TYPES (FORMS) OF DIPLOMACY

1. POLITICS OF PACIFICATION

THE POLITICS OF PACIFICATION IN THE FAVELAS

— By Raull Santiago, from the  Occupy Alemao Collective (Ocupa Alemão).

You don’t respect me as a citizen with full rights. I don’t respect your initiatives, and laws which I
didn’t participate in creating.

Favelas are the greatest proof that we can progress free of what has today become a
“someone,” the immense and all powerful organism, the synthesis of centralization, of authority,
which dominates political, economic and social power: the State. Which, via laws created
without consulting us, which we’re not even encouraged to get to know, the State subdues us
and confines us in the illusionary discourse that it is representing us and thinking of the social
good.

The State has never been present in an effective way in the favelas, has never showed an
interest in their development. Open sewage, lack of adequate housing, general difficulties of
diverse sorts, in addition to terrible education have always guaranteed easy votes. In this so-
called democracy, what is advertised as “the weapon of the poor,” the vote, when not violated,
is given willingly through the promise of some “cure” for a seemingly timely demand (vote
buying). This democracy where voting is an obligation.

Guided purely by capitalism, partisan politicians use public resources as if they were property of
the state, forgetting that the State is not a ‘someone’ who can own property, but that it is
comprised of administrative divisions which belong to all citizens. Following this
misunderstanding of the State as an individual, top-down “public policies” are created which
have no meaningful connection to reality. Take the favelas, where there is no popular
participation in the development of policies which will directly affect people’s day-to-day life; a
perfect example of which is the public security policy of the Pacifying Police Unit (UPPs).

As is common when speaking against the UPP, we are accused of being defenders of drug
traffickers, and much worse… The real questions are very simple: How has the drug traffic
come to exist? And how has it become so financially powerful? How do drugs and arms get into
the favelas? A lot of people in suits are getting rich with this!

Beyond putting a stop to the drug traffic (and knowing that this is very lucrative for specific
politicians and oligopolies), it is important to work at the foundation, improve education,
respect human rights and look after our children, in order to break the traffic at its roots.
However, to be represented by the State, in the “democracy” we live in, means precisely to
strengthen the cycle of dependency and survival which leads our young people to choose the
path of crime, of which there is frequently no return.

The UPP is nothing! It is not this marketing policy of “Pacification” that will block the diverse
entry points which lead a young dreamer to set foot in a risky life. No one dreams of becoming a
drug trafficker! No mother wants to bury her son! We can no longer accept empty discourses
which circle around superficiality.
We have prisons that dehumanize, treat people as animals, teach them not to feel. Places that
should be for recuperation, but end up doing the opposite. We have a society that only uses the
word ‘miscegenation’ to seem interesting. For prejudice is alive and kicking everywhere.
Particularly with ex-convicts.

The UPP is no more than a re-election policy, created with no interest in the well-being of the
favela population. It is merely the arm of the State which functions to “keep order,” which is very
different from the discourse of “bringing peace.”

Peace without voice is not peace, it’s FEAR. — Marcelo Yuka

The UPP is like George Orwell’s 1984, like the “big brother” fencing us in on all sides. The
police are defenders of the “State as someone,” carrying out orders to defend it, even when the
State totally violates citizen rights. Not only in the favelas, but also in the protests. It has
historically been like this!

When the UPP arrives in the favelas, it becomes a reference, example of monopoly, a bull-
dozing intervention which proposes the “State as someone” in the area: complete and
authoritative territorial control. An example of this is how a security institution becomes the main
channel of mediation between the state and the demands from the favela, even more so, it is
entrusted with making decisions over art and culture. That is truly surreal!

Annulling Resolution 013 informally is easy. To pacify in propaganda, even more so. What is

difficult to forget is what is tattooed onto people’s retinas: hatred exercised by police towards the
favela population through abuse, arbitrariness, disrespect, violations, aggression
and assassinations. The UPP pacification is only containment of the popular classes and armed
authoritarianism! An unacceptable policy!

Proudhon’s interpretation is very interesting: government of man by man is servitude. “To be

governed is to be inspected, spied on, directed, legislated, regulated, docketed, indoctrinated,
preached at, controlled, assessed, weighed, censored, ordered about, by men who have neither
the right, nor the knowledge, nor the virtue… To be governed is to be at every operation, at
every transaction, noted, registered, enrolled, taxed, stamped, measured, numbered, assessed,
licensed, authorized, admonished, forbidden, reformed, corrected, punished. It is, under the
pretext of public utility, and in the name of the general interest, to be placed under contribution,
trained, ransomed, exploited, monopolized, extorted, squeezed, mystified, robbed; then, at the
slightest resistance, the first word of complaint, to be repressed, fined, despised, harassed,
tracked, abused, clubbed, disarmed, choked, imprisoned, judged, condemned, shot, deported,
sacrificed, sold, betrayed; and, to crown all, mocked, ridiculed, outraged, dishonored. That is
government; that is its justice; that is its morality.”

For the demilitarization of the Military Police!

The State that kills – never again!
 2. GUNBOAT DIPLOMACY

AMERICA AND ITS ALLIES ARE HELPING UKRAINE TO GET ITS SEA LEGS BACK
A report from the annual Sea Breeze exercise in the Black Sea

Drifting gently, USS Carney floats in the Black Sea. Two Russian warships and the odd
dolphin lurk nearby. Then the order is given: “Release the killer tomato.” Several
warships line up alongside the 9,000-tonne destroyer, as though at a shooting gallery. A
gigantic inflatable cube, garishly true to its name, is hoisted over the edge
of Carney into the still waters. The frigate Hetman Sahaydachniy, the pride of Ukraine’s
navy, takes the first potshots. On Carney’s bridge, a young sailor seated at a screen
with arcade-style joysticks unleashes a burst of fire from the ship’s remote-controlled
cannon. HMS Duncan, a British destroyer, goes next. The balloon shrivels as shells
thump into the water. The tomato is duly squashed.

The target practice is part of the annual Sea Breeze exercise, led by America and
Ukraine, now in its 19th iteration. The exercise posits that the nefarious state of
Blackland, a behemoth to the east, is fuelling an insurgency in Maroonland, a
breakaway province of Roseland. Ukraine, America, Romania, Bulgaria and Georgia
play the good guys. One of nato’s standing fleets, led by a Canadian frigate, stands in
for the foes. The scenario requires little imagination. Since Russia’s annexation of
Crimea and invasion of eastern Ukraine in 2014, 13,000 people have died. Four
Ukrainian soldiers died in a rocket attack on August 6th.
 3. Dollar Diplomacy

'DOLLAR DIPLOMACY': TAIWAN CONDEMNS CHINA AFTER SOLOMONS SWITCH

17 Sept 2019

Solomon Islands sixth country to cut ties with Taiwan since 2016 election of Tsai Ing-
wen, as China raises pressure.
Taiwan accused China of "dollar diplomacy" and trying to influence the island's
forthcoming presidential and legislative elections after the Solomon Islands cut off ties
with Taipei, the sixth country to do so since Tsai Ing-wen became president of Taiwan in
2016. 

Self-ruled Taiwan now has formal relations with only 16 countries, many of them small,
less-developed nations in Central America and the Pacific, including Belize and Nauru.

Speaking to reporters in Taipei, Tsai said Taiwan would not bow to Chinese pressure.

"Over the past few years, China has continually used financial and political pressure to
suppress Taiwan's international space," Tsai said, calling the Chinese move "a brazen
challenge and detriment to the international order".

"I want to emphasize that Taiwan will not engage in dollar diplomacy with China in order
to satisfy unreasonable demands," she said.

China's foreign ministry said in a statement it "highly commends" the decision to sever
diplomatic ties with Taiwan, adding it was part of an "irresistible trend".

"We stand ready to work with the Solomon Islands to open new broad prospects for our
bilateral relations," spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in a statement late on Monday.
 4. Public Diplomacy

CHINA IS BROADENING ITS EFFORTS TO WIN OVER AFRICAN AUDIENCES

China’s state-run news outlets are struggling to win African audiences
Oct 20th 2018| JOHANNHESBURG AND LUSAKA

Ever since the Kenyan government signed a deal in 2014 for a state-owned Chinese
company to build a railway between Nairobi and Kenya’s main port in Mombasa, the
project has attracted controversy. Its price per km was three times the international
benchmark and four times the original estimate. Many Kenyans suspect corruption
inflated its cost.

Unsurprisingly, such issues have received little airtime on cgtn Africa, a branch of

China’s state television company, which opened its headquarters on the continent in
Nairobi in 2012. When cgtn aired a package on the railway in July, the network praised
it as “a case study” of China-Africa relations. In the Africa of cgtn’s imagination, every
deal is “win-win” and, of course, “harmonious”.
 5. People’s Diplomacy

CHINA’S PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE DIPLOMACY

By Armando Chaguaceda    /   July 31, 2019

Researchers Jessica Ludwig and Christopher Walker coined the term “sharp power” to
refer to the ways in which global autocracies—particularly China and Russia—use
institutions, media and a range of networks, now largely open thanks to globalization, to
influence global public opinion in a way that is favorable to these governments. China,
especially, has expanded its political and economic agenda beyond its borders over the
past decade. Its strategy focuses on promoting certain personalities—inserted in the
media, academia and the foreign diplomatic communities—to try to influence, from
inside, public opinion in democratic societies.  

Mexico has become the latest partner in this Chinese sharp power net.  

The general phenomena, which Juan Pablo Cardenal has also analyzed, is tailored at

connecting influential individuals from Latin America—politicians and government
officials, journalists, academics, businesspeople, and former diplomats, among others—
with the objective of exposing them to the official Chinese discourse and national
interests. Confucius Institutes, seminars and paid visits to Western politicians serve an
important role in China’s people-to-people diplomacy strategy, hinting at the ways in
which Beijing is promoting its objectives globally and, in particular, toward Latin
America.

The participation of 21 Mexican government officials in a paid training program in China

during June and July 2019, is a clear example of people-to-people diplomacy, with the
objective of portraying China as a positive governance model. With different ideological
and partisan affiliations, the Mexican attendees participated—together with officials from
Latin American and Asian countries—in a range of conferences led by local Chinese
professors and officials that explained the political, economic and diplomatic vision of
the Chinese government. Also during the visit, they had access to historical and
recreational centers, in an all-expense-paid trip by the Chinese government. According
to an anonymous attendee’s testimony, the Mexicans were impressed by the generous
reception that their Asian counterpart prepared for them. 

The visit cannot be viewed in isolation, especially as Mexico and China have
demonstrated increased interest in strengthening their relations, driven partially by
tensions between Mexico and the United States. It is clear—and somewhat logical—that
Mexico, like other countries in Latin America, is seeking to compensate its
dependencies and vulnerabilities in its ties to the United States by securing new
markets and allies.  But it is also desirable that, added to new experiences and
international exchanges, officials discern the implications for Western individuals and
societies of China’s model, where the state defines the boundaries and freedoms, of
any project, of any sort. They should also be able to discern the pros and cons of this
model, vis-à-vis Mexico’s own challenges with its precarious democracy. 

Unfortunately, we don’t know.  All we can hope for is that the Mexican officials that
participated on the trip went with and retained a skeptical mind.
 6. Intermediary Diplomacy

THE BIG CHALLENGE OF THE NAFTA RENEGOTIATIONS:

DISPUTE SETTLEMENT

August 14, 2017 8.56pm AEST

When the US and Canada first signed a free trade agreement in 1987, the  biggest
sticking point in forging a deal was the inclusion of a dispute settlement clause. The
same is true today, with the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between
Canada, the US and Mexico up for renegotiation.

Like many other international agreements, NAFTA mandates standards of treatment for
investors. In particular, it allows investors to sue governments if they introduce new laws
or policies that might reduce profits. This is done through investor state dispute
settlement (or ISDS). Lawsuits are brought before international arbitration panels that
operate under rules similar to those used for the resolution of international commercial
disputes.

While this mechanism is widely accepted in international business, it became hugely

controversial when companies started to use it to challenge measures introduced by
governments to protect the environment and public health. A major focus of concern is
how NAFTA’s investor protections can inhibit regulation aimed to reduce pollution or
carbon emissions, or preserve natural resources such as fresh water. The ISDS
mechanism makes it possible for companies to attempt to declare any new
environmental protections unlawful. Or there is “regulatory chill”, where states avoid
legislating in areas where they may face suits.

Canada has been on the receiving end of a number of suits, primarily from US
investors. About 63% of claims against Canada involved challenges to environmental
protection or resource management programmes that allegedly interfered with the rights
of foreign investors. The US, meanwhile, has never lost a NAFTA investor-state case.

It is for precisely this reason that you would expect Canada to come out against the
inclusion of a dispute settlement mechanism in NAFTA. Yet, such a mechanism is
expected to be a red line issue for Canada when renegotiating the treaty. Meanwhile,
the US wants to eliminate it.
7. Economic Diplomacy

PH AMBASSADOR TO US STRESSES ECONOMIC, SCIENCE DIPLOMACY IN

SOCAL VISIT

Created: 10 October 2019

LOS ANGELES 10 October 2019 — Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel
G. Romualdez embarked on his first official visit to Southern California on 13 to 16
September 2019 as part of his efforts to reach out to the Filipino-Americans who are
spread throughout the continental United States.

During the three-day visit, discussions on trade, investment, and science and
technology— sectors that comprise the most strategic areas of interests laid out in
the 2017-2022 Strategic Plan of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) as well as
the Philippine Development Plan—were undertaken by Ambassador Romualdez.

The visit comes at a time of heightened interest in and anticipation of the proposed
Free Trade Agreement between the Philippines and United States, especially with
the conclusion of negotiations of the United States-Mexico-Canada Free Trade
Agreement last year.

The Ambassador engaged in a discussion with representatives of select economic

agencies in Los Angeles, namely the Los Angeles Metro, Global Research Institute
for International Trade (GRITT) and Ever Win International Corp, at the Consulate
General in Chicago on 15 September 2019.

The Ambassador highlighted the positive developments taking place in the

Philippines and opportunities for investments, such as the “Build, Build,
Build” program, New Clark City, and many other mass transportation projects, which
open answers for cooperation arrangements with LA Metro.

Earlier on the same day, the Ambassador also spent time with the SoCal-based
Coalition of Filipino American Chambers of Commerce (COFACC) headed by Gerry
Palon and Ellen Samson. COFACC was founded by 15 Filipino American business
entrepreneurs and professionals representing five Filipino American Chambers of
Commerce in Southern California.

The growth of Filipino-American chambers of commerce speaks of the

transformative aspect of the Philippine Government’s economic development
narrative, that is, transforming the Filipino mindset to becoming an investor and
entrepreneur. Ambassador Romualdez encouraged COFACC members to invest in
the Philippines now given the remarkable growth of the country’s economy.
The Ambassador’s three-day visit was concluded with discussions on a possible
cancer research collaboration between the Philippines and Cedars-Sinai Medical
Center, a general medical and surgical facility as well as a teaching hospital.

The Philippines’ interest in Cedars-Sinai is reflective of the Philippine Government’s

thrust to promote science and technology under the Zero to 10-Point Socio
Economic Agenda of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. The Department of Foreign
Affairs, in particular, looks to science diplomacy as part of the Philippine
Government’s attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals and the work it has
started to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

Cedars-Sinai has been ranked as among the top 10 best hospitals in the United
States aside from having a topnotch cancer research facility. It has an ongoing
cancer research program, focusing on the Filipino-American community, which was
based on initial observations that breast cancer is one of the leading causes of death
among Asians.

During the meeting held at noon on 16 September 2019, the Ambassador expressed
his support for said research program. “I would like to see more cooperation
between organizations like Cedars-Sinai and the Philippines to share information
and give our people the chance to live longer,” he added.

Modern medicine and exchange of training and best practices in the field of nursing
are also among the potential areas for cooperation between the Philippines and
Cedars-Sinai.

Joining the Ambassador in all the meetings were Philippine Embassy in Washington
D.C. Minister and Consul Gunther Emil M. Sales, Consul General to Los Angeles
Adelio Angelito S. Cruz, and Deputy Consul General Ambrosio Brian F. Enciso III,
Consul Rea G. Oreta, Information Officer Mary Grace “Joss” D. Leaño and Protocol
Officer Fernan M. Balicoco of the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles.

Southern California, aside from being home to more than 800,000 Filipino-
Americans, is an important economic partner of the Philippines, being home to two
strategic ports and several Fortune 500 companies, some of which have eyed the
Philippines as a potential investment destination.

The Philippines also enjoys a thriving relationship with the City of Los Angeles, the
seat of the country’s representation in Southern California, with which two cities in
Metro Manila—Makati and Pasig, respectively—have sister-city and sister-river
arrangements. END
 8. Digital (electronic) Diplomacy

TWITTER IS THE PRIME SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORK FOR WORLD LEADERS

Burson-Marsteller Study Finds Pope Francis is the Most Followed World Leader on
Twitter
Pontiff is Ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra M
NEW YORK, May 31, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Pope Francis is the most followed world
leader on Twitter with a combined total of 33,716,301 followers on his nine language
accounts, ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump with 30,133,036 followers and Indian
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with 30,058,659 followers, according to Burson-
Marsteller's Twiplomacy study, an annual global survey of how world leaders,
governments and international organizations use social media.

Twitter is the prime social network used by 276 heads of state and government, and
foreign ministers, in 178 countries, representing 92 percent of all United Nations (UN)
member states. Facebook is the second-most used social platform by world leaders,
with 169 governments having established official pages. However, world leaders have,
on average, twice as many followers on their Facebook pages as followers on Twitter.
Data for Twiplomacy, which updated the studies about Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat
and Periscope, was captured in May 2017 using Burson-Marsteller's proprietary Burson
tools, CrowdTangle.com and Twitonomy.com.

President Trump is among a very small group of leaders who manage their own Twitter
accounts, and his tweets have generated 166 million interactions (likes and retweets)
over the past 12 months – including the nearly four months since he was sworn in as
U.S. President – almost five times as many as Modi with 35 million interactions.

Saudi Arabia's @KingSalman is the most effective world leader on Twitter based on the
average number of retweets per original tweet. Of his ten tweets over the past
year, King Salman has received an average of 147,456 retweets. President Trump's
personal Twitter account, @realDonaldTrump, is the second-most effective Twitter
account of any world leader, with an average of 13,094 retweets per tweet. Pope
Francis is in third place, with 10,337 average retweets per tweet.

President Trump's unorthodox use of Twitter during the U.S. presidential election
campaign, and especially since taking office, has left many governments around the
world wondering if - and how - they should engage with @realDonaldTrump on Twitter.
Some leaders, such as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada and Pope Francis,
have sub-tweeted President Trump without directly mentioning him by name. Only three
world leaders have addressed @realDonaldTrump directly on Twitter to rebuke his
policies, including Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto; Hilda Heine, the President of
the Marshall Islands; and Ricardo Rosselló, the Governor of Puerto Rico.

The 2017 edition of Twiplomacy also examines the use of other social media platforms
including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Periscope, and the Twiplomacy.com
website includes rankings as well as a social media atlas for each country studied. The
study found, for example, the number of governments using Periscope has doubled
over the past year, offering a cost-effective way to broadcast press conferences live.

"Politics and diplomacy are playing out on social media in a way we have never seen
before," said Don Baer, Worldwide Chair and CEO, Burson-Marsteller. "With the U.S.
president bypassing traditional government channels to communicate directly to his
supporters and detractors alike, we can expect more people in positions of power to
adopt this practice. Our Twiplomacy study shows how fast-paced and dynamic our
communications landscape truly is."

"The study demonstrates the intense evolution in how world leaders and
governments are using social media to reach policy or political
objectives," added Ramiro Prudencio, CEO of Burson-Marsteller Europe, Middle
East and Africa. "This cross-platform analysis provides key insights on social media use
in a global, fast-paced, connected, 24/7 information environment." 

The 2017 Twiplomacy study analyzed 856 Twitter accounts of heads of state and
government, and foreign ministers, in 178 countries with a combined total audience of
356 million followers. Foreign ministries tend to use Twitter to establish mutual relations.
The European Union (EU) External Action Service is the best-connected foreign office,
mutually connected to 128 peers. Russia's Foreign Ministry is in second position,
maintaining mutual Twitter relations with 127 other world leaders. The German Foreign
Ministry has 116 mutual connections with peers, followed by the UK Foreign Office and
the Foreign Ministry of Norway with 115 and 109 mutual connections, respectively.

The Donald Trump @WhiteHouse account does not follow any other foreign leader. The
archived @ObamaWhiteHouse account, conversely, follows the UK government
account, @Number10gov, and the Russian Prime Minister's account,
@MedvedevRussiaE.

The most followed non-government account is the United Nations Twitter account,
@UN, which is followed by 338 of the 856 world leaders' Twitter accounts;
@BarackObama and the @ObamaWhiteHouse are followed by 312 and 254 world
leaders, respectively. @UNICEF is the second-most followed international organization
andThe New York Times (@NYTimes) is the most followed news organization. The
@Twiplomacy Twitter account is the eighth-most followed non-governmental account by
world leaders, with a following of 184 heads of state and government, ahead of
@Reutersand @TheEconomist.

"Twitter facilitates relations between world leaders in today's online world," said
Matthias Lüfkens, Managing Director, Digital, at Burson-Marsteller EMEA. "I am
especially honored to see our @Twiplomacy Twitter account among the most followed
accounts by heads of state and government."