Multi-track Diplomacy
Encyclopedia
The term multi track diplomacy evolved over a 10 year period. Mr. Joseph Montville, US foreign service officer coined the phrase “Track Two Diplomacy” in an article he wrote for “Foreign Policy” magazine in (Winter 1981-1982). Track one, as he described it, was government to government interaction in the field of foreign affairs. Track two dealt with all actions by non-state actors in the field of foreign affairs.
US Ambassador John W. McDonald, a colleague of Joseph Montville, wrote the first book on citizen diplomacy entitled Conflict Resolution: Track Two Diplomacy published by The Department of State May 1987 (Library of Congress Number 86-600-538)
In 1989 McDonald expanded the two tracks to five tracks which included business, people to people interaction and the media. This article was published as a chapter in Timing and De-escalation of International Conflict by Louis Kriesberg and Stuart J Thorson (Syracuse University Press, 1991) and as Occasional Paper 3 Further Exploration of Track Two Diplomacy by The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy in November 1999.
In 1991 the United State Institute of Peace awarded a $25,000 grant for further research on the topic. Louise Diamond and John W. McDonald extended the five tracks to nine tracks and renamed the discipline multi-track diplomacy. The book Multi-Track Diplomacy, A Systems Approach to Peace was first published by the Iowa Peace Institute in 1991 and by The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy in 1992. In 1996 a third edition was published by Kumarian Press, Inc. (ISBN 1-56549-057-6)
On May 26, 1992 the articles of incorporation were filed in Washington D.C. for The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy by cofounders; John W. McDonald, Ambassador (ret.) and Louise Diamond Ph.D. The Institute received its 501(c)(3) status by the IRS as a non-profit organization later in the year. John W. McDonald, Chairman and CEO of the Institute stated that this book was the basis for their operations and the core for their logo design.
Nine Tracks of Diplomacy in logo
The nine tracks of diplomacy as mentioned on "Multi-Track Diplomacy, A Systems Approach to Peace" are:
, conflict resolution, and peacebuilding in order to prevent or end violent conflict.
The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy developed the following operating principles:
Multi-Track Diplomacy is essentially a step in the same direction as the evolution of Deep Democracy. While Multi-Track Diplomacy focuses on functional social roles in each of its tracks, Deep Democracy uses concepts and methodologies
from Process Oriented Psychology
to further extends the discrete tracks to a broad range of roles, psychological figures, and experiences and explores the tensions and chaos that exist between them.
employee, coined the phrases Track One and Track Two diplomacy in "Foreign Policy According to Freud," which appeared in Foreign Policy (Montville & Davidson, 1981). Track One diplomacy was what diplomats did—formal negotiation
s between nations conducted by professional diplomats. Track Two diplomacy referred to conflict resolution efforts by professional non-governmental conflict resolution practitioners and theorists. "Track Two has as its object the reduction or resolution of conflict, within a country
or between countries, by lowering the anger or tension or fear that exists, through improved communication
and a better understanding of each other’s point of view" (McDonald & Bendahmane, 1987, p. 1).
The efforts of these conflict resolution professionals, generally operating through non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
and universities
, arose from the realization by diplomats and others that formal official government-to-government interactions were not necessarily the most effective methods for securing international cooperation
or resolving differences.
Montville (Montville & Davidson, 1981) maintains that there are two basic processes in track two diplomacy. The first consists of facilitated workshops that bring members of conflicting groups together to develop personal relationships
, understand the conflict from the perspective of others, and develop joint strategies for solving the conflict. The second process involves working to shift public opinion: “Here the task is a psychological one which consists of reducing the sense of victimhood of the parties and rehumanizing the image of the adversary” (McDonald & Bendahmane, 1987, p. 10).
Methods for conducting these activities are still evolving as is the thinking around which individuals—representing various roles and functions in society
and government—should be included. Montville points out that “there is no evidence that conflict resolution workshops would work for the principal political leaders
themselves—perhaps because they are too tough or even impervious to the humanizing process” (McDonald & Bendahmane, 1987, p. 14). Ambassador McDonald (Sep 2003 - Aug 2004) seconds this assumption but feels that it is merely because the leaders are stuck in rigid roles and politically have less access to fluidity than individuals further removed from the top echelon of government(McDonald, Sep 2003 - Aug 2004).
In 1986 Ambassador John McDonald and Diane Bendahmane (1987) produced Conflict Resolution: Track Two Diplomacy, a book that compiled the thoughts of several Track One and Track Two professionals confirming the need for government to support, encourage, and work with Track Two. The Department of State refused to print the book for eighteen months because the Department has a strong defensiveness regarding its right, ability, and authority to conduct conflict resolution. The book was finally published in 1987 and states that
At a special briefing for representatives of non-governmental organizations, the U.S. Department of State’s Deputy Director
for Political Affairs in the Office of Iraq
presented a plea for help from NGOs (Paul Sutphin, 2004). Acting under Secretary Colin Powell’s
initiative and authority, the State Department’s Iraqi analysts explained their frustrations in conducting dialogue, developing grassroots relationships, and rebuilding infrastructure
. Far from admitting that the State Department was limited in its right, ability, and authority to conduct conflict resolution, they admitted that they couldn’t build relationships or spend money fast enough to rebuild Iraq in time to appease the Iraqis and needed help to do it. This may not be the ideal situation in terms of NGO and State Department cooperation.
“Further Exploration of Track Two Diplomacy” was published in 1991 as an Occasional Paper (McDonald), and as a chapter in Timing the De-Escalation of International Conflicts (Kriesberg & Thorson, 1991). In 1996 Dr. Louise Diamond and Ambassador McDonald published Multi-Track Diplomacy: A Systems Approach to Peace. Since then the model has been more robustly developed and the original second track has been expanded into nine tracks as illustrated in the logo.
US Ambassador John W. McDonald, a colleague of Joseph Montville, wrote the first book on citizen diplomacy entitled Conflict Resolution: Track Two Diplomacy published by The Department of State May 1987 (Library of Congress Number 86-600-538)
In 1989 McDonald expanded the two tracks to five tracks which included business, people to people interaction and the media. This article was published as a chapter in Timing and De-escalation of International Conflict by Louis Kriesberg and Stuart J Thorson (Syracuse University Press, 1991) and as Occasional Paper 3 Further Exploration of Track Two Diplomacy by The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy in November 1999.
In 1991 the United State Institute of Peace awarded a $25,000 grant for further research on the topic. Louise Diamond and John W. McDonald extended the five tracks to nine tracks and renamed the discipline multi-track diplomacy. The book Multi-Track Diplomacy, A Systems Approach to Peace was first published by the Iowa Peace Institute in 1991 and by The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy in 1992. In 1996 a third edition was published by Kumarian Press, Inc. (ISBN 1-56549-057-6)
On May 26, 1992 the articles of incorporation were filed in Washington D.C. for The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy by cofounders; John W. McDonald, Ambassador (ret.) and Louise Diamond Ph.D. The Institute received its 501(c)(3) status by the IRS as a non-profit organization later in the year. John W. McDonald, Chairman and CEO of the Institute stated that this book was the basis for their operations and the core for their logo design.
Nine Tracks of Diplomacy in logo
The nine tracks of diplomacy as mentioned on "Multi-Track Diplomacy, A Systems Approach to Peace" are:
- Track 1 – Government
- Track 2 – Nongovernment/Professional
- Track 3 – Business, or Peacemaking through Commerce.
- Track 4 – Private Citizen, or Peacemaking through Personal Involvement.
- Track 5 – Research, Training, and Education
- Track 6 – Activism, or Peacemaking through Advocacy
- Track 7 – Religion, or Peacemaking through Faith in action.
- Track 8 – Funding, or Peacemaking through Providing Resources.
- Track 9- Communications and the Media, or Peacemaking through Information
Twelve principles of multi-track diplomacy
The Multi-Track concept is meant to convey the idea that all sectors of society are important and need to be involved, supported, listened to, and trained in a shared language of dialogueDialogue
Dialogue is a literary and theatrical form consisting of a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people....
, conflict resolution, and peacebuilding in order to prevent or end violent conflict.
The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy developed the following operating principles:
- Relationship—Building strong interpersonal and intergroup relations throughout the fabric of society.
- Long-term commitment—Making an ongoing commitment to people and to processes that may take years to come to fruition.
- Cultural synergy—Respecting the cultural wisdom of all the parties and welcoming the creative interaction of different cultural ways.
- Partnership—Modeling collaborative process by partnering with local parties and with other institutions and coalitions.
- Multiple technologies—Utilizing a variety of technologies, as appropriate, and creating new methods, as needed, to meet the unique needs of each situation.
- Facilitation—Assisting parties in taking responsibility for their own dreams and destiny.
- Empowerment—Helping people become empowered agents of change and transformation within their societies.
- Action research—Learning from all that we do and sharing that learning with others.
- Invitation—Entering the system where there is an invitation and an open door.
- Trust—Building relationships of mutual trust and caring within the system.
- Engagement—Acknowledging that once we enter a system we become a unique part of it -- an engaged, caring, and accountable partner.
- Transformation—Catalyzing changes at the deepest level of beliefs, assumptions, and values, as well as behaviors and structures.
Multi-Track Diplomacy is essentially a step in the same direction as the evolution of Deep Democracy. While Multi-Track Diplomacy focuses on functional social roles in each of its tracks, Deep Democracy uses concepts and methodologies
Methodology
Methodology is generally a guideline for solving a problem, with specificcomponents such as phases, tasks, methods, techniques and tools . It can be defined also as follows:...
from Process Oriented Psychology
Process Oriented Psychology
Process oriented psychology refers to a body of theory and practice that encompasses a broad range of psychotherapeutic, personal growth, and group process applications. It is more commonly called "process work" in the United States, the longer name being used in Europe and Asia...
to further extends the discrete tracks to a broad range of roles, psychological figures, and experiences and explores the tensions and chaos that exist between them.
Expanded history of multi-track diplomacy
In 1981, Joseph Montville, then a U.S. State DepartmentUnited States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
employee, coined the phrases Track One and Track Two diplomacy in "Foreign Policy According to Freud," which appeared in Foreign Policy (Montville & Davidson, 1981). Track One diplomacy was what diplomats did—formal negotiation
Negotiation
Negotiation is a dialogue between two or more people or parties, intended to reach an understanding, resolve point of difference, or gain advantage in outcome of dialogue, to produce an agreement upon courses of action, to bargain for individual or collective advantage, to craft outcomes to satisfy...
s between nations conducted by professional diplomats. Track Two diplomacy referred to conflict resolution efforts by professional non-governmental conflict resolution practitioners and theorists. "Track Two has as its object the reduction or resolution of conflict, within a country
Country
A country is a region legally identified as a distinct entity in political geography. A country may be an independent sovereign state or one that is occupied by another state, as a non-sovereign or formerly sovereign political division, or a geographic region associated with a previously...
or between countries, by lowering the anger or tension or fear that exists, through improved communication
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
and a better understanding of each other’s point of view" (McDonald & Bendahmane, 1987, p. 1).
The efforts of these conflict resolution professionals, generally operating through non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
and universities
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, arose from the realization by diplomats and others that formal official government-to-government interactions were not necessarily the most effective methods for securing international cooperation
Internationalism (politics)
Internationalism is a political movement which advocates a greater economic and political cooperation among nations for the theoretical benefit of all...
or resolving differences.
Track two diplomacy is unofficial, non-structured interaction. It is always open minded, often altruisticAltruismAltruism is a concern for the welfare of others. It is a traditional virtue in many cultures, and a core aspect of various religious traditions, though the concept of 'others' toward whom concern should be directed can vary among cultures and religions. Altruism is the opposite of...
, and . . . strategically optimistic, based on best case analysis. Its underlying assumption is that actual or potential conflict can be resolved or eased by appealing to common human capabilities to respond to good will and reasonableness. Scientific and cultural exchanges are examples of track two diplomacy. The problem most political liberalsLiberalismLiberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
fail to recognize is that reasonable and altruistic interaction with foreign countries cannot be an alternative to traditional track one diplomacy, with its official posturing and its underlying threat of the use of force. Both tracks are necessary for psychological reasons and both need each other. (Montville & Davidson, 1981, p. 155)
Montville (Montville & Davidson, 1981) maintains that there are two basic processes in track two diplomacy. The first consists of facilitated workshops that bring members of conflicting groups together to develop personal relationships
Interpersonal relationship
An interpersonal relationship is an association between two or more people that may range from fleeting to enduring. This association may be based on limerence, love, solidarity, regular business interactions, or some other type of social commitment. Interpersonal relationships are formed in the...
, understand the conflict from the perspective of others, and develop joint strategies for solving the conflict. The second process involves working to shift public opinion: “Here the task is a psychological one which consists of reducing the sense of victimhood of the parties and rehumanizing the image of the adversary” (McDonald & Bendahmane, 1987, p. 10).
Methods for conducting these activities are still evolving as is the thinking around which individuals—representing various roles and functions in society
Society
A society, or a human society, is a group of people related to each other through persistent relations, or a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations...
and government—should be included. Montville points out that “there is no evidence that conflict resolution workshops would work for the principal political leaders
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
themselves—perhaps because they are too tough or even impervious to the humanizing process” (McDonald & Bendahmane, 1987, p. 14). Ambassador McDonald (Sep 2003 - Aug 2004) seconds this assumption but feels that it is merely because the leaders are stuck in rigid roles and politically have less access to fluidity than individuals further removed from the top echelon of government(McDonald, Sep 2003 - Aug 2004).
In 1986 Ambassador John McDonald and Diane Bendahmane (1987) produced Conflict Resolution: Track Two Diplomacy, a book that compiled the thoughts of several Track One and Track Two professionals confirming the need for government to support, encourage, and work with Track Two. The Department of State refused to print the book for eighteen months because the Department has a strong defensiveness regarding its right, ability, and authority to conduct conflict resolution. The book was finally published in 1987 and states that
. . . the official government apparatus for analyzing international securityInternational securityInternational security consists of the measures taken by nations and international organizations, such as the United Nations, to ensure mutual survival and safety. These measures include military action and diplomatic agreements such as treaties and conventions. International and national security...
issues and designing foreign policyForeign policyA country's foreign policy, also called the foreign relations policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the state to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations milieu. The approaches are strategically employed to interact with other countries...
has to equip itself to support and benefit from track two diplomacy. As part of the process, government analystsPolicy analysisPolicy analysis is "determining which of various alternative policies will most achieve a given set of goals in light of the relations between the policies and the goals". However, policy analysis can be divided into two major fields. Analysis of policy is analytical and descriptive—i.e., it...
must improve their capabilities to understand how history, society, culture, and psychology interact. (Montville & Davidson, 1981, p. 156-7)
At a special briefing for representatives of non-governmental organizations, the U.S. Department of State’s Deputy Director
United States Deputy Secretary of State
The Deputy Secretary of State of the United States is the chief assistant to the Secretary of State. If the Secretary of State resigns or dies, the Deputy Secretary of State becomes Acting Secretary of State until the President nominates and the Senate confirms a replacement. The position was...
for Political Affairs in the Office of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
presented a plea for help from NGOs (Paul Sutphin, 2004). Acting under Secretary Colin Powell’s
Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
initiative and authority, the State Department’s Iraqi analysts explained their frustrations in conducting dialogue, developing grassroots relationships, and rebuilding infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
. Far from admitting that the State Department was limited in its right, ability, and authority to conduct conflict resolution, they admitted that they couldn’t build relationships or spend money fast enough to rebuild Iraq in time to appease the Iraqis and needed help to do it. This may not be the ideal situation in terms of NGO and State Department cooperation.
“Further Exploration of Track Two Diplomacy” was published in 1991 as an Occasional Paper (McDonald), and as a chapter in Timing the De-Escalation of International Conflicts (Kriesberg & Thorson, 1991). In 1996 Dr. Louise Diamond and Ambassador McDonald published Multi-Track Diplomacy: A Systems Approach to Peace. Since then the model has been more robustly developed and the original second track has been expanded into nine tracks as illustrated in the logo.
External links
- Multi-Track Diplomacy Study Group Consensus: Hamas and Kadima, (University of Maryland, January 2007)