Transformation from traditional diplomacy to digital diplomacy: Israel's public diplomacy practices

Diplomacy is the name given to the process based on negotiation, representation and consultation, which is a requirement of the existence of states and carried out by at least two actors of international relations. In international relations, actors are not only states. Besides states, international organizations, non-governmental organizations and individuals are also actors of international relations. The diplomacy process can take place between any two of these actors, as well as multilateral and multilateral diplomacy. The success of a state in interstate relations depends on its power to influence the behavior of its interlocutor. The factors that determine the power of a state are very diverse. In addition to the use of hard power, which includes military and economic fields, soft power elements that do not contain coercion or violence and aim to obtain positive results by controlling the perceptions of the other party are gaining importance. Public diplomacy is also an element of soft power. Today, when the foreign policies of the states are examined, it is seen that the power of classical diplomacy continues, but more importance is given in the field of public diplomacy. Digital diplomacy has emerged with the digitalization of public diplomacy. In this study, Israel's activities in soft power and public diplomacy and its success in the digital diplomacy process are examined. As a controversially established state that found itself at war with the countries around it the day after its establishment, it needed the use of both hard and soft power more than anyone else. When the disproportionate interventions of the Israeli state, which could survive after the wars, against the Palestinians were met with reactions from the world, Israel accelerated its soft power and public diplomacy practices, gathered all its public diplomacy activities under the "Hasbara" institution and became one of the leading states in this field. After a while, by abolishing the Hasbara institution and spreading the public diplomacy to the whole society, especially to all state institutions, Israel increased its success in public diplomacy practices. With the rapid development in technology, inevitably in public diplomacy, digitalized social media applications and especially in digital diplomacy activities carried out on Twitter and Youtube, Israel has maintained its leading position.