PUBLIC DIPLOMACY IN THE ACTIVITIES OF THE FIRST LADY (on the Example of Ukraine and Poland)

In: Mižnarodni zv'jazky Ukrai͏̈ny: naukovi pošuky i znachidky : mižvidomčyj zbirnyk naukovych prac', Band 32, S. 244-261

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to identify the peculiarities of the First Lady's activities in the field of public diplomacy on the example of Ukraine and Poland. The research methodology is based on the principles of scientificity, historicism, systematicity, and general scientific and specialised methods, including the biographical method. The scientific novelty of the research results lies in raising the issue of the institution of the First Lady as a subject of public diplomacy and analysing the activities of the First Ladies of Ukraine and Poland in this area. Conclusions: Based on the activities of the First Ladies of Ukraine and Poland, it can be argued that Agata Kornhauser-Duda and Olena Zelenska have changed the perception of the role of presidential wives in the development of public diplomacy. Despite the first mentions of public diplomacy in the late nineteenth century, the testing of its tools in the first half of the twentieth century, active involvement in academic and professional use began in the second half of the twentieth century, and in Ukraine in the twenty-first century. Elements of public diplomacy can be seen in the activities of the wives of the first persons of Ukraine and Poland during the struggle for statehood: Maria Hrushevska, Aleksandra Piłsudska, Olha Petliura, and Michalina Mościcka. They created the historical basis for the use of public diplomacy tools by First Ladies. The modern First Ladies of Ukraine and Poland in addition to their traditional duties have mastered the tools of public diplomacy to create a positive image of their countries in the minds of other countries. The use of this toolkit gained particular importance with the outbreak of Russia's large-scale war against Ukraine and, in fact, the entire civilised world on 24 February 2022. Agata Kornhauser-Duda and Olena Zelenska demonstrate that the First Lady's Institute belongs to the public diplomacy community.