TY  - JOUR
TI  - Italian Soft Power
T2  - INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS RESEARCH JOURNAL
IS  - INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS RESEARCH JOURNAL
KW  - international development assistance
KW  - Italy
KW  - soft power
KW  - international cooperation
AB  - The article reviews Italy’s soft power policy in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Vietnam. It concentrates on four key aspects: national culture and language; education and technical cooperation; business contacts; and international development assistance.The cross-country analysis revealed the main forms and mechanisms of Italy’s soft power policy as well as its priorities and organizational set-up. Italy prioritizes national language and culture promotion, the internationalization of Italian companies and the expansion of trade with emerging economies as the main goals of its soft power policy. Both state and non-state actors are involved in Italy’s efforts in these areas. Italian embassies coordinate the activities of various actors in their respective countries and are responsible for the allocation of finances for their operations.The study also allowed to highlight the countries of special interest for Italy. These are Brazil and Vietnam, where Italian soft power actors were the most active from 2009 to 2013. Italy’s approach to cooperation with these countries is more systematic, consistent and comprehensive, compared to other countries analyzed in the study.Italy continues to develop cooperation with the former Soviet countries as well. In these countries Italian soft power mostly takes form of cultural and language promotion activities, with less attention paid to business interests.
AU  - Andrey Sakharov
UR  - https://iorj.hse.ru/en/2014-9-2/125046306.html
PY  - 2014
SP  - 59-71
VL  - 9