Работа посвящена анализу особенностей реализации «мягкой силы» Италии на современном этапе. На основании большого числа источников и литературы по данной теме были выделены основные ресурсы «мягкой силы» страны и механизмы реализации данного концепта. В число основных ресурсов «мягкой силы» были отнесены культура и национальный язык, интернационализация образования и научно-исследовательская деятельность. Были проанализированы основные проекты и мероприятия, направленные на осуществление итальянской «мягкой силы» и использования ее ресурсов. В ходе работы были выделены проблемы, которые препятствуют более эффективной реализации данной внешнеполитической стратегии. К ним, в первую очередь, относится недостаточное финансирование культурного, образовательного и научного сектора, которое вызвано нестабильностью итальянской экономики, а также отсутствие единой стратегии продвижения ресурсов «мягкой силы» Италии, которая бы консолидировала деятельность всех ответственных за продвижение органов и институтов. / This work is devoted to the analysis of the peculiarities of Italian soft power at the present stage. The main Italian soft power recourses and implementation mechanism of this concept were defined based on large number of official documents and literature on this topic. The main resources of Italian soft power are culture and the national language, the internationalization of education and research activities. Were analyzed the main projects and activities aimed at the implementation of the Italian soft power. Also, this work identifies problems that prevent the more effective and successful implementation of this foreign policy strategy. Primarily, it is an inadequate financing of the cultural, educational and scientific sector which is caused by the instability of the Italian economy, as well as lack of unified strategy to promote Italian soft power resources which would consolidate the activities of all authorities and institutes responsible for promotion.

This thesis explores the potential of Nigerian popular music as an approach to nation branding. The study employs qualitative content analysis to analyze select Nigerian music genres to examine how Nigeria is portrayed to international audiences and the economic benefits that can be derived from this form of branding. The analysis focuses on narrative themes of “the value of hard work,” “ethnic pride,” “lavish lifestyle,” and the impact of differences which were derived from the data. Findings indicate that Nigeria is globally reckoned for its musical prowess and rich cultural heritage. In highlighting the role of music in Nigeria’s political processes, the research demonstrates a growing sense of national identity and political awareness among the masses, thereby making a case for accountability and transparency in Nigeria’s governance. Additionally, music emerges as one of the major contributors to Nigeria’s economy, serving as a powerful tool for visibility and attracting foreign investments.

How are the two superpowers of the world using Twitter as a platform for gathering global support for their policies when tweeting about an ongoing international conflict? That is the question that is answered in this thesis through a small-N case study. A mixed-method content analysis, based on security branding and generic framing, was applied to the data to determine how security branding is used by the actors to acquire social power. The findings suggest that China is using the situation to throw mud at, and question the morality of, the US and its behavior in international relations. The US is tweeting on a broader spectrum of topics. These topics include how the US and its allies and partners have supported Ukraine and taken action to weaken Russia. Another vital topic found is that the US uses Twitter to display its disagreement with the actions taken by Russia and Vladimir Putin in Ukraine.

From the start of the Obama administration’s “pivot to Asia” in 2011 until November 2023, 78 foreign visits have been made by three U.S. Presidents and five Secretaries of State to Southeast Asia. To uncover the U.S. ambitions in Southeast Asia, this thesis uses frame analysis to study speeches, statements, and remarks published by the U.S. Department of State and the White House during the visits to categorize them as displaying predominantly soft, hard, or smart power. The frames identified during the visits show that each administration has displayed a different kind of power. While the Obama administration focused on soft power, the Trump administration displayed significantly more hard power. The Biden administration used almost exclusively smart power during their visits. The thesis contributes to the operationalization of Joseph Nye’s concepts of soft, hard, and smart power, while also attempting to understand the U.S. ambition in Southeast Asia, especially as relations with the PRC have become increasingly tense.

This study is concerned with the concept of internationalisation as a tool for disadvantaged minorities to affect change in their situation. This phenomenon has been studied widely with respect to authoritarian regimes and later on with liberal Western democracies. The current study has focussed on the state of Israel and the situation of its Palestinian Arab minority to investigate the origins and purposes of internationalisation, the extent to which these efforts have achieved the objectives that were set, and whether this process is in any sense capable of achieving them. The analysis shows that the internationalisation process whereby the Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel sought to reclaim their rights by invoking the support of the international community has emerged in the 1950s. It came to be perceived as necessary because internal legal and political processes were understood to be insufficient to achieve any redress for their grievances. The Arab leadership in Israel articulates internationalisation as a strategy designed to invoke the norms of democracy to question the conduct of successive Israeli governments, and counter the narrative offered by them on the world stage. The internationalisation strategy is seen to undergo a profound transformation from public memoranda, to civil and legal advocacy by invoking international conventions and treaties and finally to personal diplomacy. The results show that it is not a zero sum game; it is an especially effective method in different ways and with varying degrees of success. It created an extension of the critique of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians in the Occupied Territories to its Palestinian minority. Using the international law in the modality of legal advocacy to compel the Israeli state to adhere to the commitments it had made by acceding to an international convention, proved more effective than mere political pressure. Another factors such as the nature of the claims, geopolitical circumstances, global momentum, and domestic politics are crucial as well for the success of the internationalisation. Yet, Israel’s response varied in particular cases to minimise external critics, and its respect for the international law was uttered by utilitarian justification to protect its reputation. The application of the social constructivist boomerang-spiral model to the process of internationalisation is deemed to be a particularly effective instrument to explore both the potential and the limits of the process of compelling the Israeli state to conform to internationally supported norms. The results of this study demonstrate that the construction of the state’s identity as a Jewish and concerns over national security are potentially in conflict with the egalitarian democratic norms that it claims to be governed by. The implications of these two elements for the operation of the Israeli state has resulted in a failure to fully integrate its Arab citizens. The Nation-State Law of 2018 reinforces the legal and systematic discrimination against the Palestinians in Israel and explains why internationalisation has not been successful. 443 It is the first comprehensive investigation into a selected series of case studies that document international appeals made by Israel’s Arab elite due to three chronological periods: 1948-1979, 1992- 2013 and 2015 onwards. On a theoretical level, it is the first time that the spiral model has been tested in the context of Israel and its Arab minority. This can serve as a strategic information source for Arab MKs, NGOs and Israeli decision makers.

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The justification of war is a central issue in international relations, and the characteristic political response to war is to adopt a story that offers a degree of explanation. Narratives play a central role in garnering public support for wars to be seen as legitimate. Soft power, which includes sociocultural factors such as the state's image, credibility, shared values, and moral authority, also plays a crucial role. In the digital age, with the rise of social media, diplomacy has transformed and become a primary source of news with unparalleled global reach. Consequently, digital diplomacy has become essential for states to communicate their policy objectives directly to their audience through compelling social media narratives, especially during times of war. There have been few studies examining the relationship between soft power, digital diplomacy, and strategic narratives during wartime. This study uses visual narrative analysis (VNA) to address this gap by analysing eight video tweets published by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) during the Israeli-Hamas war from October 7, 2023, and the six months after. The results show that the Israeli MFA used strategic narratives to legitimise the war. Notably, they used visual representations to emphasise Israel’s right to self-defence and its proximity to Western ideals, to garner support. Strategic narratives provide a storytelling which invoke the past to illuminate the present and future and create a shared identity in the context of the Israel-Hamas War.

This thesis investigates the nature and impact of Russian influence on Russian-language print and broadcast news in Ukraine and Belarus. TV channels and publications with shareholders or partners in Russia are widely available in both the countries studied; existing literature suggests that such ‘Russian’ media are a source of regional power for the Kremlin. To shed light on how Russian partners and shareholders affect editorial treatment of Russia, the thesis compares content samples from 27 TV news bulletins and newspapers available in Ukraine or Belarus, some of which have Russian partners or shareholders while others do not. It also draws on in-depth interviews with 46 journalists and other media professionals. The thesis then compares the cases of Ukraine and Belarus to explain how political and economic conditions in a ‘target’ state affect the Russian authorities’ scope for communicating messages to mass audiences abroad via pro-Kremlin broadcasters. The findings of the thesis serve as a basis for assessing whether Russian news exports might contribute to Russian foreign policy success in the way envisaged by the literature on soft power. This research reveals complexities which have previously been overlooked in discussions about Russia’s media influence in the post-Soviet region. The news providers in Ukraine and Belarus which have Russian partners or shareholders are diverse and often vulnerable to constraints within their operating environment. Their utility as a source of soft power for the Kremlin is questionable, because the association between media and soft power is premised on public sentiments swaying foreign policy decisions. This premise is problematic, particularly in authoritarian Belarus. Pro-Kremlin Russian news exporters undoubtedly play a role in Moscow’s relations with Minsk and Kiev. However, their significance may lie at least as much in their capacity to provoke as their capacity to ‘softly’ attract and persuade a mass audience.

文化外交是近年來國際關係中的一項重要議題，各國皆對外輸出軟權力來增加該國在世界上的影響力，中國自改革開放後經濟與軍事能力大幅成長，因此近年來便開始加強對外文化輸出的工作，運用文化外交的力量以達到國家政策的目標。 本研究的目的在於對胡錦濤主政時期的文化外交政策做一全面性的認識，論文首先探討文化外交的理論淵源，進而建構出文化外交的意涵；其次從總體的角度來研究胡錦濤政府文化外交政策，包括其產生原因以及訴求，並對執行此政策的各相關機構與指導方針做分析。另外在具體實踐方面，論文從孔子學院及2008年北京奧運來探討中國文化外交政策的成效，最後針對這兩項實踐以及總體文化外交政策做深入的評估。 研究發現中國的文化外交政策之興起有其內、外在環境的影響，而執行的結果雖然有達到一定的成效，但受限於部份因素的制約，使得中國的文化外交政策仍有許多待改進之處。 / Cultural diplomacy is an important issue in international relations in recent years; many countries output their soft power to increase their influences in the world. Since the success of China’s reform and open policy, its economy and military power had a large growth. Therefore, China started to strengthen the policy of cultural output, using the power of cultural diplomacy to achieve its national goal. The purpose of this research is to have a comprehensive understanding on the cultural diplomacy during Hu Jintao’s administration. In the beginning of this research, we discuss the theories of cultural diplomacy, and then to describe it’s meaning. Secondly, we analyze this policy, including the background and purpose, from the overall viewpoint, and also study on the government departments and documents related to this policy. In addition, we take Confucius Institute and Beijing Olympic Games for examples to discuss the result of China’s cultural diplomacy. At last, this research has the analysis on these two practices and the policy. This research found that the appearance of China’s cultural diplomacy is influenced by the inner and outer environments. Although this policy has its result, it is still restricted by some factors. It means there are still many places of this policy need to be improved.

中國於1971年加入聯合國，藉此重返國際社會；但在毛澤東主政下，中國仍自我封鎖。鄧小平於1976年接替毛澤東後，終於在1979年開啟中國的大門；此時國際環境中現有的規則、制度及價值，大多為西方國家所主導。中國做為後來者，在二十年間成為亞洲經濟的動力來源，世界各國無不密切觀察其快速的崛起；對於中國在國際體系中扮演的角色，以及該如何面對中國竄升的實力，國際間出現兩種看法。 第一種看法將中國視為必須加以防堵的威脅，第二種則將中國視為可透過交往加以運用的機會。「中國威脅論」之說，在1989年的六四天安門鎮壓事件發生後到達顛峰，中國面臨遭到國際孤立的局面，中國政府因此深刻體認到國際聲譽及形象受損的嚴重後果。而當中國共產黨執政的正當性日益仰賴經濟改革成果之際，中國政府更急於塑造友善的國際環境，使其經濟改革得以前進。中國政府開始啟動了全面的國際形象改造，以緩和將中國視為威脅的國際氛圍。 中國領導人自此大力宣傳其「和平崛起」，並在其傳統文化中尋找「軟實力」元素，做為推展多面向公眾外交的後盾。本文內容主要檢視中國擁有的軟實力資源，及其推動高層官員出訪、積極參與國際論壇、主辦北京奧運及上海博覽會等公眾外交作為，結論認為中國的國際形象改造計畫，在全球不同的區域獲致不同的成效。 / China reentered the international community in 1971 when it joined the United Nations, but it remained a closed country under Mao’s watch. Deng Xiaoping succeeded Mao in 1976 and he opened China’s door in 1979 to a global environment where existing rules, institutions, and values had been largely shaped by western countries. In two decades the latecomer has become the economic powerhouse in Asia and has had other states watching its rapid rise in the global community. Two rival views have since emerged as to China’s role in the international order and how to deal with its rising power. The first deems China as a threat to be contained. The second projects China as an opportunity that can be employed through engagement. The “China threat” argument reached its height after the crackdown on student protest at the Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989. The aftermath of international isolation seriously alerted the Chinese government to the effect of severe damage to its reputation and image internationally. As the Chinese Communist Party’s power legitimacy increasingly relies on delivering economic success, the Chinese government became ever more eager to create a friendly international environment where its economic development may be furthered. The Chinese government has since launched a sweeping reform of its global image to smooth away the perception of China as a threat. Chinese leaders have since touted its “peaceful rise” and turned to its traditional culture for soft power resources to better support its public diplomacy on all possible fronts. Examining China’s soft power resources and its efforts in staging high-level official visits, actively participating in international forums, and hosting the Beijing Olympics and the Shanghai World Exposition, this thesis finds that China’s global image promotion has reaped various degree of success in different regions.