CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- Recently, the order of a prominent European political leader to his country's ambassadors to begin acting as salesmen made waves all the way to Asia. This is not an isolated case: To various degrees, politicians from Europe to Asia and Oceania are now calling for a new diplomacy that focuses more on economic issues.
This move contains a substantial degree of logic in this new era of globalization. The world of diplomacy must shed some of its traditional concepts and adjust to a new environment, focusing greater efforts in the economic and business sphere. In this sense, diplomats not only require a new style but also new, specialized knowledge that allows them to grasp the new realities of business that globalization has brought about. This trend is irreversible and chancelleries around the world have to make the necessary changes.
What is disturbing is not these new ideas but rather the naivete with which politicians are envisaging their implementation. Relying more on slogans than on objective realities, they are releasing demons whom it will later prove quite difficult to control. Relying on flamboyancy and populism, they seem to ignore fundamental limitations.