Musées et soft power dans le Golfe Persique

Abstract

How can one understand the re-branding process through which the Pirates Coast has become one of the hubs of the globalization of museums, sports competitions and Western universities ? Oil and gas are part of the answer, but they are not sufficient to explain this surprising state of affairs. By the deconstruction of the discourse that analyses these evolutions as tools of soft power, this article intends to show that these devices aiming to reach international visibility are, first and foremost, legal platforms through which the circle of the beneficiaries of the redistribution of the oil and gas rent can broaden their influence to the Western world. As such, they are integral part of these countries' hard power.