Does international diplomacy efforts benifit the US's intrests?

Question

I need good detailed answers because I need ideas for my debate....and technical this is studying.

Answer 1

Diplomacy can not make up for stupid political decisions. But at least it can present a government's best case to the outside world.

Also, it can garner support for marginal cases by "calling in chips" for past and future favors. 95% of British people have opposed the Iraqi war from the start. Yet Bush somehow got Blair to support him with troops -- and got numerous other countries to supply at least token forces. We will never (or not for 30 years maybe) know the way he did that, what he promised, how he cajoled. But it was diplomacy that did it.

Diplomacy has existed since pre-Roman times -- since biblical times -- so it must work. Since the 1980s, however, it's changed because CNN does so much reporting, and reports from embassies are less urgent. Also communications have improved; technical staff from governments speak to each other, meet up at conferences. And almost everybody speaks English now.

Diplomacy often fails, but that is no reason to abandon it. The reason why diplomatic staff are rotated every few years is because they are supposed to view local cultures and systems through US eyes. And make representations to local government, industry and the press based on instructions from home. Just as in court half the time advocacy fails and the other side wins, the game must be played even if it's hopeless. Often enough one does succeed.

The worst is when seasoned diplomats see the inevitable failure of a proposed government policy and are ignored. The Iraq war is such a case. The quagmire was predicted. But as is often the case, negative intelligence and diplomatic opinion were suppressed. As documents go through editing in the process of rising through the ranks and getting clearance at political levels, they tend to be rewritten to reflect what the President wants to hear. That's why the Shah got his visa in 1979, and that's why the US went to war in Iraq.

Answer 2

A cocktail party might sound extravagent, but it is considerably cheaper than a military operation, to say nothing of the cost of soldiers loosing their lives and limbs.