VACCINE DIPLOMACY DURING A PANDEMIC AS A SHARP POWER TOOL: A CASE STUDY OF THE ITALIAN MEDIA

Abstract

The article examines the relationship between humanitarian diplomacy (on the example of the implementation of vaccine and health care diplomacy), “soft” power and sharp power. In the context of a pandemic, especially during the "first wave", the traditional forms of humanitarian diplomacy as an instrument of the "soft" power of the state have undergone changes. International “specialized” organizations in the field of health care were unable to provide the necessary assistance in full in a timely manner. These factors, as well as fear and panic on the part of the population, have led to conflicting interpretations and explanations by the media of the foreign policy activities of certain countries and international / regional organizations. The paper presents a case on Italian-Russian interaction during the "first wave" of the pandemic and its reflection in the Italian media. As a result of the analysis, it is concluded that in the crisis situation of the pandemic, a number of Italian media covered the fact of humanitarian assistance from the Russian Federation as a kind of "spy" mission, which is an element of the tactics of hybrid conflicts, as well as a sharp power tool. Therefore it can be concluded that, despite the fact that public health issues are apolitical and are designed to consolidate the world community, the information support of health diplomacy and vaccine diplomacy, unfortunately, does not have obvious objectivity and impartiality, but becomes a certain lever for managing public opinion, and, as a consequence, it implements sharp power.