Georgetown : The peculiar place small and developing countries find themselves in a current global environment, where the powerful nations are at a more advantageous position multilaterally is explained by Guyana’s former Foreign Affairs Minister Mr. Rudy Insanally, in his newly launched book “Multilateral Diplomacy – For Small States “The art of letting others have your way.”
Written from the perspective of small states, the book presents an analysis of their peculiar vulnerabilities and potential to overcome challenges and influence international affairs despite the disadvantages of size and expertise to infiltrate negotiations.
Speaking on the book at the Pegasus Hotel in the presence of Minister of Foreign Affairs Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, other Government Ministers, members of the Diplomatic Corps, relatives and friends, last evening.
The Former Foreign Affairs Minister said small states often find it difficult to hold their own in negotiations with their larger counterparts. “Not only do most of them suffer from the constraints of size and financial resources, but they also lack the strategic clout to extract meaningful concessions… nevertheless, I believe that with the use of skilful diplomacy, they often can achieve their goals,” Mr Insanally said. His faith in small and developing countries to make inroads at the multilateral level stems from the experiences of those that have crafter initiatives that are today ratified and gained international recognition such as the Law of the Sea, the International Criminal Court which was advanced by Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) which Ambassador Insanally said is being held up as model for both large and small countries in the area of environment.
The book contains a number of his addresses and speeches mainly at the United Nations. Copies were presented to the University of Guyana, the National Library, the Cheddi Jagan Research Centre and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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