Civilizational Dialogue in Conduct of Internatonal Diplomacy

This article by AMB Prof.(Dr.) Suresh Goel is a blend of his experience and analytical vigor in a wide panorama spanning through both historical and geographical spheres. The author was the ambassador in countries viz. Singapore, Malaysia, Egypt, South Africa and headed Permanent Mission of India to UNO, USA. He, a skillful diplomat and an excellent scholar, defines diplomacy as the soft skill to find positive and agreeable solutions amidst conflicting cultural and economic, social and political interest groups. The article defines soft diplomacy being used at various levels e.g. state diplomacy, public diplomacy and cultural diplomacy . India's strength of diplomacy has been built through cultural exchange from ancient time at least five millennia of Indian history. Through assimilation of divergent socio religious culture such as Buddhism, Christianity and Islam, India's national conscience is created which is now the strength of her cultural diplomacy to build relations within and across nations with divergent interests. The author quotes from Upanishad and Spiritual speech of Sri Vivekananda to explain Indian ethos of positive cultural relations. In this paper, hecites examples of successful diplomatic efforts initiated by India in the different countries.