Soft Power - A National Asset

Publication Date: January 2005

Publisher: Jewish People Policy Planning Institute

Author(s): Sharon Pardo

Research Area: International relations; Social conditions

Keywords: Public Opinion; Globalization; International Relations; Antisemitism

Type: Brief

Abstract:

The author asserts that there has been global incitement of antisemitism and anti-Jewishness unprecedented since World War II and reviews ways in which this has been expressed in legal and international arenas. He argues that a broad strategic perspective assessing the "soft power" of the Jewish people and of Israel is imperative to reaching a comprehensive and long-term assessment of the threats confronting it. "Soft power" is defined as "the ability to get what you want through attraction rather than coercion or payments." He finds that Israel and the Jewish people's "soft power" has been steadily declining since 1967 and makes policy recommendations to enhance it.