The EESC flags up the need for an EU action plan for cultural diplomacy

A new EESC report suggests the EU should establish a fully-fledged multiannual strategic action plan to unlock the full potential of cultural diplomacy.

Even though culture as an instrument of the European Union's foreign policy has been on the agenda for the last 17 years, it has never been become a real priority. However, with war now back on the continent, culture needs more than ever to become a core strategic vehicle of the EU's foreign policy, stressed the EESC in the opinion.

"Culture could be a core asset in Europe's internal path, but also in the external image that the EU projects", said Luca Jahier, rapporteur for the opinion.

Mr Jahier particularly emphasises the importance of cultural heritage as a politically sensitive and highly complex subject, and hence a powerful and complementary diplomatic component of the EU's approach to peace, security and sustainable development.

A strong multiannual strategic action plan on cultural diplomacy should cover the protection, restoration and reconstruction of heritage in areas hit by natural disasters, crises and conflicts. It should also include a mapping of existing initiatives, leading to the creation of an EU platform for international cultural relations and a dedicated structure within the EU's External Action Service centred around an "EU Special Envoy for Cultural Relations".

The own-initiative opinion on the role of cultural diplomacy, adopted at the EESC's October plenary session, highlights the significance of the cultural dimension in the current geopolitical context, something fully in line with the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. (mt)