The Repertoire of “Diplomatic Embeddedness”

• In Event: International Order and Repertoires of Power Politics

Abstract

This paper looks at the repertoire of diplomacy and, in particular, the use of diplomatic ties to organize collective action. Most of these ties are the result of bilateral or multilateral agreements that a country dyad entertains. These agreements can relate to political, economic, security or any other area of international cooperation. Each tie connects people. Each tie also creates practices: because of the agreements in place these government officials are compelled to interact with their foreign counterparts. They are required to talk, exchange letters or emails and meet at bilateral or multilateral summits or other types of gatherings. Interdependencies and routines of interactions arise. In the aggregate, however, these ties create structural opportunities. They provide states with resources to organize collective action: (1) they allow states to collect private information; (2) they facilitate the construction of issue-linkages and side-payments; (3) they build trust; (4) they offer negotiation venues; and (5) they supply cooperation brokers. The paper analyzes the origin of this repertoire in the field of military coalition-building. It asked: how did government officials discover the utility of using diplomatic ties for collective action purposes? Using archival sources from the Korean War, the paper traces this evolution and concludes by identifying possible drivers behind the development of policy repertoires.

Author

• Marina Elisabeth Henke, Northwestern University