Another Chance for Mr. Public Diplomacy

22 September 2010 | 18:27 Code : 8743 Middle East.

Ahmadinejad finds another chance in the UN General Assembly to influence the global public opinion.

As democracy becomes by and large the favorite option of statecraft, public opinion naturally receives the larger share of focus from politicians. Public diplomacy, thus, becomes one of the most favorite options for diplomats around the world.

For many political observers tracing Iran developments Ahmadinejad’s administrations’ peculiar disposition towards public diplomacy is not a hidden fact. The primary target of Iranian diplomatic apparatus, spearheaded by the Iranian president, is the international public opinion. Manouchehr Mottaki, Ahmadinejad foreign minister believes that: "in the ninth administration, the president has adopted an approach, pro-active in foreign diplomacy, which is unprecedented among all post-Revolution presidents. Mr. Ahmadinejad has had the strongest presence in Iran’s foreign diplomacy during the past five years". (Zaman News, 21^st of September, 2010)

This approach is clearly visible in Ahmadinejad’s yearly attendance in the UN General Assembly. Since his presidency, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has not missed a single UN occasion and has taken advantage of the assembly to promote his unique approach towards global issues.

Another proof for Ahmadinejad’s liking for public diplomacy is his reception of foreign media. Compared with other Iranian presidents, and even other globally-known leaders, Ahmadinejad has had the highest number of interviews with foreign media. Western journalists may complain that they never get the answer they’re looking for in their interviews with the Iranian president, but the point is that Ahmadinejad only thinks of creating for himself an opportunity to slam the global order during those interviews.

His (unreplied) correspondences with George W. Bush and Barack Obama were also intended for media, rather than diplomatic, consumption; otherwise they would not have publicized the instant they were sent for the US presidents. They were in fact open letters to impact the global public opinion.

This year’s UN General Assembly is another opportunity for Ahmadinejad to use the diplomatic chances to hold negotiations with leaders of other countries, while advancing Iran’s national interests by wielding public diplomacy means, something he has become a master in after five years.