The ability to practice diplomacy and to manage relationships with relevant actors (i.e. states, international organizations, NGOs and multinational corporations) in the international arena is one of the defining elements of a modern state. Diplomacy has been practiced in different parts of the world since ancient times when diplomats were exchanged among nations to develop and maintain relationships and to undertake specific negotiations towards achieving strategic goals.
The 21st century is now more than a decade old, and the environment in which diplomacy takes places dynamic and rapidly changing. The world system has been convulsed severely several times since the end of the 1980s. First, the collapse of the socialist system in the early 1990s scrambled the power map of the world and set in motion US international ascendancy and a new phase of globalization and democratization. It also meant eruption of violence and foreign intervention from time to time in the area comprising the former Soviet Union. Second, the barbaric attacks on the United States by some terrorists in September 2001 in the name of Islam added new and unexpected dimensions to international diplomatic activities, to security concerns, to trade negotiations, to alliance formation, and to the sharing of knowledge and innovation. The third fundamental change to diplomacy was brought about by the recent global recession, starting from the US and then engulfing Europe and other parts of the world. Fourthly, the twentieth and twenty-first centuries have witnessed the growth of international law, particularly those relating to safeguarding human rights, preserving the environment, stopping the proliferation of nuclear weapons and addressing pressing security concerns. These have also defined the new limits of diplomacy. Finally, the cataclysmic changes that are now going on in the Arab World are enhancing democracy and human rights in some parts, indeed at a high cost, but at the same time reshaping the existing equations that the Middle East and North Africa enjoy among themselves and with the rest of the world.
Diplomacy and Statecraft third edition provides an introduction to the theory and practice of modern diplomacy, drawing on the experience of the major powers with a particular focus on Western diplomacy and foreign policy, while also examining examples from Asia and elsewhere. It contains 12 chapters and 16 case studies.
