冷战期间美国中东公众外交的困境

美国在中东的公众外交始于二战期间,其活动包括宣传美国的中东政策,反击中东反美宣传,介绍美国文化、价值观念、自由市场经济和西方民主制度等,目的是拓展美国在中东尤其是阿拉伯世界的影响力,实现其中东利益。二战后,美国历届政府在中东的公众外交上都投入大量的人力、物力和财力,设立公众外交部门,建立信息文化中心,并由公众外交官负责开展具体活动。美国的中东公众外交经过近半个世纪的曲折发展,到80年代末90年代初日渐成熟。但随着冷战的结束,其活动逐渐减少,影响力日渐式微,最终于90年代末跌入谷底。冷战期间,美国的公众外交官在中东公众外交中发挥了重要作用。尽管这些外交官也关注诸如美苏宣传战等议题,但是阿以冲突才是困扰他们的首要议题。同样,阿以冲突也是严重削弱美国中东公众外交成效的核心因素。

The Dilemma of U.S. Public Diplomacy in the Middle East during the Cold War

The U.S.public diplomacy efforts in the Middle East began in World War Two.Its programs included advocating America's Middle East policy,countering anti-Americanism,and informing the audiences in the region of American culture,values,free market economy and western-style political institutions,etc.Such efforts were designed to project U.S.influences and advance its interests.In order to promote public diplomacy in the region,each U.S.administration in the post-Cold War era invested plenty of human,physical and financial sources,established in U.S.embassies public diplomacy sections,and built dozens of information and cultural centers in the charge of the public diplomacy officers.Such efforts grew steadily over almost half a century in the aftermath of the Second World War,and gradually took shape at the late 1980s and early 1990s.However,with the end of the Cold War,U.S.public diplomacy in the region was reduced,its efficacy declined,and its programs were almost paralyzed at the end of the 1990s.This article briefly reviews the history of American public diplomacy in the Middle East during the Cold War and highlighted the efforts of the public diplomacy officers.In the article,I argue that,albeit concerned with such issues as the propaganda war between the United States and the former Soviet Union,American public diplomacy officers were more preoccupied with the Arab-Israeli conflict,which was actually the dominant issue affecting the effectiveness of U.S.public diplomacy in the region.