Soft power and public diplomacy of the State of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates: commonalities and distinctions.

In the modern world, despite the objective renaissance of hard power politics, the cultural and humanitarian component of states' foreign policies continues to play a significant role. Moreover, many countries lacking serious military power are betting on the strategy of soft power and public diplomacy. Particularly noteworthy in this regard is the case of small Gulf states, which in recent years have become significant players on the regional and even global stage, partly due to the use of such tools. The subject of this study is the soft power strategy of two such states—the State of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates—both of which were colonies of Great Britain just half a century ago and have now evolved into independent actors in world politics. The methodological basis of the research is the principle of historicism and scientific objectivity, a systemic approach, and methods of comparative analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, and observation. The authors conclude that the official governments of Doha and Abu Dhabi deliberately integrate components of soft power and public diplomacy into their foreign policy strategies. In Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, various documents have been adopted at the state level that create an institutional foundation for this policy, and certain structures have been created and are functioning, along with developed prospective directions for soft power influence on the international stage. This includes educational, religious, cultural, sports, humanitarian, and various other types of public diplomacy, with the two countries often entering into serious competition with each other in this domain. The authors believe that currently Qatar is somewhat ahead of the UAE in this area, primarily due to the use of a powerful "soft power" resource like the global television channel Al Jazeera.