EXTERNAL COLLABORATION | Digital Diplomacy in the Face of the Pandemic - Alejandro Ramos

Alejandro Ramos C.

It is a truism to say that the pandemic we are experiencing has altered the world order. On the other hand, it would be quite bold to predict how lasting the transformations it has brought will be. Aside from the extraordinary lethal power it still exhibits in various parts of the world, it is likely that this global health emergency will leave behind a trail of enduring geopolitical and socioeconomic effects.

Diplomacy has not been an exception, and since the beginning of the current crisis, it has had to adapt to the circumstances. In doing so, it has demonstrated its immense value, particularly regarding international cooperation for the exchange of medical supplies and the search for a vaccine.

Here, I wish to focus on digital diplomacy, defined as the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) for diplomatic purposes. I will start with its most evident aspect: teleconferences. In light of confinement measures and restrictions on freedom of movement and association, governments and various multilateral organizations (G7, G20, World Bank, European Council, etc.) had to cancel or postpone their meetings (for the first time in its 75-year history, the UN General Assembly was canceled) or meet virtually to discuss and coordinate positions within their strategy to combat the virus.

Thus, a new term emerged in the ever-changing lexicon of diplomacy: “zoomplomacy” (referring to the online private meeting platform, Zoom). While this is not entirely new—and aside from the challenges it poses in terms of cybersecurity, Internet infrastructure, and the digital divide between countries with different technological development—the fact is that during the most critical stage of the pandemic, face-to-face meetings were replaced by grid screens on mobile devices and PCs with faces that were sometimes difficult to read. However, it is clear that no virtual meeting can replace personal contact or the fine art of negotiation in situ that has characterized diplomacy for centuries.

Among other uses of technology for diplomatic purposes are: electronic or email voting on resolutions adopted by the European Union and the Security Council, and even the presentation via teleconference of ambassadors’ letters of credence.

A second aspect of integrating digital tools into diplomatic work—and of greater relevance—is the use of ICT in consular assistance tasks by foreign ministries to repatriate or assist the thousands of nationals who were stranded abroad as the epicenter of the virus shifted from Asia to Europe and the Middle East, and then to the American continent. This was exacerbated by the World Health Organization’s decision on March 11 to declare Covid-19 a pandemic, and the consequent closure of international borders, as well as the cancellation of countless commercial flights.

Therefore, the speed with which foreign ministries, embassies, and consulates were able to update—and make available to the public, primarily on social media—information about return flights and air routes, as well as the provisions regarding mobility and current immigration measures, took on an extreme urgency. Given the perennial restriction of human resources, certain countries resorted to artificial intelligence and provided assistance and real-time information on their websites through automated chats regarding the evolution of the virus, consular services, and travel recommendations.

Of course, this was in addition to the challenging task of coordinating repatriation schemes under highly complex circumstances or organizing return flights in collaboration with other countries. Mexico, as a country with a recognized tradition and experience in consular protection, has excelled in this area.

This brings me to the final point: international image. The pandemic has also provided an opportunity for countries to communicate and project a positive image of themselves, depending on how they have navigated the challenges of the crisis and presented themselves as responsible actors capable of offering assistance to others. This “selfie diplomacy” results in greater soft power (or attraction), which ultimately means gaining supporters and sympathy for the values and causes that a state promotes and defends in the international arena.

Although the response has varied, it is true that the management of this health emergency may have taught a lesson to those who might assume that the 21st century would see the decline of diplomacy, and, on the contrary, it highlights its value, relevance, and contributions in an increasingly interconnected world—for better or for worse.

*Mexican diplomat. Note reproduced with the author’s permission and originally published in the newspaper El Sol de México https://www.elsoldemexico.com.mx/analisis/la-diplomacia-digital-ante-la-pandemia-5374866.html

**The comments and opinions expressed in this document represent the views of the authors, not necessarily those of the institution.