ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY: NEGOTIATION CONTEXT AND COMMERCIAL ASPECT - ENCOURAGING EXPORT AND INVESTMENT
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61837/mbuir040126006mKeywords:
economic diplomacy, commercial diplomacy, negotiations, export, investment, international/ global marketAbstract
The need to find negotiated solutions to global challenges has further affirmed the priority role of economic and commercial diplomacy. Accordingly, both economic and commercial diplomacy have drawn the interest of researchers in various fields, including international economics, business and finance, as well as international marketing and management. This is particularly significant as encouraging exports and investments through economic/commercial diplomacy activities can contribute to a country's favorable positioning in the international/global market. There is a debate in the relevant literature regarding whether encouraging exports and investments falls within the domain of economic or commercial diplomacy, and whether the two concepts can be considered equivalent. Therefore, some approaches to observing economic and commercial diplomacy are presented in the paper. Since negotiation is the core of diplomacy, economic and commercial diplomacy in the negotiation context is also presented, with a particular emphasis on encouraging exports and investments. The aim of the paper was to further affirm the concept of economic/commercial diplomacy, given that its application can contribute to the favorable positioning of the country and its companies in the areas of exports and investments. For this purpose, an analysis of recent relevant literature was conducted, on the basis of which the authors concluded that the effects of diplomatic activities, both in general and in the field of exports and investments, are more important than the question of which branch of diplomacy encompasses these activities. In addition, economic and commercial diplomacy should complement each other in practice instead of functioning independently, even though researchers conceptually differentiate between them. Finally, negotiation takes on the character of diplomatic-business negotiation incorporating the elements of diplomatic and commercial negotiation. The findings may be useful to policymakers and other actors involved in economic and commercial diplomacy.
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