Diplomacy and Security

Diplomacy and Security

Introduction

Diplomacy derives from the Greek verb diplono meaning to fold and referred to the folding metal plates used in Roman time as formal documents. The ability to practice diplomacy is one of the defining elements of a state, and diplomacy has been practiced since the formation of the first city-states. Originally diplomats were sent only for specific negotiations, and would return immediately after their mission concluded. Diplomats were usually relatives of the ruling family or of very high rank in order to give them legitimacy when they sought to negotiate with the other state. It is a process of communications that is central to the workings of international system. In a fundamental sense, therefore, diplomacy is related to the attempt to manage and create some sort of order within a system of world politics; the object being to prevent conflict spilling over into war. To be even more specific, diplomacy at the world political level refers to a communication process that has been institutionalized and professionalized over many centuries.
The former practices and methods, states conduct their foreign relations, including the exchange of ambassadors, the dispatch of messages among official representatives and the participation in face-to-face negotiations.
Security is the degree of resistance to, or protection from, harm. It is the sense of freedom from threats, anxiety or danger. First and foremost, states are concerned with their security. States are concerned with the extent to which they feel that they are not threatened by the actions of others. This is because international politics is anarchic, in the sense that there is no world government. However, the concern for security is not restricted simply to military power. The state also needs to pay careful attention to the elements of military power, such as economic wealth, political leadership and cohesiveness, citizen motivation, access to food and raw materials, etc.

Diplomacy viewed as a process of policy-making and implementation, performs five major functions:
1. Representation; The ambassador acts as the spokesperson for the government, and serves as a channel of communication between the sending and receiving states. The embassy launches diplomatic campaigns to explain a particular policy of the sending state.
2. Information-gathering; Diplomacy requires diplomats to monitor situations on a long-term basis. This is the best way by which they can anticipate developments, and give timely warning to their home governments. The methods for obtaining information include spy activities, satellite photos, information from globally based new services, and reports from other governments.
3. Consular services are rendered by embassies promoting the interests of nationals, or by protecting individual citizens during their stay in the state of assignment. In practice, consular services mostly consist of taking care of the specific concerns of nationals, such as promoting trade interests, helping nationals who are stranded or criminally charged, and handling passports.
4. Policy advice; Diplomats constitute important sources of information during the policy-making process. Because they are on the scene, their personal impressions of leaders and policy trends in host capitals are important inputs to the process.
5. Negotiation; White in Globalization describes negotiation as arguably the most important function of the diplomatic mission. This covers a variety of activities from simple consultation known as an exchange of views to detailed negotiation on a specific issue.

According to Holsti, the objectives of diplomatic negotiation are the following:
To exchange views, probe intentions, and try to convince other governments that it would be in their interest to take certain actions, such as attending a conference, lowering tariffs, or providing diplomatic support on a particular international issue.
To stall, or create the illusion that a government is seriously interested in bargaining, even though it does not really wish to enter into an agreement.
To make propaganda, particularly at an international conference where the government can make a broad appeal to the outside public, which could have the effect of undermining the bargaining position of its opponent.
Diplomatic Immunity is a principle of international law by which certain foreign government officials are not subject to the jurisdiction of local courts and other authorities. The concept of immunity began with ancient tribes. In order to exchange information, messengers were allowed to travel from tribe to tribe without fear of harm. They were protected even when they brought bad news. Today, immunity protects the channels of diplomatic communication by exempting diplomats from local jurisdiction so that they can perform their duties with freedom, independence, and security. Diplomatic immunity is not meant to benefit individuals personally; it is meant to ensure that foreign officials can do their jobs. Under the concept of reciprocity, diplomats assigned to any country in the world benefit equally from diplomatic immunity.
The rules on diplomatic immunity are found in the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which came into force in 1964. It has some 177 parties, including the Philippines.
Non-state actors and Diplomacy
Because of the proliferation of non-state actors, there are now two tracks in diplomacy:
Track 1 diplomacy, among states and their diplomats.
Track 2 diplomacy also known as citizen diplomacy, involving INGOs (International nongovernmental organizations) such as farm organizations, churches, environmental groups, human rights advocates, and multinational corporations. In diplomacy, the most outstanding non-state actor is the MNC (Multinational corporation).
Security is a state of mind in which an individual feels safe from harm. A state believes itself secure when it feels that nothing adverse can be done to it by other states, or by other foreign non-state actors.
In the name of security, hegemonic wars have been waged, economic self-sufficiency has been sought after, crushing armaments races have been entered into, innumerable interventions into the affairs of other states have been undertaken, alliances have been formed and broken, and great religious and ideological crusades have been launched.
Strategies to preserve security
According to Roshkin and Berry, the four basic strategies to preserve security are:
1. Deterrence assumes that an enemy will not attack, if the cost of the attack outweighs the benefits. This is called the assumption of rationality in the making of cost-benefit calculations.
2. Détente Diplomacy refers to diplomacy intended to lessen tensions by convincing hostile nations to back away from war-like positions.
3. Disarmament is based on the assumption that arms cause wars. It is further based on assumption that war is learned behavior, and can be unlearned. Disarmament seeks to eradicate the expectation and tools of war. However, in the nuclear age, disarmament leads to insecurity.
4. Defense refers to the creation of conditions that would make ineffective the offense of an opponent. Defense consists of both strategies and weapons. The underlying assumption is that an opponent exists, and cannot be trusted to use peaceful means to reach its goal.
From these four basic strategies to preserve security, it seems that the best way for a state to protect itself is to analyze the nature of the opponent. If the opponent is honorable, the best strategy is disarmament. If the opponent is rational and reliable, a combination of deterrence and détente is the best strategy. If the opponent is unreliable, defense, or even an attack, is the best strategy for security.

International and National Security Relations
The meaning of "security" is often treated as a common sense term that can be understood by "unacknowledged consensus". The content of international security has expanded over the years. Today it covers a variety of interconnected issues in the world that have an impact on survival. It ranges from the traditional or conventional modes of military power, the causes and consequences of war between states, economic strength, to ethnic, religious and ideological conflicts, trade and economic conflicts, energy supplies, science and technology, food, as well as threats to human security and the stability of states from environmental degradation, infectious diseases, climate change and the activities of non-state actors.
National security is the requirement to maintain the survival of the state through the use of economic power, diplomacy, power projection and political power. The concept developed mostly in the United States of America after World War II. Initially focusing on military might, it now encompasses a broad range of facets, all of which impinge on the non military or economic security of the nation and the values espoused by the national society.
The relationship of national to international security has resulted in two opposite camps. One camp believes there is an inherent tension between national and international security. Another camp does not accept this relationship of tension. Such analysts believe that more attention should be given to societal security, because the contemporary world is characterized by the dual processes of integration and fragmentation. On the one hand, growing integration in regions like Europe has shifted the focus from the state to a larger political framework such as the European Union. At the same time, the fragmentation of certain states like the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia has created regional instability produced by new problems of borders, minorities, and organizing ideologies.

Sources:
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Leonard Mark, Stead Catherine & Smewing Conrad (2002)Public Diplomacy. The Mezzanine Elizabeth House 39 York Road London: The Foreign Policy Centre
Santiago, Miriam Defensor (2002) International Relations 927 Quezon Avenue, Quezon City Philippines: Central Professional Books, Inc.