A “Battle for hearts and minds”? EU digital diplomacy toward the Global South
| Published date | 01 November 2024 |
| Author | Cecilia Emma Sottilotta |
| Date | 01 November 2024 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/1758-5899.13423 |
Global Policy. 2024;15:915 –927.
|
915
wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/gpol
1 | INTRODUCTION: EU DIGITAL
DIPLOMACY IN A SHIFTING
GEOPOLITICAL LANDSCAPE
In the context of what many consider the “end of an
era,” ushered in by Russia's invasion of Ukraine in
February 2022 and marked by rising tensions bet ween
the US and China, there is much discussi on about what
the new world order will look like, whether there will be
a shift toward a multipolar or rather a bipolar one,1 and,
from a European standpoint, what the European Union
(EU) should do to pursue its strategic and geopolitical
interests while remaining committed to multilateral-
ism, rule- based international order, and open and fair
trade—the so- called “open strategic autonomy” (Belka
& Marques,2023).
According to an interpretation of current interna-
tional affairs embraced, among other s, by EU's High
Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
(hereinafter HR) Josep Borrell, a “battle of narratives”
is taking place. The main battlefield for whic h is in-
deed the “Global South,” as many countries belong -
ing to this macro- region have hesitated to condemn
Russia's invasion of Ukraine with the same vehemence
displayed by the US and its allies, including the EU
(Apps,2022), more or less explicitly refusing to accept
that Western interests are those of the rest of the world
(Ishmael,2022, p. 18). In this sense, disputes pertaining
to recent changes in world affairs inevitabl y intertwine
with long- standing issues in North–South relations, in-
cluding the need to manage or reduce the im pact of
climate change, to close the extant economi c devel-
opment gaps between countries belonging to different
regions of the world, and to deal with colonial l egacies,
among others.
In this environment, the digital sphere has turned i nto
a major theater for discussions, clashes, and ind eed
full- fledged infowars, an inescapable consequence of
the way in which digital technologies are resha ping vir-
tually every single aspect of daily life. Spillovers of geo -
political competition to the so cial media arenas force
the EU to constantly reflect on its ability to eng age with
foreign audiences to promote its soft power—on e of the
traditional objectives of public diplomacy tout- court.
Against this backdrop and based on 14 semi-
structured expert interviews2 with EU officials, this
article aims to provide some reflec tions and policy rec-
ommendations on the current state of the art of EU dig -
ital diplomacy toward the Global South. Accordingly,
its contents are organized as follows. Section 2 out-
lines the methodological ap proach adopted for the
study. Section3 frames the ensuing analysis, engag-
ing with theoretically and practica lly relevant defini-
tional issues surrounding the conc epts of “EU digital
diplomacy” and “Global South.” Section4 explores the
making of EU digital diplomacy from the standp oint of
the actors shaping it. Section5 deal s with the audi-
ences of EU digital diplomacy. Section 6 explores the
RESEARCH ARTICLE
A “Battle for hearts and minds”? EU digital diplomacy
toward the Global South
Cecilia EmmaSottilotta
Received: 4 Janu ary 2024
|
Revised: 29 July 20 24
|
Accepted: 30 Ju ly 2024
DO I: 10 .1111/17 58- 589 9.13 423
© 2024 Durham Univer sity and John Wiley & Son s Ltd.
University for Fo reigners of Perugia
(Unistrapg), Perugia, Italy
Correspondence
Cecilia Emma So ttilotta, Univers ity for
Foreigners of Peru gia (Unistrapg), Piazza
Fortebracc io 4, 06123 Perugia, Italy.
Email: cecilia.sottilotta@unistrapg.it
Funding information
GIGA German Inst itute of Global and Area
Studies
Abstract
Against the backdrop of the polarization created by Russia's invasion of Ukraine
in February 2022 and growing competiti on between the US and China, a “battle
for the hearts and minds” of the Global S outh is taking place, with the digital
realm serving as a major theater for such a battle. Base d on a review of the
literature, an analysis of official documents as well as data co llected via expert
interviews with EU officials, this study del ves into the state of the art of EU digital
diplomacy toward the Global South, problematizing key concepts and categories;
exploring the role of actors, audiences, and me ssages; and providing some
policy recommendations.
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