Smart Diplomacy: Insights from Emirati-Greek Relations
Introduction
Pandemic-induced disruptions have not spared modern diplomatic structures and constructs. In fact, COVID-19 has ushered in a new era of global interconnection between state and non-state actors, and unconventional foreign policymaking. As evidenced by their multilateral and transnational management of the pandemic, various states today interact positively not only as sovereign entities, but also as collaborators that influence the collective advancement of their wider regions. This new era goes far beyond various existing sociopolitical conventions, encouraging political elites, institutions, and societies to embrace progressive change toward a multipolar world order.
The forthcoming wave of innovation in international relations is demonstrated by the emergence of “smart diplomacy” among political actors, an inventive trend that looks beyond geography, cultural exceptionalism, and geostrategic relativism. Through the rise of multipolarity in the 21st century, and the pandemic’s emphasis on the need for stronger global cooperation, zero-sum game approaches in international relations are being replaced with multilateral frameworks of governance, based on principles of smart diplomacy. Smart diplomacy entails investing in flexible win-win solutions and a realistic understanding of fluctuations in the international scene. It also includes securing national interests not by looking inward, but by elevating a given state’s status in global structural scales of power. Smart diplomacy actors do not dwell on what happened in the past, and are instead fixated on what can be done in the future. These are traits that have defined the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Greece not only individually, but bilaterally as well, particularly through their joint comprehensive strategic partnership. The dynamic relationship between the two countries offers both academics and practitioners key insights into the emergence of smart diplomacy as an innovative way of forging new alliances that transcend geographic proximity in an increasingly multipolar world.
A Comprehensive Strategic Partnership
The UAE and Greece signed a comprehensive strategic partnership with joint foreign policy and defense cooperation objectives during the official visit of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to Abu Dhabi in November 2020.1 The visit marked a turning point in UAE-Greece relations and presented a compelling case for smart diplomacy in action. It was the first time that Athens signed a strategic partnership with a state with which it does not share common borders, excluding its military and diplomatic obligations as a full member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
This development, however, must not be viewed in isolation, as the UAE and Greece have cooperated harmoniously on numerous occasions in the past. For instance, the two states effectively worked together in the joint United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Kosovo,2 and during the peak of the Syrian refugee crisis.3 In addition to humanitarian initiatives, both states share a common understanding of how to best navigate global crises as they arise in the international system, which has made the decision to formalize their strategic ties all the more reasonable. They give equally great importance to hard and soft power, while they both champion global humanitarian values such as cultural and religious tolerance.
Given their history of successful collaborations, elevated bilateral cooperation between the UAE and Greece will continue to be mutually beneficial, both for the two countries and for their wider regions. The UAE has the capacity to act as a central international interlocutor beyond the framework of the Arab Gulf region. For example, in the recent past it functioned as a major and secure aerial bridge for Afghans and expats that were fleeing Kabul after the American evacuation from the Afghan capital.4 As a full member of the European Union, as well as of NATO, Greece has the institutional status to function as the UAE’s corridor to Europe and the rest of the Western world. As such, close Greek-Emirati relations can also open a new chapter in the wider Arab-Western ties in areas beyond energy, which include developing soft power initiatives and tackling cyber-terrorism.
Likewise, Greece can benefit from the deepening of its diplomatic ties with the UAE on multiple fronts. The technological advancement of the UAE, and its leading role in sustainable development, gives Athens a firm blueprint to follow. Green energy and synergies in academic fields may also play a role as common platforms for the two states in the years to come. Additionally, the UAE’s pivotal role in the Gulf also allows Greece to expand its circle of communication with the region, thus opening new markets for Greek commodity exports, as well as the provision of services in the construction, shipping, and tourism sectors.
Athens and Abu Dhabi have managed to redefine the essence and quality of modern diplomacy, and their strategic partnership lays the foundation for the opening of wider alliances in the Greater Eastern Mediterranean region. This is where zero-sum games will prove to be futile, and where they may not prove as useful as they were in the bipolar era of the second half of the 20th century.
Wider Arab-European Dialogue
The most noteworthy aspect of UAE-Greece relations for their wider regions is the role the two states can play in advancing European-Arab dialogue. Greece and the UAE share a positive image in each other’s public consciousness that enables the building of coherent, socio-diplomatic ties at the grassroots, as well as the diplomatic, levels. The cross-cultural interactions between the two countries are illustrated, for example, through the UAE-Greece Cultural Week that took place in Athens in October 2018, with attendance from Emiratis and a large Greek audience.5 Such initiatives not only enhance UAE-Greece relations, but they may also lead to the eradication of xenophobic stereotypes about the unknown “Other.”
Conclusions
The UAE and Greece have risen in the past years as exemplary practitioners of smart diplomacy; investing in agile diplomatic relations, leveraging soft power that can positively influence public opinion within and across their borders, and focusing on the development of both bilateral and interregional relations. In the multipolar world order we operate in today, all states who are able and willing to uphold the stabilization of the international system must adopt the principles of smart diplomacy, in order to contribute to the minimization of systematic volatility. In addition to government-to-government interactions, smart diplomacy should enable people-to-people exchanges as well, particularly through the institutionalization of cooperation between non-state actors, such as scholars, think tanks, research organizations, artists, policy centers, museums, NGOs, and educational hubs. With support from existing institutional structures, such actors can facilitate cross-border soft power initiatives, building transnational ties of exchange and cooperation that begin at the grassroots level. Like the UAE-Greece Cultural Week, smart approaches to diplomacy should support and encourage interactions between two societies, instead of just two governments alone. This would also allow for a deeper understanding across different cultures, adding nuance to multilateral relations and encouraging long-term stability within the international community.
Through their partnership and their leading role in developing wider European-Arab relations, the UAE and Greece are models of what the future of diplomacy holds. The strategy of leveraging bilateral cooperation to create institutional pathways that advance regional development has the power to transform international relations. In an increasingly multipolar world, the widespread adaptation of this strategy can create a world order built on harmonious collaboration between sovereign states. The era of zero-sum approaches to foreign policy is of the past. Understanding this dynamic is key to the future of diplomacy, and the international community as a whole.
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The statements made and views expressed are solely the responsibility of the author, and do not represent Fiker Institute.
