Cultural Diplomacy and Nation Branding in Modern Competitive International Environment

Abstract

This study has as its main objective to highlight the importance of the existence of a structured cultural policy by modern states and the importance of having a structured policy in order to improve their international image. In recent decades, despite the fact that international relations continue to focus on issues of balancing military and economic power, they have been forced to simultaneously appreciate the importance of cultural and religious factors, which have acquired a transnational dimension that transcends the territorial boundaries of nation-states. Throughout history, culture has been used by organized societies to present themselves, to assert their power, but also to understand others. Culture has always been present on the foreign policy agenda of governments and has been active in defining relations between states since the two World Wars of the 20th century. At the same time, states became intensely concerned with the strategy of managing their national identity and shaping their image. This study attempts to highlight the role of the cultural element in state diplomacy and the role of cultural diplomacy in promoting mutual understanding between nations. Also, the aim of this study is to highlight the efforts of states to reshape their image abroad in order to access development and to have a stable and competitive position in the international environment. In this context, an analysis of the place of culture in the context of state diplomacy and the evolution of cultural diplomacy is presented. What are the specific characteristics of this new diplomatic discipline and what are its objectives? It also presents an analysis of the theory surrounding the formation of the "image of the country" and presents the elements that determine it and are ultimately a necessary condition for stimulating the country's competitiveness at the international level.