A campaign to promote public diplomacy as a way to strengthen relations between countries and peoples is taking place these days in Cuba, hand in hand with Taste.
This is the first campaign developed in Latin America by the Katara Public Diplomacy Center (KPDC), an institution that represents that Arab country in the Global Public Diplomacy Network (GPDnet), of which the Island is also a member.
This network was created in 2014 as a platform that promotes cultural, sports and knowledge exchange, and encourages cooperation and social initiatives, and has Qatar as one of its most active states.
Cuba, for its part, is represented in the network by the Center for International Policy Research (CIPI) and, due to the fruitful relations of more than three decades with the Persian Gulf nation, it was chosen by the Katara Center as the first fate of Qatar’s public diplomacy in the region.
The campaign, which began on July 20 and will run until July 29, includes a group of actions to strengthen bilateral ties and defend the concept and value of public diplomacy in global relations.
Among the scheduled activities, and which have already been carried out, are interviews with diplomats, artists and other personalities; diffusion of promotional videos of the Qatari nation, its historical and cultural legacy and its present development; reminders of significant moments for the ties between the two countries; and other actions and initiatives related to the Katara Center and the performance of GPDnet.
An important place is also held by the nearby Soccer World Cup that Qatar will organize in November, and whose highlight, as an effective channel for public diplomacy, is included in the campaign. This, in turn, continues a recent cooperation agreement between the football associations of both nations to strengthen their relations.
The agreed collaboration covers fields such as the exchange of experiences, the training of coaches and referees, sports science and sports medicine in relation to football, among others.
Said cooperation joins the one already sustained between Cuba and Qatar over the years, which includes sectors as relevant as health —with an important medical presence of the Island in the Arab nation—, education, tourism and culture. , with the presence of renowned Cuban artists from various manifestations at festivals and other Qatari events. And it also includes top-level exchanges and visits between their respective governments.
Carrying out this campaign thus strengthens these ties, while serving to make Qatar’s culture, identity and values visible, and to highlight public diplomacy as a path that is undoubtedly necessary in today’s world.
