Diplomatic handbook

 

The diplomat's techniques may be divided into content and presentation: content being what he says, and presentation being the way that he says it in terms of body language, appearance and voice; and it is perhaps surprising that a diplomat's presentation impresses the viewer far more than what he says.

 

 

CONTENT

 

For diplomats, the major rules of content are:

 

Analyse your audience and shape the content accordingly.

Make sure you know what you are allowed to say: remember that you are speaking for your country - not yourself.

Go prepared, and therefore unhurried.

Have a central message and look for an opportunity to put it across to the audience.

Before the interview, write down a few impressive phrases that can fit in easily and try to get them in.

Anticipate the questions that you will be asked and prepare the answers.

Always try to set out your ideas in a logical and easy - to - follow sequence.

Try not to let the interviewer determine the course of the interview; have your own plan of campaign, and do not just accept his topics and his assumptions.

Do not only talk about the negative points that the interviewer may bring up: put an emphasis on the positive aspects.

How lengthy should your answer be? Long enough to maintain the flow of conversation, but not so long as to be tedious or to give the impression that you are wasting the interviewer's - and thus the audience's - time.

What if an argument develops? Do not argue back: look hurt at the interviewer's bad manners.

Do not quote figures unless they are essential: it confuses the audience.

Do not specify the number of points that you are going to mention: you may forget one.

Write down any personal names, quotations or initials (e.g. OSCE, ECSC) that you may wish to mention, to make sure that you do not get them wrong (or don't just go blank).

Remember that your opening phrase and your closing phrase are particularly important. It is the first impression that you give that sets the stage, and your exit lines that leave the most lasting impression of you.

Never admit that your government is in the wrong.

Never deviate from the fundamental sequence: Listen, Pause, Think, Answer.

 

 

PRESENTATION

 

The major rules of presentation are:

 

1. Voice

The  importance of the voice is greatly underestimated in all aspects of personal communication. One's voice can immediately put someone on the defensive; it may even result in a hostile response to a simple query; on the other hand it may immediately establish a rapport wavelength.

Learn how to breathe properly and learn how to control your breathing: start off taking a deep breath. Make your voice interesting - vary the pitch, the volume and the speed.

Speak clearly, softly rather than loudly, slowly rather than quickly.

Avoid saying 'urn', 'er', or 'well' (silence is better, or slow down).

Pitch your voice up slightly at the beginning of a sentence, and indicate to the interviewer that your reply has come to an end by lowering your voice (if in English).

 

 

2. Body language

The major element of body language is facial expression, and it is essential to strike an appropriate balance between looking too animated on the one hand and too 'wooden' on the other: local perceptions and expectations may influence the balance, but diplomats generally are expected to be 'heavyweight' rather then 'lightweight'. They should normally face the interviewer (and listen positively and attentively), rather than face the camera: those who wish to impose their personality on the viewers may do so, but that is not the role of a diplomat. Apart from facial expression, body language is also expressed in the way a person sits and moves: he may slouch in his chair and give the impression that he is doing the interviewer (and thus his audience) a great favour by deigning to be interviewed; he may sit awkwardly and give the impression of being inadequate and ill-at-ease, or he may move his eyes and head and wave his arms around in a distracting manner.

 

 

3. Appearance

Appearance is expected to be formal rather than casual, neat rather than scruffy, and appropriate to the occasion. If spectacles are likely to obscure the eyes they should, if possible, be removed five minutes before the interview; and ladies should avoid jewellery or a hair style that is distracting, or clothes that are of a dramatically contrasting pattern: it is advisable to check in advance the colour of the background of the interview room.

CONCLUSION

 

It is no exaggeration to say that we have arrived at a watershed - a point of no return - in international relations where there is potentially worldwide transparency, with everybody being able to see - with very few exceptions - what is going on in their neighbours' back gardens. And it is inevitable that the technical developments that are taking place with such rapidity in Information Technology in general and in television viewing in particular will present governments with opportunities and problems in the future that are as yet unforeseeable. And in this connection it is relevant to note that television viewers in Britain will soon have a choice of over one hundred channels on digital terrestrial broadcasting over and above anything that they may want to see on satellite television or the Internet. Misinformation and disinformation in the future may cause misunderstandings and arouse hatreds; but on the other hand the Global Society may produce a younger generation that sees violence and conflict as being barbaric and outdated. The media may perhaps give diplomats the opportunity through media diplomacy to develop the skill of mediation to the point where existing inter-cultural animosities can be overcome.

The majority of situations that call for mediation have their roots in the displacement of peoples, whether forced or voluntary; the imposition of alien rule or other fundamental contradictions: in Europe alone, millions of people live on the wrong side of their linguistic of cultural frontier, and elsewhere peoples with irreconcilable values live in conditions of passive hostility within the same state. Nevertheless, it is often the case that a very limited number of individuals play a decisive role in any conflict situation, and the psychological impact of 'media attention' - even of 'media pressure' - on their reasoning and responses should not be underrated. Moreover, since diplomats are trained to appreciate the importance of words, they can use their influence to discourage fudge words such as 'safe haven' which have an emotional appeal and produce a mass response, but which create a false impression, distort reality and result in dashed expectations.

The essential requirement is that diplomats, with the encouragement of their governments, should be aware of the media revolution that is going on around them, and that they should think positively how they can utilise it for the benefit of their country's interest, and for the betterment of the Global Society of which they are part. They should take a positive interest in the subject and understand the progress of information technology revolutions and realise the speed of change in the technologies that will affect their work. Diplomats have adapted to working in the Computer Age: they now have to adapt to the Information Age and the Global Society.

 

 

Appendix A

ENTERTAINING

 

 

 

 

The primary purpose of entertaining is to afford the maximum pleasure and enjoyment to one's guests. But for diplomats it has a rather more serious purpose, and may in addition have the following objectives:

 

1. to improve the public image of their country;
2. to obtain opinions and information from local residents and from

other diplomats;

3. to make friends and contacts which may prove useful;
4. to enable wives to meet and make friends with other wives so that they may share and discuss matters of mutual interest.

 

Also, and this is equally important, it enables heads and senior members of missions informally to 'sound out' members of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (and to a lesser extent politicians, businessmen and other diplomats) regarding proposals they would like to make, but would rather not put into writing or raise officially lest the result should be a definite, and possibly irreversible, negative.

It would be unrealistic to pretend that hard and fast rules of conduct are universally applicable, because practice varies considerably from country to country, and the range of gradations between formality and informality is great. Nevertheless, it is possible to make certain generalisations, and the following deliberately err on the side of formality, on the grounds that it is safer to be too formal rather than too informal, just as it is safer for a lady to be over-dressed than under-dressed, though in both instances a telephone call to a friendly colleague is often the best way of resolving any doubts.

 

 

OFFERING HOSPITALITY

 

When offering hospitality in the form of lunch or dinner, there are two tasks to be undertaken apart from organising the food and drink and making sure that the date selected does not coincide with a major national day or local religious festivity: the seating plan and invitations.

 

 

THE SEATING PLAN

 

Before invitations are despatched for a lunch or dinner, a seating plan is worked out. The guests are selected, and it is essential first to ensure as far as possible that none are likely to clash (politically, personally or socially); and secondly that none are likely to object to the precedence that has been accorded to them.

The world community of states has grown rapidly in the past quarter of a century, and new social and cultural patterns have become established. Diplomatic interaction therefore is more complex, and the customs and practices of various communities need to be taken into account in diplomatic entertainment. Local custom and practice should generally prevail, with allowances being made appropriately for the sensitivities of individual guests. The essence of good diplomatic hospitality is the right atmosphere, and the compatibility of the guests is all important.

If diplomats only are present, the seating plan should cause no problems, given the absolute nature of their order of precedence (attachés being a possible complication); but if non-diplomats of the host country are present problems could easily arise, as their order of precedence is not so definite. In this latter instance senior diplomats and members of a Ministry of Foreign Affairs have a high degree of precedence, while among non-officials social status and age are major factors. In cases of doubt it is common practice to seek the advice of the Protocol Department; and it is normally found that a youthful guest will not resent giving way to age, particularly if the hostess adds a quiet word of apology.

Seating plans where only the host or the hostess is present and guests are all male or all female are based essentially on the principle that the senior guest sits on the host's right and the next senior on his left; the third senior on his right but one, the fourth senior on his left but one, and so on (in some Nordic countries, contrary to normal practice, seniority is on the left). The following examples may be adapted to circular tables without basic change:

All male/female seating plan: host/hostess and seven guests

 

	7
6		5
4		3
2		1
	Host(ess)

 

 

 

 

If a host were holding a luncheon or dinner in honour of a specific guest he might adopt the following plan:

 

 

 

	6	2	Guest of honour	4	8
10						9
	7	3	Host	1	5

 

 

When both host and hostess are present the principle is extended as follows:

 

Mixed seating plan: host, hostess and six couples (men underlined)

 

	2	4	6	5	3	1
Host							Hostess
	1	3	5	6	4	2

 

 

The same rules apply when the host and hostess sit opposite each other in the centre of the long sides of the table. This arrangement has many advantages, but tends to leave those at the ends of the table rather out in the cold: a situation aggravated if, as sometimes happens, the end daces are not filled.

The hostess normally sits facing the door leading to the kitchen, so that she may more effectively control her staff.

It is not normally the practice in European countries for wives to be placed next to their husbands, nor do two ladies or two gentlemen normally sit next to each other, but in this respect the custom of the country should be adhered to. It will be found that tables of 6, 10 and 14 work out satisfactorily if the host and hostess are at opposite ends of a rectangular table, whereas 8 and 12 do not permit host and hostess to sit at opposite ends. However 14 is risky, because if one person drops out the hostess is left with - to some - an unlucky 13.

It may sometimes happen that a couple drop out, or that one of the partners is unable to attend at the last minute. In these instances members of one's own mission or friendly colleagues may be asked to help out. When members of an ambassador's or a high commissioner's staff include their head of mission and his wife in the guest list for a lunch or dinner it is customary for the latter to be seated as though they were the hosts in the same way as a Foreign Minister or a Head of State does when visiting one of his own missions.

 

 

 

INVITATIONS

 

These should be sent out two or three weeks before the event: shorter notice might not give the host time to invite an alternative guest if it is refused, and longer notice might embarrass a guest who, for some reason, might wish to refuse on some fictitious grounds, e.g. that he had a prior engagement.

Invitations are written in the third person and normally in the following style:

 

The Ambassador of ............................................................... and Mrs 'X'

Request the pleasure of the company

of

Mr and Mrs 'Y'

at Lunch

on Thursday 17 September at 1.15 p-m.

Address              R.S.V.P.

 

In certain instances (e.g. if inviting the Minister for Foreign Affairs) one would request 'the honour of the company'. An alternative method (the current practice for the particular post should always be followed) is to issue the invitation by telephone, if appropriate through secretaries. If the answer is in the affirmative, the host or hostess then sends an invitation card with the necessary details and with the initials 'p.m.' or the words 'to remind', and encloses a list of guests giving their titles and function. This ensures that all those invited know in advance who the other guests are and what they do - an obvious aid to successful entertaining.

An invitation to dinner would include the type of dress: e.g. 'Black Tie' or Lounge suit or for ladies 'Long dress' where appropriate.

 

 

 

A DINNER PARTY

 

Should one arrive with a gift for the hostess? In most countries it is customary to do so, and a small, attractively wrapped gift perhaps related to one's own or the host country is a courteous gesture. Flowers are traditional, but should be sent in advance rather than delivered personally, otherwise the hostess - unless she has a large domestic staff - will not have time to deal with them.

It is customary at a gathering of ten or more for a table plan to be displayed so that guests may know their table places in advance; otherwise it is the task of the hostess to indicate to guests where they sit when they enter the dining-room. When ten or more are invited all places should have name cards: even for smaller gatherings these can be an attractive contribution to the table decoration.

If the time of the dinner is stated as 7.30 for 8 p.m. it is expected that guests will arrive soon after 7.30 p.m. (never before); they will be introduced to the other guests and will drink fruit Juice or aperitifs until about 8 p.m. (or later if any of the guests have been late in arriving), after which time dinner will be served.

Guests will be welcomed by the host and hostess and introduced to the other guests present. If guests arrive late and the host and hostess are not awaiting them on their entry into the room, they must seek them out, apologising for their lateness, whereupon they will be introduced to those already present.

The following are usually served as aperitifs together with others customarily served in the region:

 

Sherry, dry

White wine

Gin and tonic water, with preferably a slice of lemon peel (the 'zest')

Whisky (Scotch) and soda; alternatively Bourbon

Fruit juice

 

When all the members of the party are assembled and when the hostess has been told by a member of the staff that dinner is ready, she will lead the guests into the dining-room. On very formal occasions the gentlemen will be asked to escort specific ladies to their places, but such a procedure is rare. It is, however, a courtesy to help the lady on one's right to seat herself at the table by pulling out her chair for her. (It is also a nice introduction.)

The choice of menu will depend on personal taste and circumstances, but dietary restrictions of guests on account of health or religion have always to be taken into account.

During the meal it is the duty of the host and hostess - and indeed of all the guests - to ensure that no individual or group monopolises the conversation to the exclusion of any one of the company. The men, in particular, should engage the ladies on either side of them in conversation, irrespective of their charm or vivacity, to an equal extent throughout the meal. At sometime during the meal it will be appropriate for the host to say a few words of welcome, and for the senior guest to reply.

At the end of the meal, when all have finished, the hostess catches the eye of the senior lady present to ensure that she is ready to leave the table, and will then rise from her seat; that being a signal for all to rise. If it is the practice for the men to remain at the table to discuss matters of business after the ladies have left they will normally congregate at one end for their coffee, cigars and liqueurs. If lady diplomats are present, and wish to join in the discussions, it is the responsibility of the host to ensure that they feel welcome to do so. It is not advisable to smoke during a meal, as this may cause offence to others; nor should cigars be lit until after the toast (where appropriate) has been given or the port has been circulated (customarily clockwise). In order to bring the evening to a close drinks may be served around 10.30 p.m. (the time depending on local custom), after which the senior guest will leave followed by the others. If an Ambassador is present as a guest and also a member of his staff, the latter should not leave before his head of mission. Ambassadors and other particularly important guests are normally escorted to their cars.

After an interval of two or three days it is customary in some countries for guests to send a visiting card marked 'p.r.' (pour remercier), to say 'thank you' for the dinner or, more personally, to write a 'thank-you' letter.