6. The Slovak Republic
6.10 Conclusion
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6.10 Conclusion
Currently, diplomacy as a non-violent method of promoting national and state interests in the international political environment is undoubtedly the most important foreign policy tool. This is particularly true for small states, such as the Slovak Republic for which it is critical to the successful implementation of their foreign policy priorities of the key legal quality diplomacy, believes Pajtinka.267
Pressures of the globalizing international environment, as well as increased demands on the quality of outputs and services provided by the MFEA of Slovak Republic, together with the need for compatibility of the MFEA with partner entities within the integration mechanisms, changes the position and the mission of Slovak diplomacy while presenting a unique opportunity for the development of Slovak PD. The situation requires a comprehensive review of the operation of the MFEA and the establishment of system for the sustainability of the proposed strategies. In this way, the Ministry will be able to flexibly cope with dynamically changing international and domestic environment and to increase the capacity to meet the required level of proficiency and quality. The question is how to appropriately perform new diplomatic tasks in the efficient and rational way using the existing resources and how to strengthen the position of the MFEA in the system of state administration.268
Public diplomacy has been present in the history of Slovakia in one or other form for many years. The nation, whether part of Czechoslovakia or as an independent country, always intended to attract tourists, investors and business or to follow specific interests, from independence through communist propaganda to the EU accession. However, as Oľga Algayerová states, “the approach has never been holistic, comprehensive and well managed.
267 Pajtinka, E., 2007. Slovak Diplomacy and its dimensions in the 21st century. Bratislava, University of Economics, Bratislava.p.78.
268 Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovak Republc, 2007. Foreign Policy Annual Report 2007, Bratislava: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovak Republic. p.33.
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Even today we face difficulties in creating synergy and cooperation of all ministries, agencies, regions, civil society and businesses. Active participation and strategic coordination of all elements of reputation management is of paramount importance and remains a huge challenge.”269
As Ociepka suggests, although the term public diplomacy is used frequently in the governmental documents and reports, this does not necessarily mean that there is any coordinated and coherent PD strategy existing in reality, and Slovakia is a perfect illustration of this statement.270 The annual reports and documents from conferences regarding the Slovak public diplomacy are full of phrases highlighting the need to promote, engage, implement and coordinate the efforts to create a national brand and effective PD strategies, but little real and effective steps are being taken as PD has not been a prioritized issue in the Slovak foreign policy planning.
The fundamental challenge is to create a functional coordination mechanism that would enable various governmental and non-governmental bodies to participate in the process of presentation of Slovakia abroad and to communicate and agree more efficiently in order to undertake a common approach in representing Slovakia externally.
It is indispensable to create an appealing and a credible brand for Slovakia in order to build the Slovak PD on a solid basis. Taking into consideration the geographic location and character of the region in which Slovakia is positioned, it is crucial to find a way to distinguish itself from its neighbors and exhibit more its positive aspects, its achievements and use its experience from the past and a the successful story of a strong, young, modern and dynamic member of the European Union.
269 Algayerová, O., 2010. Establishment of Public Diplomacy In Slovakia: An Effective New Approach, Valletta: University of Malta.p.49.
270 Ociepka, B., 2013. New Members’ Public Diplomacy. In: M. K. Davis Cross & J. Melissen, eds. European Public Diplomacy: Soft Power at Work. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, p. 45.
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Transforming weaknesses to opportunities might be a good way to go for this small Central European country. The lower level of development in the case of Slovakia, when comparing it to its western European neighbors, can also be seen as an advantage as it enables the nation to explore more possibilities, skip certain phases of evolution or try to go in different directions without any bigger harm. At the same time, there is the “surprise element”
of Slovakia as there is much more creativity, innovation and dynamics hidden as an unknown treasure within the Slovak people, than anyone would expect.271
Apart from that, the most important component of Slovak presentation abroad, has always been the cultural diplomacy which might be a good news for Slovakia. “With the increase in the width and intensity of interactions between states, nations will still have greater importance of culture as a bearer of universal, human values and as factor associated with the identity of communities and their diversity,” states Kurucz.272 In terms of political stability, the focus of diplomacy has moved to its cultural, and particularly the economic dimension, taking into account the specificities of a small state, especially its natural need to search for international visibility.273
Mallicková and Algayerová both recommend in their studies to define territorial priorities of Slovakia and adapt the foreign policy and regional strategy to individual specifics of each country or region.274
As the European Union and the other V4 countries are the primary target of the Slovak Republic, it is vital to focus the PD on this region and use every opportunity to influence, improve and promote Slovakia in every possible way. A good example was the World Championship in Ice Hockey in 2010, The project of “Košice, European Capital of Culture
271 Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovak Republic, 2011. Slovakia: Country with Potential, Bratislava: MFEA of Slovak Republic.p.28.
272 Kurucz, M., 2007. Cultural Dimensions of Diplomacy. Bratislava, University of Economics.p.70.
273 Pajtinka, E., 2007. Slovak Diplomacy and its dimensions in the 21st century. Bratislava, University of Economics, Bratislava.p.83.
274 Mallicková, E., 2010. Public Diplomacy as a Priority of Slovak Ministry of Foreing Affairs. Bratislava, Ústav európskych štúdií a medzinárodných vzťahov, FSEV UK,p.13.
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2013“ or the upcoming Slovak presidency of the European Council. Presidency of the Council presents a unique opportunity for the member states to strengthen their position and present their brands or stories. The presidency gives new member states a chance to set the European politics agenda and attract the attention of all the “old continents” media.275 It is a unique opportunity to improve one’ image, test its PD and gain more prominence on the EU scene.
The modern Slovakia is still searching for its identity, its unique story and an image it would like to uniformly send abroad. Its public diplomacy can be considered a reflection of these facts. As illustrated in the PD working papers mentioned above, Slovakia is a country with potential, but in order to foster and recover it’s positive image, it is key to both pay more attention to and to understand, the importance of the PD in the present day world.
Despite the intention and limited efforts to engage in new public diplomacy via the use of the internet, there is still a long way to go, and a broader platform is needed in order to engage and employ a larger part of the potential of this ”Tatra Tiger”276.
Taking into account the size, position and character of Slovakia, the country will probably have no choice but to adapt to the rapidly evolving environment of the 21st century and it will also have to start to actively and effectively practice the strategies of (new) public diplomacy if it wants to play a small, but important, role within Europe and maybe even the world.
What can be learnt?
275 Ociepka, B., 2013. New Members’ Public Diplomacy. In: M. K. Davis Cross & J. Melissen, eds. European Public Diplomacy: Soft Power at Work. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, p.48.
276 "Tatra Tiger" is a nickname that refers to the economy of Slovakia in period 2002 - 2007 and after 2010 following the ascendance of a right-wing coalition in September 2002 which engaged in a program of liberal economic reforms. Due to the strong successes of these reforms, Slovakia was sometimes referred to as 'Tatra Tiger' The name "Tatra Tiger" derives from the local Tatra mountain range. (Jungmann J, Sagemann S., 2011, Financial Crisis in Eastern Europe, Gabler, p.525).
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The story of public diplomacy in Slovak Republic is rather short and noticeably less remarkable than the PD strategies employed in Norway or Taiwan. Despite this fact, there are several lessons to be learnt from this central European country.
As each country’s story is quite specific regarding its history, geography and in the case of Slovakia also the repeating change of regimes during the 20th century, the example and the particular lessons to be learnt might be useful for young countries in transition to democracy or countries with very little PD experience.
Firstly, the tactics and the sophisticated methods of a self-effacing infiltration of the Czechoslovak culture and art into the European salons before the Second World War is arousing. Even though the contemporary world works differently, the ability to promote a country through its poets and artists is still present and highly desirable in the PD practice.
An outstanding part of the modern Slovak PD practice was the one which might not have been seen as a pure public diplomatic but it was certainly an end to a well targeted mean.
The pre-accession activities leading into the 2004 EU membership were great illustration of a quick, flexible and probably also successful campaign. The right motivation, little bit of pressure and tight deadlines may just be the best recipe of an effective PD formation for some countries.
One of the facts is that the strongest part of Slovak PD is the cultural diplomacy which exposes one of the essential values and characteristics that are so important for the creation of a nation brand. The joy and pride accompanying the Slovak culture whenever presented abroad is a brilliant signal that the public diplomacy is based on real values, reflecting the warmth and the authenticity of the presented nation.
On the subject of structure and organization of the PD related agencies and institutions, it is important to notice that fewer changes and rearrangements within the ministry might have
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benefited the advancement of PD in Slovakia and therefore it is an imperative for the other countries who should learn from this experience.
The 21st century and its features brought about changes that affected the functioning of various governmental apparatuses around the world and the practice of public diplomacy is not an exception. In the case of Slovakia, it is essential to point out the efforts of the current minister of foreign and European affairs, who actively promotes the activities of the ministry and Slovak Republic via Twitter and Facebook. The Facebook page and the official web-page of the ministry are very modern, highly informative and continuously updated. For the purposes of a two-way communication and open dialogue a web-page discussing the current process of the nation brand creation has been contributing to an open and wider collaboration with public, academics and numerous professionals. These approach is very innovative and can serve as an example for other countries still searching for their image, narrative or other answers for their questions. The format of the entire project is quite progressive as it involves students, bloggers, graphic designers and other young professionals and talents.
After a deeper analysis, it is apparent that there are lessons to be learnt from each experience and every country has something to share. In the case of Slovakia, the turbulent history and the constant search for the national identity might result in an interesting combination of outcomes when creating the appropriate public diplomacy and nation brand.
Short but intensive narrative of the Slovak PD practice that is still at its beginning can serve as an inspiration to follow or as a warning of how not to overcomplicate and at the same time underestimate the power of this foreign policy tool.
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