Theory and Practice of Image-Making
Image is the alpha and omega for any state’s foreign policy. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Anatoly Zlenko was absolutely correct in saying this. It is an absolutely correct decision to conduct scholarly council sessions and expert research on this subject. Many countries have done, do, and will do this. The governments of both old democracies and countries relatively not long ago ruled by dialectical materialism spend considerable sums on activities to promote their images, and nobody calls into question this kind of propaganda.
How such things are shaped in Ukraine is also well known. For instance, a Ukrainian ambassador to one of the leading European countries, taking part in an international conference of prominent persons, has voiced his resentment at this country’s press: in his view, it has been biased in its account of Ukrainian events, and there was no way to make this press write about Ukraine’s positive moments and fulfilling its commitments. This reminds one of King Xerxes who, they say, had once became so much angry at the sea that he ordered it whipped, the more so that at that time Ukrainian authorities were doing, it seems, everything possible to provide the world with exceptionally negative information on Ukraine – and here a Ukrainian saying comes to mind, Don’t blame the mirror.
A correctly chosen and implemented information policy could have created a somewhat different image of Ukraine few years ago, where corruption, problems with freedom of the press, and with respect for the common standards in business and policy would not be in the fore. Not that much was required for this: for instance, the state giving to understand that it has respect for itself, for each of its citizens, and for foreign capital, which it declaratively engages, that it is worth dealing with, and that its word is really worth something.
Ukraine’s image for Western experts and politicians for a rather long period had been one of a tightrope walker who moves ahead not without difficulty but also without losses, keeping his balance. If this image had been to some extent spoiled with the cassette scandal and the tragedy of the Russian plane, there is not much to add.
Moreover, it is almost impossible to create a positive image with the international business circles where everybody has heard from those few who took the risk of coming to Ukraine that in addition to competition they had to endure the battles of a markedly local character, adding little to the state’s image. It would also be hard to advocate the advantages of Ukrainian tourism to the Western man in the street in the situation of an almost complete absence of normal hotels, transport, and other services. Note that an average Western tourist is interested first of all in comfort and safety and only then in the political situation surrounding the resort he is going to. All this is not just information policy. Rather, combined with the vicissitudes of our political life, these are things that simply should not exist in the country claiming an intent to integrate into the European theater of operations.
Ukraine’s image in the West that has formed recently cannot be considered adequate. In many respects the reason for this is Western media having lost any interest in firsthand information due to the efforts of those same Ukrainian authorities, so that now only something extremely positive is able to draw their attention. In addition, it is highly desirable that representatives of the higher circles of power learn how to tell the truth and react to events in a timely and adequate way. Still, they should not forget that we can hardly always expect positive publications only, especially in countries that still consider Ukraine a rival. And there are quite a number of such countries.
