The Evolution of the Concept of Diplomacy in International Relations

Diplomacy and negotiation between governmental and non- governmental units have been always underway domestically, regionally and globally, dating back to the human history. Such concepts as diplomacy, diplomat and negotiation have been extensively employed in the literature on international relations. They, recurrently, represent the relationship between two or more states or even several non-governmental actors. The central question, therefore, is how the changing concept of diplomacy related to the theories of international relations (IR). This study addresses the changes in diplomacy in IR. For this purpose, the changes in this concept from the mid-15th up until the 21st are reviewed. The main thrust here is to draw upon these conceptual changes with reference to the theories of realism, liberalism and constructivism. The findings indicate that it is possible to analyze the changes in terms of the theories via considering diplomacy in three different periods including traditional, unconventional and reciprocal (in this study). It should, however, be borne in mind that these three theories are not, on their own, able to explain the totality and full range of the changing concept of diplomacy.