Diplomacy 101: Undiplomatically Speaking
Where Beliefs Clash and Stories Flash
Remembrance and Realignment
As world leaders marked Armistice Day ceremonies, underlying diplomatic tensions reminded everyone that memory and strategy often coexist uncomfortably. France hosted a scaled-back commemorative summit in Verdun, with Ukrainian and African representatives invited alongside NATO members. Russia was pointedly excluded.
Back in Kyiv, the Zelenskyy government launched a new diplomatic offensive—literally and figuratively. Ukrainian embassies rolled out a “Peace with Justice” campaign, designed to build pressure on holdout states in the Global South to endorse the ten-point peace plan Zelenskyy unveiled at last year’s UNGA. Response was muted, though India and Kenya signaled interest in observer roles.
Elsewhere, Ethiopia and Eritrea reopened talks over border demarcation after months of quiet Omani shuttle diplomacy. While the process is still in its infancy, regional stakeholders, particularly the UAE and Saudi Arabia, are quietly investing political capital to ensure the fragile opening does not collapse.