Wag the WeiWei - A US boot in the Asian door

Sammanfattning: The growing interdependence and interconnectedness of the global community set the pace and frame for the evolution of foreign policy. Diplomacy formerly being the reserve of international communication has consequently been forced to change and branch out. This essay attempts to view these changes and their context at the example of US foreign policy in Pacific Asia. Both hard power translating into traditional Realpolitik, as well as soft power expressed through public diplomacy (PD), play their part. The latter though, can only be observed in the historical and political context of the former. The recent US interest in the Pacific region has involved the deployment of carrier groups and "sweet-talking" of regional economic powers alike. Attempts to establish a foothold in what is generally considered to be the prime market and potential flashpoint of the future have also included the marketing of the Chinese dissident WeiWei as a symbol for democratic values and human rights. This example serves as the blueprint for what we are defining as Publicity Diplomacy (PyD), a hybrid state of state-public communication, situated between the extremes of propaganda and public diplomacy that can further develop in either direction or linger in its in-between state. We find that US involvement in the Asia Pacific still is much characterized by the usage of hard power, with military deployments and tactical alliances being at the core of the current overall strategy. However, we can glimpse signs of profound engagement in PD and a far stronger orientation towards communication and community-building (smart power) within the Obama administration compared to its predecessors. So far, many of these efforts still range within the sphere of PyD and it remains to be seen to which extent soft power and hard power will eventually shape the quickly developing US-Asia Pacific story.