Education as a Soft Power Instrument of Foreign Policy

Abstract

Nowadays, the number of countries that regard that education is the best way to promote their national interests on the world stage is increasing. Especially big powers started to pay special attention and importance to the use of education as an effective instrument/source of soft power.

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Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 143 ( 2014 ) 501 – 503
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1877-0428 © 2014 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
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doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.07.423
Corresponding name: Aidaberk Amirbek Tel: +0535 8765434
Email: aidaberk@gmail.com
CY-ICER 2014
Education as a Soft Power Instrument of Foreign Policy
Aidarbek Amirbek
a
Kanat Ydyrys
b
Gazi University
Abstract
Nowadays, the number of countries that regard that education is the best way to promote their national interests on the
world stage is increasing. Especially big powers started to pay special attention and importance to the use of education as an
effective instrument/source of soft power.
© 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of CY-ICER 2014.
Keywords: Education, Soft Power, Foreign Policy, Geopolitics, Joseph Nye.
Introduction
Any State aims to strengthen its position and prestige in the international arena, as well as to create
favorable conditions for its long-term socio-economic development. To achieve these goals, state uses a variety of
foreign policy tools of both hard and soft power (Nye, 2009, p. 7). However, it is observed that after the fall of the
bipolar world order, many states tend to use soft power aiming to achieve their foreign policy goals. The main
reasons behind this tendency are an increase of interdependence among states and the heavy price that nations pay
for achieving foreign policy objectives with the use of hard power. In this context, soft power instruments started to
occupy a more effective position in the foreign policy of the countries, and we can foresee that this position will
continue to rise in the coming period.
If we consider the role that soft power and education play in the foreign policy of the state, it is important to
note that soft power is a concept developed in 1990 by political theorist Joseph Nye of Harvard University to
describe the ability to attract and co-opt rather than coerce, and use economic, cultural and political force as means
of persuasion (Nye, 2009, p. 8).
© 2014 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of CY-ICER 2014.

502 Aidarbek Amirbek and Kanat Ydyrys / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 143 ( 2014 ) 501 – 503
Education as an Effective Soft Power Instrument
Culture and education come to be one of the most effective soft power instruments. In line with this, soft
power is contrasted with 'hard power', which implies using of military force and coercion. In this aspect, it is
important not only to use military force or economic sanctions to force change in other countries, but also it is
crucial to shape the agenda of world politics and attract them (Nye, 2005, p. 14).
Nowadays, the leadership in the world politics is increasingly determined by the ability of the state to help
develop its neighbors or competitors (Bogaturov, 2006, p. 12). Moreover, in the transition period of the world
political system states have to fight for the right to determine the values and the regulatory component of the modern
world order. Competition between different values and models of national and socio-economic development is one
of the key trends of the new millennium. Today, this kind of leadership is impossible without advancing human
development - the basis of the formation of the new knowledge-based economy. That is why many ambitiously
developing states (such as Brazil, Russia, India and China) which are eager to adopt innovative economic model,
pay special attention to the modernization and internationalization of their national education systems (Nye, 2008, p.
94).
Only a developed education system that meets the requirements of innovative high-tech economy, and is
integrated into the international educational and scientific space, can become one of the major competitive
advantages of the modern state in the "global competition for minds" and attract the most talented foreign students.
The provision of educational opportunities for foreign students is one of the most important instruments of soft
power of the state (Cowan & Arsenault, 2008, s.10).
Successful foreign students who along with the learning the language will gradually become acquainted
with the achievements of science and culture of the host country. These students can gain valuable social capital
after having being studied abroad. Consequently, after coming back with acquired knowledge and personal relations,
they are expected to become effective transmitters of the language and culture of the country where they had studied
(Nye, 2005, p. 12). As a result, the effectiveness of exposure to the outside world with the help of national education
as an instrument of soft power is much higher than by military force or others.
International Education and Geopolitics
It must also be emphasized that the education system has always been the main engine of prosperity of a
particular state. After all, it is known that, any state is able to show considerable achievements in the level of
prosperity by the help of the viable mechanism of educational system. Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and other
East Asian countries might serve as a striking example of this (Nye, 2005, p. 12). At the same time, the education
system can be used as an instrument of soft power in the sphere of politics and geopolitics.
Currently, the number of countries that regard that education is the best way to promote their national
interests on the world stage is increasing. Thus, the countries such as China, Germany, Russia, the US, Turkey and a
number of developed European countries have implemented a variety of high education programs for competent and
promising young people from around the world. Especially big powers for the first time in history started to pay
special attention and importance to the educational system of their universities (Nye, 2004, p. 16). For instance
Mohamed Morsi ex-president of Egypt, who studied at the University of Southern California, Mikheil Saakashvili,
who studied Masters at Columbia University, Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan studied at Harvard
University and the Japanese Crown Princess Masako, who studied at Harvard University (Nye, 2004, p. 24).
Further, it should be emphasized that the educational system today is closely intertwined with the concept
of politics and/or geopolitics (Nye, 2005, p. 4). Graduates studied in the foreign countries become not only highly
qualified personnel in their countries, but they also may become a so-called “Trojan horse” (Tremblay, 2010, p.117).
Shortly, unfolding political events have demonstrated that political leaders may show sympathy and favor
to the countries where they studied. In particular during the Afghan war the Soviet officials used to get Afghan
political and intellectual elites to accept Soviet ideology with the aim to establish Soviet-friendly regime. For
instance one of them was Nur Mohammad Taraki. It should be noted that Taraki was Secretary-General of the
PDPA and the leader of the faction "Hulk" (People). Also, it is known that the Soviet Union sought to introduce the
Afghan people with their ideology through the pro-Soviet Afghan officials who were studied in the USSR.
However, excessive rigidity of the Soviet Union and the forced introduction of their views and ideology affected

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Aidarbek Amirbek and Kanat Ydyrys / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 143 ( 2014 ) 501 – 503
negatively, and subsequently Afghan people felt alienation and distrust to the Soviet Union and its views
(Filimonov, 2010, p. 12).
However, currently the U.S. implements this project (educational project) much more delicately. But, the
most important triumph in the fact that many young people aim to study in the United States. Thanks to, high quality
education the U.S. government can successfully implements its strategy in the framework of politics and geopolitics,
not only regionally, but also globally (Cooper, 2004, p. 168).
Nowadays, more countries are trying to form world quality and accessible system of education to students
from all over the world. Such countries as the United States are perfectly informed about the fact that the education
system is one of the most essential instruments in terms of dominance in the global political arena. Everyone knows
that the educational system allows the improvement of economic and political situation of the country (Nye, 2009, p.
17). Thus, if one country is dominating in some part of the world both politically and economically, it means that it
is also dominant in the geopolitical aspect in the given part of the world.
Conclusion
Finally, it should be noted that the educational system is one of the vitally important spheres, and its
degradation leads to the degradation of the entire country. Also, it is worth noting that the efficiency of university
education as a soft power instrument can only be assessed in the longer term. Culture and values take time to diffuse
and take root, but once they do, they remain deeply rooted for a long time. Making this foreign policy tool more
effective requires patience and hard work.
References
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