In a complex, changing world, diplomacy continues to play a vital role in international affairs. Learn more about the skills diplomats use to build relationships and conduct negotiations around the globe, as illustrated through a hypothetical scenario in this video from the National Museum of American Diplomacy.
Diplomacy is the conduct of international relations by peaceful means, primarily through dialogue and negotiation. It may be coercive (backed by the threat of force) but is largely nonviolent, and it forms an important element of foreign policy.
Historically, diplomatic relations were the exclusive domain of state governments. Larger states would send and receive ambassadors, while smaller states sent envoys, who were ranked somewhere between an ambassador and a minister plenipotentiary. Diplomatic immunity, established in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, protects accredited diplomats and their staff from being harassed or detained by foreign governments.
In addition to conducting direct diplomatic conversations, diplomats cultivate goodwill toward their state and people abroad, nurture friendships with foreign states and peoples, and help to shape the actions of governments. They make it possible to bridge the gap between the ideals of a nation and the realities of its politics, economics, and security, so that conflicts are resolved more constructively and the goals of peace and prosperity for all can be realized.