In the 173rd issue of Culture, you can read about CULTURAL DIPLOMACY OF THE PR OF CHINA IN THE WESTERN BALKANS: SERBIA IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE
August 9, 2022
In the new, 173rd issue of Culture Magazine, on the topic of Culture and Diplomacy which was edited by dr. Aleksandra Kolaković, you can read a text titled CULTURAL DIPLOMACY OF THE PR OF CHINA IN THE WESTERN BALKANS: SERBIA IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE. In this text, the author, Dragan Trailović says: “For a long time, Peoples’ Republic of China has strived to improve its global image through various and numerous forms of public and cultural diplomacy. Ever since they have become one of the most significant and influential international stakeholders, the need has arisen to alter China’s perspective about others, but also the perspective of others about China. In order to accomplish this, PR of China has started implementing a proactive strategy of public and cultural diplomacy, promoting itself as a major and responsible global power, wishing to contribute to form positive narratives about China in international relations.
Through several major initiatives of global scale which include economic, political and cultural strategies, the Chinese government is trying to intend to improve and promote the image of their country as a reliable political and economic partner. In this process, culture and cultural exchange become one of the most valuable tools in China’s hands for growth of soft power. As such initiatives also include the Western Balkans thus including the Republic of Serbia as well, China has been using different methods and instruments of cultural diplomacy, from establishment of Confucius Institutes and academic cooperation, to the internationalisation of the Chinese media and its presence in the media of these countries. The purpose of the paper is to describe how the given instruments function in the Western Balkans and how they are used in the Republic of Serbia in comparison to other countries of the region.
