How to Reduce Tension between Turkey and Greece through Sports Diplomacy

Dr. ASLI VAROL

The US arms support to Greece, the sale of F-16 jets, the establishment of a naval base in Alexandroupoli and the lifting of the embargoes against the Greek Cypriot Administration led to further strained relations between Turkey and Greece. Recently, the allegations that Greece had “radar lock” on Turkish jets performing mission flights in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean with the Russian-made S-300 Air Defense System increased the tensions. Turkey accused Greece of harassing F-16 jets using S-300 air defense systems stationed in Crete, while Greece denied the allegations. While the tension between the two neighboring countries did not decrease, Turkey and Greece mutually complained to each other to the European Union, the United Nations and NATO.

Sport as a Diplomatic Tool

Diplomacy is the main tool for implementing national foreign policy during peacetime. Moreover, diplomacy is a tool that can be used to communicate during conflict. The key features of diplomacy are communication and representation. Diplomacy is established as the first step to prevent or resolve conflicts. And also, diplomacy aids negotiations; protects citizens and other interests abroad; promotes economic, social, cultural and scientific exchange between states and governs foreign policy decisions (Trunkos  & Heere, 2017: 3).

The potential of sports diplomacy in the modern diplomatic environment is vast. Murray states that for sports diplomacy to become a regular, sustainable and meaningful feature of modern diplomacy, a dialogue must be initiated between theorists and practitioners in both fields (Murray, 2013: 12). 

Treating sports as a diplomacy platform, Trunkos and Heere list the most common strategic goals as follows (Trunkos & Heere, 2017: 5-6):

 

“(a) providing an unofficial reason and location for international leaders to meet and begin a dialogue; (b) providing insights into the host country and educating others about it; (c) bridging cultural and linguistic differences among nations and seeking common ground through sports; (d) creating a platform for new trade agreements or legislation; (e) creating awareness for the international relationship through sport ambassadors; (f) creating a legacy for the host country, improving its image in the world; and (g) using sport to provide legitimacy for a new nation.”

 

Sports have various functions in the field of diplomacy. It is clearly seen that sports have important duties in building and preserving peace. Sports diplomacy can go beyond the bridges established by official authorities and lead to the convergence of peoples. On the other hand, sport offers the opportunity to build a positive image and a strong reputation for both countries and political leaders in international communication.

Sport provides an informal reason and place for international leaders to come together and initiate dialogue. Sport gives insight into the host country and educates others about it. Sports are used to bridge cultural and linguistic differences between nations. Sports can be used to create a platform for new legislation or trade deals. Sports can be used to raise awareness in international relations through sports ambassadors. Sporting events can be used to create a legacy for the host country and improve its image in the world. Sport can be used to provide legitimacy for a new nation (Trunkos & Heere, 2017).

In a pluralistic, modern diplomatic environment, sport is a powerful soft power tool to positively attract “others” to the characteristics of the host country. Murray divides sports diplomacy into two categories, traditional sports diplomacy and a “new” networked sports diplomacy 2.0. Traditional sports diplomacy is sometimes used by governments to achieve foreign policy goals. Mega sport events offer multiple public diplomacy opportunities. Sporting events can create leadership summit opportunities for engagement beyond established foreign policy positions. Sports diplomacy 2.0 programs also emphasize government partnerships with non-state actors such as NGOs, IGOs, athletes and companies. In the twenty-first century, sports regimes, clubs, and individual celebrities can be thought of as powerful, non-state diplomatic actors. More and more states are implementing sports diplomacy 2.0 programs. Due to the rise of global terrorism, financial crises, overpopulation and resource scarcity, sports exchanges between nations, states and peoples should be encouraged (Murray, 2016).

The increasing interest of countries in sports diplomacy should not reduce sports diplomacy only to sports organizations. Sports diplomacy should deal with sports with various studies in line with diplomatic purposes. In this context, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia serve as appropriate examples. In Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia, the importance of sport and its use as an appropriate tool have been recognized by government officials. This can lead to a state's reputation in the international system. In this environment, the first scholarly articles and books focusing specifically on the general introduction to sports diplomacy were published by Polish, Czech and Slovak scholars. Likewise, the first conferences, workshops and summer schools were organized in Central European universities (Zákravský, Kobierecki, Štulajter, 2021: 412).

The History of Sports Diplomacy Dates Back to Antiquity 

It is seen that sports diplomacy has an important place in addition to ad-hoc diplomacy, multilateral diplomacy and open diplomacy in ancient times. In this sense, Murray expresses the importance given to sports in the field of politics in Antiquity as follows (Murray, 2013: 12):

 

“Since antiquity, international sports has provided a symbolic arena for polities to demonstrate various types of superiority from athletic prowess to the ideology of a particular system of state. Well aware of the reach and power of the opiate of the masses, governments have long been drawn toward sports and sporting festivals.”

 In ancient Greece, the Olympic Games were actually an indirect mechanism of conflict resolution. As a conflict resolution device, the Olympic Games were less costly than sending an army to resolve a conflict, leading the Ancient Greeks to avoid the dispersal of wealth associated with violence. The gains from conflict resolution provided the ancient Greeks with much wealth and helped create other institutions that became the foundations of Western civilization. As a signal of city-state power, the Olympics had to evolve into a powerful cultural event to be effective. The Olympics served as a meeting place and provided a kind of entertainment for the participants (Allen & Lantinova, 2013). 

Sports Diplomacy and Relationship Management 

Sports diplomacy is associated with governments whose aim is to reinforce a diplomatic message through athletes. However, sports diplomacy is associated with states that use sporting events to improve their image among global peoples, reduce tensions in diplomatic relations, or test the ground for a policy change. Because sports diplomacy transcends cultural differences and creates opportunities for alternative ways to overcome hostilities, formal dialogue and human-human relations. In short, sports diplomacy unites separate nations with a love of sports (Murray, 2013: 12). It should always be considered that sport improves relations and has a mediating function. Because the facts that sport serve peaceful purposes will also prevent extremist groups from damaging inter-communal relations.                                                                                                                                

More and more diplomatic institutions are turning to sports. Trunkos and Heere state that there are four reasons for this. First, sports and athletes can strengthen and complement a nation-state's diplomacy. For example, China's re-emergence and acceptance into the international community since the early 1970s has been closely linked to international sports. The most famous example of this is when a series of favorable encounters between Chinese and American ping-pong players led to China’s reclaiming its seat on the United Nations Security Council, Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to China, and the normalization of Sino-US diplomatic relations. This event is called “ping-pong diplomacy” in the diplomatic literature. Second, mega sport events can offer important public diplomacy opportunities to the host country. The right to host such an event is a confirmation of good international citizenship. In this case, if the diplomatic stance, image and message are formed appropriately and harmonized with positive sporting values, it is possible to reach and establish closeness to a large foreign public community. Third, sport is no longer a niche or insignificant institution under governments. Fourth, sports diplomacy gives governments considerable flexibility in testing the strengths or weaknesses of a diplomatic relationship beyond official policy positions (Trunkos & Heere, 2017). 

In sports diplomacy, it is necessary to take advantage of the opportunities offered by information and communication technologies in order to manage the relations between countries and societies. In this sense, sports diplomacy 2.0 should be strengthened. In addition, the development of relations between countries can be achieved through “sport ambassadors”. Sports ambassadors can be employed to contribute to the reputation of both their home country and the country of the institution they are athletes of. For this reason, “sport ambassadors” should be selected from all sports institutions of a country, regardless of whether they are amateur or professional. 

Sports Diplomacy Must Be Strengthened Between Turkey and Greece

There are various sports events that sports diplomacy works to reduce tensions between countries. For example, “cricket diplomacy” between Pakistan and India had been a step towards easing tensions between the two countries. After years of acrimony, suspicion and close war caused by nuclear weapons, the Kashmir crises and the scourge of terrorism, in March 2011, Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani accepted an invitation from his Indian counterpart, Manmohan Singh, to watch the semi-final match of the Cricket World Cup (Murray, 2012).

It is possible to reduce the tension that rises from time to time between Turkey and Greece through sports diplomacy. In fact, the people of the two countries share the same history and the same culture. Although there is a political and military disagreement between Turkey and Greece, there is a cultural bond that will never break. In this context, it may be beneficial to organize friendly matches with female athletes and women’s sports teams in Istanbul and Athens in this period when relations are tense. It is necessary for the presidents of the countries and the presidents of the sports clubs to watch these matches together, in order to stay away from the corrosive political discussions. Moreover, it should be accepted that the Aegean Sea and the Aegean Islands are the common heritage of Turkey and Greece, and that culture and tourism issues should be discussed instead of arming.

References

Allen, Douglas W., Lantinova, Vera (2013): “The ancient olympics as a signal of city-state strength”, Economics of Governance, Volume 14, 23-44, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10101-012-0119-5.

Murray, Stuart (2012): “Commentary: The Two Halves of Sports-Diplomacy”, Diplomacy & Statecraft, 23: 576-592, DOI: 10.1080/09592296.2012.706544.

Murray, Stuart (2013): Moving beyond the Ping-Pong table: Sports diplomacy in the moderndiplomatic environment, PD Magazine, Winter 2013, 11-16.

Murray, Stuart (2016): “Sports Diplomacy”, The SAGE Handbook of Diplomacy, Ed. Costas M. Constantinou, Pauline Kerr, Paul Sharp, SAGE Publications, London, 617-627.

Trunkos, Judit, Bob Heere (2017): “Sport Diplomacy: A Review of How Sports Can Be Used to Improve International Relationships”, Case Studies in Sport Diplomacy, Ed. by Craig Esherick, Robert E. Baker, Steven Jackson, Michael Sam, West Virginia University, FiT Publishing,  1-16.

Zákravský, Jiří, Michał Marcin Kobierecki,Ivan Štulajter (2021): “Sports Diplomacy Research in Poland, Czechia and Slovakia. Emerging Field of Study?”, Politics in Central Europe, Vol. 17, No. 3, 399-419, DOI: 10.2478/pce-2021-0017.

The Importance of Tüpraş for Turkey's Energy Diplomacy

 Dr. ASLI VAROL

Russian energy giant Gazprom announced that natural gas delivery to Bulgaria and Poland were completely stopped on April 27, 2022, due to non-compliance with the decision to pay gas payments in rubles. This situation once again showed the importance of maintaining energy diplomacy.

Russian State-owned Gazprom announced that it will stop gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland, which refuse to pay for deliveries in rubles. European Commission Chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday morning that Russia is using gas as “an instrument of blackmail”. She also stated that this situation was “unjustified and unacceptable” (European Commission, 2022). Of course, President Vladimir Putin's demand for ruble gas payments is Russia's response to sanctions, which include freezing hundreds of billions of dollars of Russian assets (Tsolova & Koper, 2022).

This step of Russia is seen as a tough move against the sanctions brought after the invasion of Ukraine. Following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war on the morning of February 24, a significant amount of US and European capital withdrew from oil and gas cooperation projects with Russia. During this period, the world's leading energy companies such as British Petroleum (BP), Norwegian National Petroleum Company (Equinor), Shell, ExxonMobil and Spanish Repsol announced that they were withdrawing from Russia.

It is a fact that there is a mutual dependence on energy in the world. Energy is a source of life in every field from daily life to heavy industry. Energy is a strategic area for countries in foreign policy and it can shape foreign policy.

Bovan, Vučenović and Perić define energy diplomacy as a growing diplomatic field aimed at ensuring energy security. According to the authors, the relationship between energy diplomacy, foreign policy and national security is complex and dynamic. Energy has entered the field of diplomacy and foreign policy as a result of its growing influence on national security and the economy (Bovan, Vučenović & Perić, 2020: 5). 

Countries should create their energy policies and energy diplomacy strategies according to the changing conditions in the world. For example, Ukraine is developing a proactive energy diplomacy strategy that faces external challenges and threats. Ukraine plays a vital role as a strategic geopolitical gas transit country for Europe (Rotar, 2018: 50).

Turkey's energy diplomacy should be sustainable and effective. Considering the geopolitical reality, crisis situations such as the Russia-Ukraine war may affect the energy sector. Energy security, control of energy resources, security of energy logistics, price increase are the main problems. States and energy companies are the leading actors in energy diplomacy. In this context, states should benefit from the expertise and competitiveness of the private sector in energy diplomacy. In times of regional crisis, such as between Russia and Ukraine, it is necessary to maintain a dialogue in the sphere of energy. When relations between states deteriorate, the private sector should take on the task of communicating.

Turkey is a transit country in energy supply for Europe. Turkey should benefit from global energy actors in diplomacy in order to achieve its goals in the field of energy, as well as its political foreign policy goals in its region. Moreover, Turkey has a strong hand in this matter. Tüpraş, which can compete with global energy companies, should represent Turkey in energy diplomacy with its experience and capacity in the field of energy. Arts patron Ömer M. Koç's Tüpraş will enable Turkey to become one of the world's giants in energy.

 

References

 

Bovan, Ana, Tamara Vučenović, Nenad Perić (2020): “Negotiating Energy Diplomacy and its Relationship with Foreign Policy and National Security”, International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Vol 10, Issue 2, 1-6. 

European Commission (2022): “Statement by Commission President von der Leyen following the announcement by Gazprom on the disruption of gas deliveries to certain EU Member States”, Brussels, 27 April 2022, 

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_22_2682.

Rotar, Nataliia (2018): “The Energy Diplomacy of Ukraine as an Effective and Powerful Tool for Improving National Energy Security”, The Copernicus Journal of Political Studies, No. 1/2018, 33–53, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12775/CJPS.2018.003.

 

Tsolova, Tsvetelia, Anna Koper (2022): “Europe decries 'blackmail' as Russia shuts off gas to Poland and Bulgaria”, Reuters, April 27, 2022, https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/gazprom-says-it-halts-gas-supplies-poland-bulgaria-payments-row-2022-04-27/.

 

Europe’s Corporate Diplomats Must Effort to End the Russia-Ukraine War

Dr. ASLI VAROL

As the world overcomes the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's invasion of Ukraine has emerged a new international crisis. In the early morning hours of February 24, 2022, Moscow declared its invasion of Ukraine as a special military operation. The USA, European countries and their allies responded to this invasion with sanctions against Russia. However, the effects of these sanctions on both the regional and global economy should be taken into account. The trade war, which started a few years ago between the USA and China, seems to spread to a global scale as an economic war with the Russia-Ukraine war. Here, the European region has an important role to play in reducing the tension between Russia and the USA.

In response to the ongoing war in Ukraine, we see that many European companies have made decisions regarding their business and investments in Russia. For example, Swedish Ikea announced that it will suspend operations in Russia and Belarus. British BP and Royal Dutch Shell also announced that they have decided to withdraw from the projects in Russia. In response, France's TotalEnergies said it would remain in Russia but would not invest more. Germany's Siemens also has significantly suspended its activities in Russia. Danish shipping company Maersk has temporarily suspended all container shipments to and from Russia. German automotive companies Volkswagen and BMW said they have stopped production in Russia and also suspended their exports to Russia. Deutsche Bank, on the other hand, emphasized that it has its own contingency plans instead of stopping its operations. There are also European companies that have announced that they will continue their activities in Russia. For example, Swiss watch manufacturer Swatch Group said it will continue its operations in Russia but will suspend exports.

In times of international crisis, the private sector should act proactively instead of being reactive. Representatives of private sector companies should play the role of mediator between states, instead of reducing employment opportunities and economic welfare in a country and increasing the crisis. In this context, the top managers of multinational companies, as corporate diplomats, must make an effort to reduce the tension in the country where there is a crisis or conflict. Especially Europe, which has experienced the destruction of the Second World War, must play a role in reducing the tension between Russia and the USA. Corporate diplomacy must be activated when interstate diplomacy cannot find a solution.

Efforts to isolate Russia from the world through sanctions and thus to end the war make it difficult to maintain trade and economic relations. Furthermore, Russia's response to technology sanctions by planning to shut down the Internet to the outside world should be taken into account. In this period, where the state diplomacy has not come a long way for now, private sector companies must act to restore international relations instead of resorting to sanctions.

Chairman of the board, CEO and various employees of the companies operate as diplomats in the global arena. Corporate diplomats work internationally on behalf of their companies (Varol, 2020). Senior managers of European companies must establish a dialogue with the Russian government, Russian companies and non-governmental organizations.

Corporate diplomats aim to help multinational corporations meet the new challenges emerging in the world and at the same time achieve the company's goals in the market, government and social context. Corporate diplomats are responsible for relations with governments and organized civil society, as well as international business strategy and implementation (Sarfati, 2012: 143). Corporate diplomats can also effectively use all the resources necessary to establish strategic communication with the foreign public (Dašić, 2011: 23).

In summary, Europe must act as a bridge between the USA, its allies and Russia. In this context, corporate diplomats from European companies must play an active role in ending the Russia-Ukraine war, and support the states in preparing the appropriate ground for the company to overcome the political uncertainties affecting its relations with its stakeholders.

 

References

Dašić, David Đ.: “Global Corporations and Diplomacy”, International Journal of Economics & Law, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2011, 21-26.

Sarfati, Gilberto: “Corporate diplomats: global managers of 21st century”, Revista de Economia & Relações Internacionais, Vol.11 (21), 2012, 137-148.

Varol, Aslı: Kurumsal Diplomasi, Cinius, Istanbul, 2020.

 

 

NFT: A New Tool for Cultural Diplomacy

 Dr. ASLI VAROL

Cultural diplomacy, in its most general definition, is the promotion of a country's cultural items abroad. Although cultural diplomacy is a field of public diplomacy, today it has expanded its borders with the participation of non-state actors in the diplomacy process. In this context, businesses, cultural institutions, NGOs, think tanks, universities, cultural communities, artists and art communities, digital communities and the media are actors of cultural diplomacy. Cultural diplomacy strengths the soft power of a country and mediates the establishment of ties between countries and societies with different cultures. With the expanding range of actors, state and non-state actors will benefit effectively from the innovations brought by digitalization.

Strengthening Soft Power 

Joseph Nye points out that the soft power of a country rests primarily on three resources. These resources are the culture, political values and foreign policies of that country (Nye, 2008: 96; Nye, 2009). Nye expresses culture as a set of practices that create meaning for a society and says that it has many manifestations. In this context, a country may have high culture appealing to the elite such as literature, art and education, and popular culture focused on mass entertainment (Nye, 2008: 96).

Examples of soft power and cultural diplomacy existed long before today. For example, it is known that after its defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the French government sought to restore the nation's shattered prestige by promoting its language and literature through the Alliance Francaise, created in 1883 (Nye, 2008: 96). Berridge and James state that cultural diplomacy is the promotion abroad of a state’s cultural achievements. In countries such as France and England, cultural diplomacy is mostly the promotion of their languages.  In cultural diplomacy, countries send cultural attachés to embassies. And also, private organizations closely associated with the diplomatic service, such as the British Council, are sometimes employed. Such organizations have their own offices and libraries in major foreign cities. Cultural diplomacy is broadly defined to include advertising achievements in the arts, humanities, social sciences, science and technology. Cultural diplomacy places special emphasis on developing ties between parallel institutions at home and abroad, for example between local and foreign universities (Berridge & James, 2003: 62).

Tokenization of Cultural Heritage Objects

Digitization has also revolutionized the art world. The emergence of digital artworks and the growth of the NFT (Non-fungible token) market has turned the art world's attention to crypto artworks. Using blockchain technology, NFTs turn digital artworks into registerable and tradable assets. However, NFTs have unique identities that no token can copy; they cannot be divided and reproduced. In short, NFT can be defined as a unit of data on the blockchain that represents ownership of a unique digital item such as a sound file, text or image. The interest in NFT works of art paves the way for the cultural elements of the countries to be present in the digital world by tokenizing. In this context, NFTs are emerging as new tools in cultural diplomacy.

In South Korea, the Kansong Art and Culture Foundation planned to tokenize the National Treasure No. 70 Hunminjeongeum Haerye to raise funds for the foundation. The Kansong Art and Culture Foundation operates the country's first private museum, the Kansong Art Museum, which was founded in 1938. The 33-page book from the Joseon period details the proclamation of Hangeul, the Korean writing system, and the uses of the letters. Also named Memory of the World by UNESCO, the copy is recognized as an invaluable piece of cultural heritage that demonstrates why King Sejong of Joseon created the Korean writing system for humans (Yuna, 2021a). In late July 2021, the Kansong Foundation tokenized National Treasure No. 70 Hunminjeongeum Haerye to raise funds to operate the foundation. Thus, the book was tokenized as NFT and became the first national treasure to be traded on a blockchain platform (Yuna, 2021b).

UAE has prepared the first NFT stamps in the region to promote its national identity on the global platform. To commemorate the UAE's National Day 2021, Emirates Post Group pioneered the printing of postage stamps as the first company in the region to issue NFT stamps. Four different NFT stamps were issued to coincide with the country's Golden Jubilee 2021 celebration. Each of these four different NFT stamps carries a distinct design that focuses on the UAE national theme. UAE envisioned these innovative NFT stamps to have a digital twin on the blockchain and be sold as digital collectibles linked to their physical stamp counterpart (Office of Public and Cultural Diplomacy, 2021).

As it is understood, presenting the NFT version of a country's cultural heritage and promoting a country's national identity through NFT are important steps for cultural diplomacy in the digitalized and globalized world.

 

References

Berridge, G.R., Alan James (2003): A Dictionary of Diplomacy, Second Edition, New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Nye, Joseph S., Jr. (2008): “Public Diplomacy and Soft Power”, The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 616, March 2008, 94-109.

Nye, Joseph S., Jr. (2009): “Get Smart Combining Hard and Soft Power”, Foreign Affairs, Vol. 88, No. 4 (July/August 2009), Published by: Council on Foreign Relations, 160-163.

Office of Public and Cultural Diplomacy (2021): “Emirates Post unveils region’s first NFT Stamp”, 29 November 2021, UAE, https://opcd.ae/emirates-post-unveils-regions-first-nft-stamp/.

Yuna, Park (2021a): “Kansong Art and Culture Foundation to tokenize national treasure as NFT”, Jul 22, 2021, The Korea Herald, http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20210722000897.

Yuna, Park (2021b): “Art Center Nabi, Kansong Foundation launches heritage NFT Project”,  Aug 7, 2021, The Korea Herald, http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20210805000824.

Sustainable Diplomacy and Oikoumene

 Dr. ASLI VAROL

Diplomacy basically refers to the process of formal communication and negotiation between states. However, in formal relations between states, various groups in society such as religious communities cannot make their voices heard. Sustainable diplomacy exists to enable different groups to interact with the global community by participating in the diplomacy process.                     

Sustainable diplomacy was conceptualized by David Wellman. Sustainable diplomacy aims to enable religious communities to play an active role in foreign policy and diplomacy by bringing an ecological realism-centered perspective to religious communities. Wellman suggests using a new language in diplomacy alongside the state language. In addition, sustainable diplomacy expresses an “ecumenical” worldview by transcending the nation-state borders (Wellman, 2004). 

With the developments in information and communication technology, it is possible to create a world state where borders are eliminated, differences are accepted with tolerance, conflicts come to an end and ecological sensitivity is taken into account. So, Oikoumene can be a world that can actually be lived in. In recent years, especially the climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic have shown that all people may have to deal with the same problems at the same time and struggle together to survive. The COVID-19 pandemic, which first reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan, soon caused all people on our planet to unite around the same goal.  

The emergence of sustainable diplomacy dates back to the 20th century and its conceptualization to the 21st century. However, it is seen that there are practices in the sense of sustainable diplomacy in Byzantine diplomacy. The Byzantine Empire benefited from the power of religious propaganda and religious conversion to ensure the sustainability of its diplomatic relations. In this situation, it is seen that the religion factor was an effective means of persuasion in the imperial communication (Varol, 2021: 94). 

Wellman states in his book titled “Sustainable Diplomacy: Ecology, Religion and Ethics in Muslim-Christian Relations” that he deals with sustainable diplomacy in the context of examining the modern political relationship between Spain and Morocco (Wellman, 2004). This relationship has built bridges between political, religious, economic, racial, ecological and cultural differences. Therefore, Wellman states that the practice of sustainable diplomacy requires dialogue with multiple stakeholders. Because the work of negotiation, relationship building and conflict resolution through sustainable diplomacy should lead to many voices being heard (Wellman, 2010: 25). 

Sustainable diplomacy work should deal with both the oikos policy of its own country and the oikoumene, that is, the whole world. The actors who should be tasked with community building across transnational borders are members of and are shaped by both communities (Wellman, 2010: 41). 

The globalization of trade will require the circulation of the global currency in the near future.  Today’s cryptocurrency (virtual currency) can function as the currency of Oikoumene. In the future, national currencies will be replaced by a global currency. In fact, although the global currency seems new for today, the solidus of the Byzantine Empire became the first global currency by circulating in various states and regions around the world. 

Gregory states that the Byzantine gold coin solidus, or nomisma, which circulated beyond the borders of the Empire, was described as the "medieval" dollar. Solidus has not lost anything of its value for about 700 years. It is even known that the Arabian Caliphate used Byzantine money, called the bezant, instead of minting gold coins. Gregory also states that the solidus was also widely used in Europe and was respected by the kings of Northern Europe as a sign of their wealth and power (Gregory, 2020: 246). 

It is seen that national measures are insufficient in managing current global issues. Therefore, it is now necessary to provide global cooperation and take measures on a global scale. In this context, individuals should go beyond the boundaries of the oikos and participate in activities as members of the oikoumene.

 

  

References

 

Gregory, Timothy E.: Bizans Tarihi, Translation: Esra Ermert, Yapı Kredi, Istanbul, 2020.

 

Varol, Aslı: Bizans Diplomasisi: İmparatorluk İletişimi ve Stratejiler, Cinius, Istanbul, 2021.

 

Wellman, David Joseph: Sustainable Diplomacy: Ecology, Religion and Ethics in Muslim-Christian Relations, Palgrave MacMillan, New York, 2004.

 

Wellman, David Joseph: “The Promise of Sustainable Diplomacy: Refining the Praxis of Ecological Realism”, Sustainable Diplomacies, Ed. Costas M. Constantinou, James Der Derian, Palgrave MacMillan, New York, 2010, 25-45.

 

 

Wissenschaftsdiplomatie

Dr. ASLI VAROL

Globale Themen wie Entwicklungen in den Informations- und Kommunikationstechnologien, Weltraumforschung, Klimawandel, Energie und COVID-19-Impfstoffstudien zeigen, dass wissenschaftliche Studien bei der Gestaltung der Außenpolitik wirksam sein sollten. Aus diesem Grund sollte die Wissenschaft immer berücksichtigt werden, um neue Beziehungen aufzubauen und bestehende Beziehungen zu stärken und gleichzeitig die außenpolitischen Ziele von Ländern festzulegen. Gemeinsame wissenschaftliche Studien und technologische Unterstützung sollten zur Aufrechterhaltung der internationalen Kommunikation beitragen. Stipendien für Wissenschaftler auf internationaler Ebene, Austauschprogramme unabhängiger wissenschaftlicher Institute und Universitäten staatliche Unterstützung fallen in den Rahmen der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie. Für die Nachhaltigkeit der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie ist es wichtig, dass Industrieländer in den Bereichen Wissenschaft, Technologie und Wirtschaft Wissenschaftsattachés und Diplomaten in andere Länder entsenden.

 Grenzen sind der Wissenschaft egal

Wissenschaft produziert Lösungen, indem sie Grenzen aufhebt. Denn Wissenschaft transzendiert die Muster aller Länder, aller Ideologien und aller Identitäten. Daher ist Wissenschaftsdiplomatie eine Gelegenheit, die angespannten Beziehungen zwischen den Ländern zu heilen.

Wissenschaft bietet ein nicht-ideologisches Umfeld für Partizipation und freien Gedankenaustausch zwischen Menschen, unabhängig von ihrer kulturellen, nationalen oder religiösen Herkunft. Wissenschaftsdiplomatie zielt darauf ab, die Symbiose zwischen den Interessen und Motivationen der wissenschaftlichen und außenpolitischen Gemeinschaften zu stärken. In der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie ist es wichtig, klar zu sein, wenn die Wissenschaft endet und die Politik beginnt (The Royal Society, 2010: 15-16).

Felder der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie 

Das Konzept der „Wissenschaftsdiplomatie“, das während des Kalten Krieges in den Vordergrund rückte, wurde in den 1990er Jahren geprägt. Es versteht sich jedoch, dass Wissenschaft und Diplomatie für die Gestaltung von Wahrnehmungen und vorherrschenden Weltanschauungen wichtig sind und im Laufe der Geschichte zur Stärke und Widerstandsfähigkeit von Nationen und Imperien beigetragen haben. Bekanntlich wurden im Alten Orient, in China und Indien große Fortschritte in Medizin, Astronomie, Ingenieurwesen und Mathematik gemacht. Der weitere wissenschaftliche Fortschritt setzte sich im Mittelmeerraum fort, wo griechische Denker wie Pythagoras, Hippokrates, Platon, Aristoteles, Euklid, Archimedes und Ptolemäus die Zusammenhänge zwischen Wissenschaft, Macht und Politik klarer machten. Die Kombination von Wissenschaft und Diplomatie existiert seit Tausenden von Jahren in der griechisch-römischen Zeit und später in der islamischen Welt, in Europa und Amerika (Copeland, 2016: 630-633).

Laut der von der Royal Society und AAAS veröffentlichten Studie „New Frontiers in Science Diplomacy: Navigating the change balance power“ kann Wissenschaftsdiplomatie auf die Rolle von Wissenschaft, Technologie und Innovation in drei verwandten Bereichen sinnvoll angewendet werden (The Royal Society, 2010: 15):

•  Wissenschaft in der Diplomatie: Unterstützung außenpolitischer Ziele durch wissenschaftliche Beratung.
•  Diplomatie für die Wissenschaft: Erleichterung der internationalen Wissenschaftskooperation.
• Wissenschaft für Diplomatie: Nutzung der Wissenschaftskooperation zur Verbesserung der internationalen Beziehungen.

 Wissenschaft als Soft Power Tool

Van Langenhove sagt, dass Wissenschaft und Technologie als potenzielle Instrumente für Soft Power-Politiken wahrgenommen werden. Denn es wird akzeptiert, dass Wissenschaftler Vertrauen zwischen Nationen oder Kulturen aufbauen, indem sie über die Grenzen des Staates hinausgehen. Es wird jedoch argumentiert, dass die Sprache der Wissenschaft dazu beiträgt, Lösungen für politische Probleme zu präsentieren (Van Langenhove, 2016: 27).

Becker stellt fest, dass die Wissenschaftsdiplomatie Deutschland und Israel nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg wieder näher gebracht habe. Durch Wissenschaftsdiplomatie können Brücken zwischen Russland, den USA und China gebaut werden. Becker definiert Wissenschaftsdiplomatie als internationale Politik, die wissenschaftliche Expertise einbezieht, internationale Kooperation nutzt und daraus neue Handlungspotenziale ableitet (Becker, 2021).

Das Verständnis von Wissenschaftsdiplomatie ist die Verbindung von Außenpolitik, Wissenschaft, Citizen-Science und Wissenschaftskommunikation. Becker stellt fest, dass Deutschland ein Wissenschaftssystem bestehend aus Universitäten und Forschungseinrichtungen habe. Als Beispiele seien in diesem Sinne die Max-Planck- Gesellschaft und die Leibniz-Gemeinschaft genannt, wie die Humboldt-Stiftung und der Deutsche Akademische Austauschdienst – die Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, die alle durch Vereinbarungen und Verträge in engen Beziehungen miteinander verbunden sind mit Organisationen auf der ganzen Welt (Becker, 2021).

Entwicklung der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie 

Wissenschaftler, akademische Institutionen, Politiker, Diplomaten, Außenministerien, multilaterale Institutionen, Organisationen des Privatsektors, NGOs sind Akteure der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie. Copeland stellt jedoch fest, dass die Perspektiven und Interessen des öffentlichen Sektors, des Privatsektors, der NGOs und der akademischen Gemeinschaft in Bezug auf Wissenschaft und Technologie, F&E (Forschung und Entwicklung) und Innovation nicht immer kompatibel oder komplementär sind. Weil sie häufiger konkurrierend oder widersprüchlich sind. So ist beispielsweise die Aufrechterhaltung des ausschließlichen Eigentums und der Kontrolle über geistiges Eigentum im Bereich der Grundlagenforschung und -technologie ein übergeordnetes Ziel des Privatsektors (Copeland, 2016: 634).

Copeland bietet mehrere Vorschläge zur Verbesserung der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie. Zunächst sollten die wissenschaftlichen und technologischen Kapazitäten in diplomatischen und multilateralen Institutionen ausgebaut werden. Wenn keine wissenschaftlichen und technologischen Kapazitäten vorhanden sind, sollten diese ebenfalls geschaffen werden. Zugängliche, leichter verständliche Wissenschaftskommunikation sollte entwickelt werden. Institutionelle Verbindungen und öffentlich-private Partnerschaften zwischen Regierungen, Unternehmen, Denkfabriken, Universitäten und NGOs sollten besser ausgestattet und ermutigt werden, von der internationalen wissenschaftlichen und technologischen Zusammenarbeit zu profitieren. Mit verbesserter Planung und engerer Koordination können internationale Forschungseinrichtungen, Wissenschaftsakademien und zwischenstaatliche Wissenschaftsnetzwerke einen größeren Beitrag zur Erreichung dieser Ziele leisten. Es muss ein rigoroses Benchmarking, Monitoring und Evaluierung geben, um die Leistung in der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie und der internationalen Wissenschaft und Technologie zu verbessern (Copeland, 2016: 635).

Nationale Akademien und wissenschaftliche Organisationen spielen eine wichtige Rolle in der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie, insbesondere wenn die offiziellen politischen Beziehungen schwach oder angespannt sind. Denn die Scientific Community kann neue oder andere Arten von Partnerschaften vermitteln. Der Kreis der an diesen Bemühungen beteiligten Akteure sollte auf Nichtregierungsorganisationen, multilaterale Organisationen und andere informelle Netzwerke ausgeweitet werden. Dialogbereiche können in der Wissenschaftsdiplomatie ausgebaut werden. Wissenschaftsdiplomaten sollten gefördert werden. Dafür sollten jungen Wissenschaftlerinnen und Wissenschaftlern Chancen und Karriereanreize geboten werden, sich bereits in der frühesten Phase ihrer Karriere in politischen Prozessen zu engagieren (The Royal Society, 2010: 17).

Die Wissenschaftsdiplomatie bietet einem Land eine wichtige Chance, sich einen internationalen Ruf zu verschaffen. Unser Planet hat heute mit vielen globalen Problemen zu kämpfen. Es ist eine Tatsache, dass Länder, die wissenschaftliche Studien zur Überwindung dieser Probleme durchführen, Respekt und Ansehen gewinnen werden. Auch wissenschaftliche Kooperationen sind notwendig, um politische und militärische Konflikte zwischen Ländern zu reduzieren. Genau wie die Kunst ist die Sprache der Wissenschaft universell. Wissenschaftliche Daten sollten zum Wohle des gesamten Planeten zur Verfügung gestellt werden. Wissenschaftsdiplomatie ist ein Feld, das Gesellschaften näher zusammenbringt.

 

 Literaturverzeichnis 

Becker, Katja (2021): “Mehr Wissenschaftsdiplomatie!”, Zeit Campus, November 2021, https://www.zeit.de/2021/47/wissenschaft-diplomatie-internationale-beziehungen-austausch?utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F. 

Copeland, Daryl (2016):  “Science Diplomacy”, The SAGE Handbook of Diplomacy, Ed. by Costas M. Constantinou, Pauline Kerr, Paul Sharp, SAGE Publications, London, 2016, 628-641.

The Royal Society (2010): New Frontiers in Science Diplomacy: Navigating the changing balance power,  January 2010, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Science Policy Centre, London. 

Van Langenhove, Luk (2016): “Multilateral EU Action through Science Diplomacy”, The EU Global Strategy: going beyond effective multilateralism?, Ed. by Balazs Ujvari,  European Policy Centre, June 2016, Egmont, Europe in the World Program, King Boudin Foundation, 27-30,  http://www.egmontinstitute.be/content/uploads/2016/06/160610-EU_global_strategy-going_beyond_effective_multilateralism.pdf?type=pdf.