Speech by Ambassador Pekka Huhtaniemi for the House of Lords in London
15th October 2014
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Thank you for this opportunity to speak about cultural diplomacy to a Commonwealth audience. In a way, this is almost paradoxical: a representative of small and remote Finland lecturing about something which Commonwealth has managed to perform and illustrate perhaps better than any other actor in international politics!
Cultural diplomacy goes under the heading of "soft power". All cultural diplomacy can be seen as an effort to use soft power. Soft power, in turn, may cover issues other than purely cultural, depending, of course, on what we understand by "culture" – definitions can be broad or more narrow.
I have talked to young Commonwealth diplomats about soft power on earlier occasions here in London by emphasizing that Commonwealth constitutes an important source of soft power. Cultural issues and assets surely underpin much of what Commonwealth is able to do.
Cultural diplomacy is the continuation of politics and traditional diplomacy by other means – to paraphrase the famous maxim of Carl von Clausewitz. In line with Joseph S. Nye's definition of soft power, effective cultural diplomacy requires ability to persuade others through intellectual and artistic accomplishments, values and ideas – as opposed to hard power which conquers or intimidates through military might or political pressure.
Cultural diplomacy is conducted in order to pursue some objectives. Ultimately, nations invest in cultural diplomacy in order to enhance their national interests. More concretely, this may imply national security interests, commercial interests, including those of one's tourism industry, or more vaguely defined goals regarding the nation's general image or brand in the world.
Cultural diplomacy can be practiced by either governments, private sector or civil society. The tool-kit of cultural diplomacy can contain very diverse instruments ranging from arts to sports, from science to business, from language to religion and so forth.
Cultural diplomacy is a relatively new concept but it has been practiced for centuries. Explorers, travelers, traders, teachers, missionaries, artists, broadcasters, film-makers…they have all been to some extent engaged in some sort of cultural diplomacy and played the part of "informal Ambassadors". Hollywood in the US or the Pinewood Studios here in the UK has been tremendously effective operators of cultural diplomacy in the past.
In 1955 The New York Times declared Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong as "America's most effective ambassador". The Beatles for Britain, Abba for Sweden, Kylie for Australia or Lang Lang for China have had similar great impacts. Thanks to Yorkshire Television's old series, filmed in picturesque Yorkshire villages and still shown regularly in Finland, most Finns have a very positive if not idealistic conception of today's Britain.
Finnish television had a great impact on neighbouring Estonia during the Cold War years: the Estonians, linguistically related to Finns, could watch Finnish TV and have a first-hand view of a Western consumer society, cultural diversity and political freedoms on which our system has been built. When Soviet Union and communism started to implode, Estonians were among the first to break out and establish a new future and identity for their nation.
Britain's cultural diplomacy was for centuries linked with the advance and blossoming of the British Empire. The Empire was the vehicle for the great impact English language and British culture had all over the world. When the Empire unraveled in political terms, the British cultural empire was not destroyed. It has persisted, helped and symbolized by the Commonwealth, which is a major achievement, indeed.
Millions of people come to Britain every year to see, in particular, London, its famous buildings and other landmarks. They have seen these sights in films and on TV and they have read about them, but they want to experience them personally. Pictures of visitors with Big Ben, red telephone booth or mail box or gates of 10 Downing Street in the background are for many the real highlights of their British tour. When strolling around in London, we often find ourselves walking in the backdrop of a movie, TV series or an iconic globally broadcast Royal Celebration.
So, any other country can envy the position Britain enjoys in cultural diplomacy. But such a comfortable position may also entail a risk: even if great places of Central London are part of global patrimony and even if the Yorkshire villages and hilly landscapes are so wonderful as they are, we know that this is not the whole truth of Britain and its modern realities. There are, like in all societies, also problems, tensions and decay. Nobody wants to advertise such aspects, but promoters of cultural diplomacy must keep such drawbacks in mind in the name of realism. If reality and image diverge too much, cultural diplomacy is bound to fail.
Compared to Britain, Finland's image in the world rests on much narrower shoulders. The vast majority of the world´s population has no idea of Finland at all. For those who know something, the image is often sketchy and based on sporadic elements, depending on the person's walk of life. Finland could be a Formula 1 pilot like Kimi Räikkönen for someone, or Santa Claus or Jean Sibelius or – in recent years – a Nokia mobile phone for others.
If a person knows a Finn, which is rare, then the knowledge and relevance of Finland shoots up immediately and significantly. If a person has visited Finland, even briefly – as many Baltic cruise customers do – they usually have vivid and positive recollections. As a general rule, the image of Finland is usually not a source of concern for us who represent the country abroad. Perceptions and images of countries are known to be very longstanding and stable – even occasional bad news do not normally shatter them to any serious degree.
What is our concern – as agents of public or cultural diplomacy e.g. here in London – is the relevance of Finland. Even if the image of Finland in the UK is very positive, what is a British citizen supposed to think or care about it? "Finland is great but so what?" may be a typical gut reaction of an average Brit. We Finns may think likewise about, say, Scotland, which, by the way, although being of the same size as Finland, is much, much more well-known around the world – thanks to the British Empire, of course. "Scotland is beautiful, culturally rich and charming etc. but so what?" might be a typical Finnish reaction.
To make Finland and Finnish culture relevant for, say, a British audience, we must not only communicate, exhibit and inform but we must also listen, observe and analyze. What are the big issues in the British society, where Finland's achievements could find echo? Can we perhaps touch people's minds and influence certain debates here in the UK, if we bring the right Finnish actors or experts in contact with British society? Can we offer constructive, practical and workable examples through collaboration?
Our assets, seen from the Finnish Embassy in London, normally lie in the issues of children, young people, families, education, welfare, harmony with nature and other aspects of good life in a well-organized society. Surely, we have a good number of world-class cultural actors who also act as great Ambassadors of Finland. In this country, they are particularly numerous in the field of classical music, and I hear more music of Jean Sibelius in London than I would hear in Helsinki. But these stars, sometimes megastars, of Finnish culture do not need interventions on the part of our Embassy to support their careers. So we try to invest our scarce resources in promoting these other, more societal Finnish assets I referred to.
A good cultural diplomat is, above all, a good listener, sharp observer of the country of his/her posting. Try to know and understand the country you work in to the best of your abilities. Do not stick only to the capital, to its salons and institutions and to the people who normally or automatically create contacts with foreign Embassies. Study the history of the country in question, and show that you are genuinely interested in understanding the issues which are being discussed in the media and among ordinary people.
This kind of ground- or footwork helps you approach cultural diplomacy strategically: what is it that you can and wish to influence in the country where you are living? How do you "nudge" the perception of your country in the direction that enhances its position or gives it some influence among people and decision-makers?
In short, our Finnish cultural diplomacy, as far as the Embassy is concerned, is very simply defined: "Make Finland interesting and, if possible, relevant." Do not expect that your accomplishments can be easily measured, but they may still be significant.
Thank you for your attention!