Diplomacy On Crucial Test

Foreign policy is a broader strategic perspective of a country to look at the world and accordingly deal with other countries in the quest of protecting national interest.  The overall international situation, developments in the neighbourhood, country’s economy, history, military strength, values, domestic necessities and geopolitical positioning determine the foreign policy, its priorities and objectives of any country. It is a basic guideline based on which diplomacy acts in the field. According to Polish-born US professor Feliks Gross, ‘foreign policy is an ideology which has its own semantics, objectives, modus operandi and costs’. As the national interest is the paramount basis of adopting and conducting foreign policy, countries have diverse approaches and priorities in relations with other countries.

In other words, foreign policy is a procedure and approach in projecting power for powerful countries, while survival and development are often the bases and priorities of small and weaker countries. In the present interconnected and interdependent world, no country is fully self-reliant in all areas, thus requiring it to deal with other countries for the interest of its own people and country. 

Extension of domestic policy

It is often said that foreign policy is the extension of domestic policy. This is true to a large extent but it is not always the case. Domestic situation, necessities and compulsions often determine a country’s foreign policy but sometimes international events and developments in the neighbourhood also influence the foreign policy choices and priorities of countries. This is especially so for countries with a complex geopolitical position and that do not have leverage of power.

While foreign policy is strategy, diplomacy is an instrument to achieve the goals and objectives set in foreign policy. Thus, the success or failure of foreign policy depends on the quality of diplomacy, which depends on the quality and competence of assigned diplomats. Nepal now has diplomatic relations with 188 countries. But only 32 missions have to handle relations with these countries and multilateral agencies, including the United Nations.  Given this situation, one diplomatic mission, in general, has to handle relations with more than half a dozen countries. While our diplomatic outreach is enlarging, the government tends to reduce the number of diplomatic missions abroad, which is a stark contradiction in itself.