The GEOPOL Annual Lecture 2026: Great power competition or collusion?
What characterises the great-power politics of today, and could it lead to the end of the liberal international order?
Ukraine: The battle beyond war
Ukraine is fighting for survival against Russia while its democracy faces a second battle at home. Ukrainians show extraordinary trust in the Arme...
Diplomacy in the age of expertise: the case of cyber diplomacy
This article examines the role of expertise in the emergence and evolution of new diplomatic issue areas. Contemporary diplomatic practice increasingly requires coordination across knowledge domains. Nowhere is this more evident than in issues involving fast evolving technology, such as artificial intelligence or cyber issues. Examining the case of cyber diplomacy, the authors show how diplomats have adapted to these concerns. Contrary to claims that growing demands for issue-specific expertise erode the traditional diplomatic monopoly over authoritative knowledge, the article shows that traditional diplomats have expanded their role. Rather being displaced by technical experts, diplomats act as key points of passage through which knowledge enters the diplomatic arena. Their ability to mediate between competing knowledge claims is becoming a defining feature of diplomatic practice in complex issue areas. The authors further demonstrate how early framings of cyber diplomacy produced lasting effects diplomatic practice, prioritizing great power politics and skewing debates towards the international security dimensions of cyber issues. The article thus contributes to diplomatic studies by showcasing how early issue framings institutionalize particular practices and constrain adaptation over time, offering broader insights into the tensions between institutional stability and technological change in the governance of digital technology.
Alexander Cooley
Alexander Cooley is an affiliate of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs and the Claire Tow Professor of Political Science at Barnard...
Resilience and resistance in times of war
What are people willing to do, and to accept, when war becomes everyday life? This seminar will look closer at civilian resilience in Ukraine and what Total Defence will ask of Norway.
NATO 3.0 and the role of Ukraine
The European pillar in NATO is strengthened as US is gradually withdrawing its support to security on the continent. What part will Ukraine play?
Recognition and Japan’s Post-coup Diplomacy in Myanmar and Afghanistan
How does Japan diplomatically engage with post-coup countries? Officially, it does not maintain diplomatic relations. Unofficially, however, Japan conducts a vibrant post-coup diplomacy. Probing different forms of recognition, this article investigates how Japan manages its diplomacy with countries where illiberal, military governments have violently assumed power. Since the military government’s coup in Myanmar in 2021, Japan has adapted its policies in terms of magnitude, span and content to remain engaged in this strategic location. Similarly, since the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021, Japan has shifted its contributions for humanitarian assistance, political process and economic infrastructure. In both cases, Japan has crafted its post-coup relations amid intensifying great power dynamics on the one hand, and a changing domestic policy agenda for foreign aid and security on the other. Japan has developed its own distinct form of post-coup diplomacy that involves a ‘pragmatic’ approach to engagement and implied forms of recognition.
Recognition and Japan’s Post-coup Diplomacy in Myanmar and Afghanistan
How does Japan diplomatically engage with post-coup countries? Officially, it does not maintain diplomatic relations. Unofficially, however, Japan conducts a vibrant post-coup diplomacy. Probing different forms of recognition, this article investigates how Japan manages its diplomacy with countries where illiberal, military governments have violently assumed power. Since the military government’s coup in Myanmar in 2021, Japan has adapted its policies in terms of magnitude, span and content to remain engaged in this strategic location. Similarly, since the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021, Japan has shifted its contributions for humanitarian assistance, political process and economic infrastructure. In both cases, Japan has crafted its post-coup relations amid intensifying great power dynamics on the one hand, and a changing domestic policy agenda for foreign aid and security on the other. Japan has developed its own distinct form of post-coup diplomacy that involves a ‘pragmatic’ approach to engagement and implied forms of recognition.