Diplospeak.

• Author: Rugh, William A.

Professional American diplomats resent the popular view that all diplomats lie. A frequently quoted remark by Henry Wooton, the 17th century British diplomat, is "An ambassador is an honest man sent abroad to lie for his country." His idea was that as an official representative of a government, a diplomat must say only what the government wants him or her to say, even if it is not the truth.

But in fact, the culture of American diplomacy dictates that American diplomats try hard to be truthful, and not lie. They prefer another admonition by Edward R. Murrow when he was Director of the U.S. Information Agency, "To be persuasive we must be believable; to be believable we must be credible; to be credible we must be truthful."

This essay describes the difference between what diplomats say and what they might think. Most of the examples have been taken from very recent events - and because of the "Arab Spring", many deal with that. But a more detailed study of diplospeak would find examples every year going back centuries.

The quotes used here are mostly from US officials in Washington, whose public statements are part of America's official diplomatic discourse.i But US professional diplomats serving at embassies and consulates all over the world also make statements that in style and substance parallel those made in Washington, and in fact diplomats abroad frequently quote directly from Washington statements. They not only follow Murrow's rules of credibility but they use language for specific purposes. They learn diplospeak mainly on the job, from more experienced American diplomats. Following are some examples.

Peaceful settlement of disputes

American officials are often reluctant to take sides when disputes arise in a foreign country, to avoid being accused of unwarranted intervention in that country's domestic affairs. President Obama is particularly sensitive to the charge made against his predecessor that the US intervened too much abroad. Thus one common theme US diplomats express when a foreign conflict arises is that it should be settled peacefully and violence should stop. The United States is trying to be helpful, although each side usually wants American support. During the "Arab Spring", Arab governments wanted Washington backing and opposition elements wanted US sympathy, US officials generally sought to avoid taking sides, in Egypt, Tunisia and elsewhere, although they issued more judgments when uprisings continued without resolution, as in Libya, Yemen and Syria.

Friendly or confrontational?

When domestic conflicts in foreign countries continue as they did during 2011 and 2012 in the Middle East, US officials may decide they must do more than call for an end to violence. The question is what should they say publicly? An American policy toward any country is always a complex combination of factors, including the state of bilateral relations (cooperative or confrontational) and the domestic situation in that country (democratic or authoritarian).

Often in dealing with a troublesome situation abroad that continues over time, the US diplomatic language shifts, gradually, to indicate increasing frustration and urgency. While the US has had strained relations with Syria for years, when the Arab uprisings began in early 2011, US official public statements at first reflected Washington's hope that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would offer concessions and reforms to the protesters that would calm the situation. Thus at the end of March 2011, when the protests were still on a small scale and geographically isolated, Secretary Clinton simply said, "We want to see no violence, we want to see peaceful protest that enables people to express their universal human rights, and we want to see economic and political reform." ii The intention was to mildly reproach both sides and at the same time to suggest what the US thought each side should do to calm the situation.

As Assad continued his brutal crackdown, eventually US officials condemned him in no uncertain terms. At the end of July, President Obama said "I am appalled by the Syrian government's use of violence and brutality against its own people. The reports out of Hama are horrifying and demonstrate the true character of the Syrian regime." iii Those were unusually strong statements coming personally from an American president. Secretary Clinton went even farther at that time, saying about Bashar al-Assad, "From our perspective he has lost his legitimacy". iv This was an unusually strong and direct negative assessment of a foreign head of state, and was clearly meant as an escalation of the rebuke. But it was prefaced with the words "From our perspective ..." to acknowledge that Assad's legitimacy was a matter for the Syrians to decide. By that time, US officials were also very specific about what it wanted the Syrian government to do: "to immediately halt its campaign of violence and arrests, pull its security forces back, release many thousands of detainees, and to respect and act upon the clear demands of the Syrian people for a peaceful and...