This volume investigates secret diplomacy with the aim of understanding its role in shaping foreign policy.

Recent events, including covert intelligence gathering operations, accusations of spying, and the leaking of sensitive government documents, have demonstrated that secrecy endures as a crucial, yet overlooked, aspect of international diplomacy. The book brings together different research programmes and views on secret diplomacy and integrates them into a coherent analytical framework, thereby filling an important gap in the literature. The aim is to stimulate, generate and direct the further development of theoretical understandings of secret diplomacy by highlighting 'gaps' in existing bodies of knowledge. To this end, the volume is structured around three distinct themes: concepts, contexts and cases. The first section elaborates on the different meanings and manifestations of the concept; the second part examines basic contexts that underpin the practice of secret diplomacy; while the third section presents a series of empirical cases of particular relevance for contemporary diplomatic practice. While the fundamental conditions diplomacy seeks to overcome - alienation, estrangement and separation - are imbued with distrust and secrecy, this volume highlights that, if anything, secret diplomacy is a vital, if misunderstood and unfairly criticised, aspect of diplomacy.

This book will be of much interest to students of diplomacy, intelligence studies, foreign policy and IR in general.

About the Author

Corneliu Bjola is Associate Professor in Diplomatic Studies, University of Oxford, UK, and author/editor of four previous books, including, most recently, Digital Diplomacy (Routledge 2015).

Stuart Murray is Senior Lecturer in International Relations and Diplomacy, Bond University, Australia, and Associate Editor of the Diplomacy and Foreign Policy Journal.

Reviews

'Secret Diplomacy will enlighten and fascinate readers in academic and policy-making circles and in the broader public domain. The editors' and contributors' careful analysis of theories and practices of secret diplomacy historically and contemporarily sets an impressive standard of scholarship, research and argument.' -- Pauline Kerr, Australian National University, Australia

'This book provides a much needed nuanced view about the evolution of a highly salient diplomatic practice. Exploring historical contingencies, its interplay with other modes of diplomacy, as well as discussing its legal and ethical implications, this book is full of important insights about the opportunities and perils of secret diplomacy. The case studies provide for a fascinating glimpse into the workings of secret diplomacy in 21st century world politics.' -- Markus Kornprobst, Vienna School of International Studies, Austria

Book Information
ISBN 9781138309258
Author Corneliu Bjola
Format Paperback
Page Count 294
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 540g