

War on Afghan drugs - Nikolai Ramensky, Oye! Times: "Speaking at the NATO-Russia Council meeting in Brussels in March 2010, Viktor Ivanov, Director of the Federal Drug Control Service, proposed creating an anti-drug coalition and providing international forces in Afghanistan with a UN mandate to destroy drug fields.

To his surprise, he met with a cool response. According to Rogozin [Dmitry Rogozin, Russia’s NATO envoy] NATO officials are discussing the results of this meeting, as well as the results of a recent Moscow conference on the fight against drug trafficking. Hosting that conference, Russia 'used public diplomacy to break the wall of silence around this rampant problem,' as Rogozin put it. Yet, he doubts that NATO would act in line with Russia’s interests." Image from

Brookings Doha Center Director Former Muslim Student Association Activist - The Global Muslim Brotherhood Daily Report: "An online biography indicates that Dr. Hamid received his B.S. and M.A. from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and a doctoral degree in politics at Oxford University, writing his dissertation on Islamist political behavior in Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco. ... Hamid served as a program specialist on public diplomacy at the State Department and a Legislative Fellow at the Office of Senator Dianne Feinstein. During 2004-5, he was a Fulbright Fellow in Jordan, researching Islamist participation in the democratic process."

RELATED ITEMS

Chinese teens sample American summer camp: One big difference the youths find: In the U.S., fun for its own sake isn't frowned upon - Ching-Ching Ni, Los Angeles Times:


At roughly $5,000 per student, American summer camp isn't affordable for the average Chinese family. Most of the students who attend are enrolled in elite high schools in the Chinese capital, and their parents have made it a priority to invest in their future. High-spending parents often have high expectations for summer programs, however, and local organizers must carefully consider just how much "fun" students should have at camp. In the United States, most people think of summer as a break from school; but in China, the hot season is more a continuation of school and learning. Image: found under Google search, "American Fun"

The End of American Optimism - Mortimer Zuckerman, Wall Street Journal: Because of a recrudescent nativism, we send home thousands upon thousands of foreign students who have gotten masters and doctoral degrees in the hard sciences at American universities. These are people who create jobs, not displace them.

How Not to Win Hearts and Minds: In a U.N. survey, 52% of Afghans said foreign aid organizations 'are corrupt and are in the country just to get rich' - William Easterly, Wall Street Journal: "In June, this newspaper broke the story of how Afghan officials were literally stuffing suitcases with aid money and flying out of the country. As a result, the House foreign aid appropriations subcommittee voted to cut $4.5 billion from the U.S. aid program to Afghanistan.

The situation in Afghanistan is not unique. Indeed, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has long been plagued by accusations of corruption and lack of transparency. An Afghan government report in 2008 (the "Kazimi report") detailed abundant corruption and suggested that aid inflows contributed to it. USAID's own report in 2009 said "corruption is now at an unprecedented scope in the country's history" and that the "tremendous size . . . [of] development assistance . . . increase[s] Afghanistan's vulnerability to corruption." The report correctly noted that part of the solution to corruption is "transparency and accountability." True, but USAID itself lacks transparency and accountability. The report fails to mention a single USAID program that has suffered from corruption. When USAID after its 2009 report was released was contacted to ask how this could be so, the USAID Press Office failed to provide any such response.

Images (1) from (2)

Taliban seeks probe into Afghanistan's civilian deaths - Sally Sara, Radio Australia News : The Taliban is calling for a joint investigation into civilian deaths in Afghanistan. The Taliban say a joint committee should be set up to investigate the rising number of civilian casualties in Afghanistan. A statement released by the Taliban says committee should include representatives from NATO forces, the Afghan government, Islamic groups and United Nations human rights agencies. Taliban leaders say civilian deaths have been used as propaganda by the western media.

Cuba's Cash-for-Doctors Program: Thousands of its health-care missionaries flee mistreatment - Maria C. Werlau, Wall Street Journal: For decades, Cuba has "exported" doctors, nurses and health technicians to earn diplomatic influence in poor countries and hard cash for its floundering economy. These "missionaries of the revolution" are well-received in host countries from Algeria to South Africa to Venezuela.

Yet those who hail Cuba's generosity overlook the uglier aspects of Cuba's health diplomacy. The regime stands accused of violating various international agreements such as the Trafficking in Persons Protocol and ILO Convention on the Protection of Wages because of the way these health-care providers are treated. Cuban doctors go abroad because at home they earn a scant $22-$25 a month. Image from

NEW ISSUE

The Hague Journal of Diplomacy (via AM)

Contents
Vol. 5, No. 3 2010
Articles:

Israel and the Holy See Negotiate: A Case Study in Diplomacy across Religions pp 213-234
Raymond Cohen

Diplomatic Persuasion: An Under-Investigated Process pp 235-261
Pauline L. Kerr

The Message and Practices of the European Union’s Public Diplomacy pp 263-287
Steffen Bay Rasmussen

Practitioner’s Perspective:

Diplomacy, Ethics and the National Interest: What are Diplomats For? pp289-297
Brian Barder

book reviews:

Kenneth A. Osgood and Brian C. Etheridge (eds.),

The United States and Public Diplomacy: New Directions in Cultural and International History

Bruce Gregory pp. 299-301

Juergen Kleiner

Diplomatic Practice: Between Tradition and Innovation

Seung-young Kim pp 302-303

Charles A. Kupchan

How Enemies Become Friends: the Sources of Stable Peace

G.R. Berridge pp 304-305


Announcement 307

The Hague Journal of Diplomacy introduces book review section in this issue.
Under the supervision of book review co-editors Maaike Okano-Heijmans and Kevin D. Stringer, the HJD book review section is now seeking interested practitioners and academics as potential reviewers for books in the areas of diplomacy, foreign policy, international relations, and international affairs. It is also interested in recommendations for relevant books from these fields.

Please contact us if you would like to be included in our reviewer pool or if you have a suggestion for one (or more) title(s) published in 2009-2010 that you think would be worthy of a review in the journal.

We look forward to your response and hope you will enjoy this exciting new section in HJD.

E-mail: hjdreviews@clingendael.nl

Online submission: http://www.edmgr.com/hjd

Information on The Hague Journal of Diplomacy
The Hague Journal of Diplomacy is the premier research journal for the study of diplomacy and its role in contemporary international relations. It publishes the best research on the theory, practice and technique of diplomacy in both its traditional state-based bilateral and multilateral forms, plus more recent forms of diplomacy such as track two diplomacy, field diplomacy and public diplomacy practiced by states and non-state entities. Each issue contains research articles and at least one piece focused on the practical aspects of diplomatic experience.

The Hague Journal of Diplomacy is published by Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, and imprint of Brill (www.brill.nl/default.aspx?partid=212&pid=24842).
Manuscripts or proposals should be submitted to the Editors Jan Melissen and Paul Sharp via http://www.edmgr.com/hjd/