bout de papier, Vol. 16, No. 3 (1999) — Fall 1999 // Automne 1999, pp. 38–39
MODERN DIPLOMACY by R. P. Barston,
Addison Wesley Longman Limited, London
and New York, Second Edition 1997,
308 pp., $43.95
THE DIPLOMAT’S DICTIONARY by Charles
W. Freeman, Jr., United States Institute of
Peace Press, Washington, D.C., Revised
Edition 1997, 451 pp., $23.10
Dastiawnad hy Tahn Knantla
These two excellent reference works are a useful addition to every divisional and mission library. The first of them in fact should be required reading, while the second may serve as a guide to reflection as well as a source of wonderful quotations.
The work we do as diplomats is increasingly being studied — and taught — as a sub-discipline of the social sciences. Specialists in the diplomatic arts, many of them former practitioners, give courses on international relations, international law, international economics and foreign policy analysis. Their students include lawyers, bankers, journalists and politicians in addition to diplomats and other public servants. Prestigious institutions such as the London School of Economics are leaders in this field, but numerous universities in Britain, France and the United States have made diplomacy a regular part of their curriculum. Our own Canadian Foreign Service Institute was set up, in part, to fill a need for more systematic training in the principles and practice of foreign relations.
Professors need texts, and a corpus of books has appeared to assist them; Feltham’s Diplomatic Handbook and Gore- Booth’s Satow’s Guide to Diplomatic Practice are popular texts. Modern Diplomacy, now in its second edition, is an outstanding example of the genre and will be of use to diplomats everywhere. Its author, Professor R. P. Barston, teaches at the University of Cardiff, Wales. A former diplomat, Barston has previously taught at LSE as well as at other British universities.
With this book, Barston aims to show how diplomatic practice has continued to evolve to take account of changing actors and new issues in the international arena. He suggests that diplomacy may have changed more since 1960 than at any other time in history, though the new techniques are in bout de papier Vol. most cases merely modern adaptations of time-honoured methods. He notes the enhanced role of “personal diplomacy” by heads of state and government, and the proliferation of non-state actors. The growth of post-war multilateral diplomacy, observes Barston, has also seen the involvement of a wider range of domestic ministries with an interest in external relations. “The task for the foreign ministry is to establish in effect a lead position or otherwise coordinate both the formulation and implementation of international agreements. This is particularly important in technical agreements, where choice of presentation, drafting of instructions and follow-up post-conferences are especially important.”
The work we do as diplomats as a sub-discipline of the social sciences.
Barston has included in his purview the whole expanded field of modern diplomacy: international financial relations (with very useful descriptions of the IFIs), trade policy, new definitions of security, and environmental diplomacy to name some of the major ones. But he goes beyond a study of substantive topics to explore as well the context in which diplomats work and the tools they use. His book includes chapters on negotiation and diplomatic styles; on official correspondence and the extraordinary variety of formats for agreement; he even compares the organizational structures of different foreign ministries. His approach throughout is to catalogue, define and analyze, so that the work, while intended principally as a textbook, is also a valuable desk drawer companion for practitioners.
Of particular interest to Canadian readers are the case studies on the fate of the Montreal Guidelines for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Pollution (1994), and the negotiation of the U.N. agreement on Straddling and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks (1995). The first case, says Barston, illustrates “how the agenda and purposes of an international conference can be fundamentally altered and taken over by lead delegations. Conversely the case illustrates how an international organization and host government can lose control as stakeholders.” With respect to the second case, according to Barston, “a relatively unusual feature of the conference was that in contrast to the desertification or land-based pollution negotiations, it did not generally sub-divide on a collegiate basis into sub-working committees but throughout most of its main sessions met in informal consultations involving the chair or hosted by lead players”. These and other case studies offer solid, practical guidance to anyone setting out to negotiate an international agreement.
In contrast to Barston’s academic approach, Charles Freeman’s book is light reading, but a valuable companion nevertheless. His dictionary definitions are in fact nearly all quotations. They range from the purely descriptive to the wry and humorous. A few examples:
Uti possidetis: “What is currently held (possessed) by participants in a dispute or conflict”; Sphere of influence: “A geopolitical zone within which the interests and influence of a major power are acknowledged by others to be paramount and worthy of deference”; On the authority of ambassadors: “If you are to stand up for your Government you must be able to stand up to your Government”, Harold Caccia;
On the infirmities of the U.N.: ’The United Nations perfectly embodies in institutional form the tragic paradox of our age; it has become indispensable before it has become effective…”, Herbert Nicholas;
On Foreign Policy: “Diplomacy without strength behind it…may be merely an aimless exercise” ’, Lester Pearson;
“Diplomacy is the art of saying ’Nice doggie’till you can find a rock” “, Wynn Catlin.
Freeman, who now works in the private sector, had a distinguished diplomatic career. He was U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War and subsequently Assistant Secretary of Defence for International Security Affairs. In his Preface he notes that “at their best, diplomats, like the clergy, doctors, lawyers and the military, constitute a learned profession”. The Diplomat’s Dictionary is meant to be a concise compilation of the lore of statecraft and diplomacy; like Barston’s book, however, it is also a valuable reference for all those, inside and outside government, who study or practice the arts of representation and negotiation.
View the original scanned pages →
Originally published in bout de papier, Vol. 16, No. 3 (1999) — Fall 1999 // Automne 1999, pp. 38–39. Read the rest of this issue →
