PUBLIC DIPLOMACY OF CITIES AND TERRITORIAL COMMUNITIES

The article studies the evolution of the cities’ turning into the actors of public diplomacy, their acquisition of greater powers and opportunities to participate in public diplomacy in the process of historical transformations. The historical discourse of the phenomenon of cities’ public diplomacy is considered, the functions of the city in the system of public diplomacy are defined, and the impact of modern cities on the development of public diplomacy is clarified. The relationship between city diplomacy and the political regime is analyzed on the examples of such countries as the USA, the Republic of Moldova, Hungary, the Baltic States, as well as the experience of the EU countries after the First and Second World Wars, and the role of the local diplomacy in the recovery process in cases of the kind is defined. The role of democratic states in shaping approaches to strengthening city diplomacy through national government assistance and coordination is identified. It is determined how the situation in Ukraine after the full-scale invasion influenced the activation of the cities’ policy of attracting the support of the international community and expanding contacts within the framework of bilateral cooperation. The special role of Ukrainian cities as actors of public diplomacy in war conditions is substantiated; it is investigated how Ukrainian cities in terms of war have become a valuable resource for ensuring the interests of their residents. The tools used by cities to compensate for the lack of humanitarian, financial support, or support for the restoration of damaged cities at the national level have been identified. Changes in the functional content of the potential of the Ukrainian cities’ and territories’ public diplomacy before and after the beginning of the full-scale aggression of the russian federation are studied. It is found out that despite the tendency of strengthening the role of cities as the actors of public diplomacy, local public diplomacy still needs coordination by national agencies that deals with diplomacy issues. The development of local diplomacy will be also facilitated by the maximization of local political autonomy and the creation of local infrastructure in municipalities for the management of public diplomacy of cities, which will allow implementing a multi-level, statewide approach to city diplomacy. Key words: city, community, public diplomacy, city diplomacy.