DİPLOMASİ - Deneme Sınavı - 4

After the Congress of Vienna, permanent diplomacy was a model followed by all European powers including the Ottoman Empire.

Three main important developments can be noted for the full transition to permanent diplomacy: professionalization and recruitment, administrative structuration and emergence of ministries.

Track II diplomacy refers to non-conventional diplomacy conducted by not only diplomatic crews but also by influential individuals such as artists, authors or celebrities.

France was the first country which initiated a specific department responsible from the foreign policy.

The nature of new foreign policy shifted from a pure state-centric to a more multi-actor and multi-factorial ground so that it is not purely state-centric.

Policymaking, staffing and supporting abroad missions, coordinating foreign relations, and dealing with foreign diplomats hosted in the home country are among the tasks of foreign ministries.

In diplomatic history, the term “Interwar Period” refers to the specific period between 1918 and 1939. The correct answer is D.

Pacta sunt servanda Pacta sunt servanda is a legal term in Latin, which refers to the continuity of agreements between parties and bindingness of the clauses for both parties regardless of a change of a government or ruler. It is one of the ordering principles of modern international law and diplomacy. For more information, see Wehberg, (1959). The correct answer is A.

Unipolar system: This is a type of international system in which one hegemon significantly dominates the other actors within the system. A typical example of such an international system is the period of early 1990s. The United States remained as the only superpower after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and dominated the international system. The correct answer is A.

Bipolar system: In bipolar international system, there are two major powers that are significantly superior to other actors in terms of distribution of power. A perfect example of such an international system is the Cold War term in which the United States and Soviet Union appeared as the two superpowers. The correct answer is E.

Most significant and novel concept of medieval Europe is the term nuncius. A nuncius is the person in charge who is appointed by the ruler as the voice of the principal in another political entity. The correct answer is A.

It can be asked why in the Renaissance Italy, but not somewhere else, did the early institutions of modern democracy emerge. Three important factors can be noted. Firstly, the political equation among small Italian city states facilitated the consolidation of diplomacy as a preferred tool for solution of the problems in the Peninsula. Italian city states were in fact feudal units controlled by certain dynasties. ...In other words, regardless of their size, power and location, Italian city states came to a consensus in which they are all treated and assumed equivalent to each other. At this point, it should be noted that the principle of functional equality can be considered as the main constituting element of modern diplomacy. Secondly, the common language that is shared by all these small city states served as another facilitator for diplomatic progress in the region. Despite the lack of a political unity among the city states, there was a linguistic unity among them. Italian, being the lingua franca in the Peninsula, was accepted as the common language for any form of correspondence among the city states. Thirdly, the small scale political organization due to over-fragmented political structure in the Peninsula rendered some other coercive political tools such as war much more costly and ineffective. Italian city states were quite small in terms of their size and capacities.  The correct answer is E.

As elaborated earlier, diplomatic practices and interaction did exist among political entities even in ancient times elsewhere in the world. Yet, the content of these diplomatic practices were far from being a model for modern diplomatic customs. The biggest obstacle for cultivation of a systematic diplomatic custom was, of course, the issue of continuity. Diplomatic interactions of the ancient world were built upon quite an intermittent structure and shaped in an issue-specific manner. They did play a role in the formation of customs in the field of trade and crystallization of the borders. Yet, the modern diplomacy, which required continuity and constant contact, emerged in the Renaissance Italy. The content of the diplomatic practices in the Renaissance Italy focused mainly on long term alliances, customs union, and defense against the intervention that would potentially come from non-Italian Europe. The correct answer is D.

In accordance with the aim of keeping constant correspondence, we see that Italian city states were first to invent the very notion of a resident ambassador. Envoys were sent to foreign countries before Italian city states indeed. Yet, they were usually sent on a specific quest or to deliver a letter from the principal to its counterpart. Italian city states in the Renaissance, on the other hand, institutionalized the practice of having a resident ambassador in other states. The correct answer is C.

To this aim, European states followed a threefold strategy. Firstly, they allocated generous budgets for the accommodation and expenses of the diplomatic missions sent to other countries. In the 18th century, envoys, ambassadors and accompanying crew were selected from experienced and reliable civil servants closer to the ruler. After the recruitment, the diplomatic staff were also subject to additional training. Some training were provided to senior and experienced staff. Thirdly, as different from the 18th century resident ambassadors, the ambassadors of permanent diplomacy in the 19th century were not only seen as the envoys of their ruler. They were also authorized to develop instant policies as a reaction to sudden developments and crisis situations.  The correct answer is B.

Diplomatic immunity is a universal principle of modern diplomacy which refers to legal immunity of diplomats and diplomatic missions. According to diplomatic immunity principle, diplomats are not susceptible to lawsuits and diplomatic missions such that embassies are immune from the intervention of the host country. Diplomatic immunity has been an important custom in the transition to permanent diplomacy. The correct answer is C.

It was one of the dominant powers until the end of 17th century and carried out its diplomatic relations on the basis of superior-inferior dichotomy. They carried out their diplomatic relations on the basis of unilateralism and there was no room in the Ottoman diplomacy for relations on the basis of equality and mutuality. Therefore, they did not adapt the rules of modern diplomacy until early 1790s because they did not want to make concessions to “inferior” states. However, as opposed to the general view that the Ottomans did not take part in diplomatic relations due to the sense of superiority up until the 18th century, they attached great importance to their diplomatic relations from the beginning. The basic tools of Ottoman diplomacy were Âmans (mercies) and capitulations which reflected the unilateral nature of Ottoman diplomacy and started to be granted to Venetians as early as the reign of Mehmed II (Fatih) in the 15th century. In the heydays of the Ottoman rule, Suleyman I (Kanuni) granted capitulations to France. Initially, capitulations were economic, political and legal privileges granted to foreign states and subjects. However, as time passed and the empire began to decline, they turned into burdens on the Ottoman Empire hard to carry.

Although it was an expansionist power with imperial claims, the Ottoman Empire did not neglect diplomacy in the period between 15th and 18th centuries and conducted diplomatic relations with Venice, Genoa, Poland, Russia, Iran, Hungary, Austria, France, Transylvania, Bogdan, Walachia, Ragusa, Georgia, Algeria, Tripoli, Morocco and Marrakech.

Nevertheless, the Ottoman rulers attached great importance to diplomatic relations despite unilateral nature of these relations in order to be a part of world system and power struggle. As opposed to the general view that the Ottomans did not have bilateral relations with the European or Christian states because the Quran orders not establishing relations with infidels and fighting against them (Tuncer, 11), Ottoman rulers were more pragmatic than argued. From the beginning, they established close relations not only with Beyliks (tribes) in Anatolia, but also with the Byzantine Empire. Through inter-tribal or inter-state marriages, they consolidated their power and expanded their territories. Therefore, the Ottoman Empire cannot be regarded as an entity solely ruled by strict Islamic laws, rather it was also influenced by customary laws and local customs. Ottoman Sultans like Mehmed II issued qanunnames (books of law) in accordance with the Turkish state tradition empowered rulers to make laws, so the Ottoman system was not only ruled by religious laws, but also by customary laws. Such a legal system provided flexibility and pragmatism to the policies of the empire. (Yurdusev, 14-15)