Let me begin by defining Practice turn as explicitly taking practices as category of analysis according to the article of Jeremie Cornut. Putting our focus to praxes that structured world politics. There a lot of practices in international relations and I would like to focus to this topic because I find it interesting. So what is this all about? What is this concept? .
The practice of backchannel diplomacy or track 2 diplomacy “unofficial, informal interaction between members of adversary groups or nations that aim to develop strategies, to influence public opinion, organize human and material resources in ways that might help resolve their conflict.” This is according to Joseph V. Montville. Non-state actors could take some action rather than simply being bystanders while the grown-up governments acted like jerks.
So how does this practices works? How does this practice structure world politics? Did this practice evolved? Or this practice produces another practice that have regular meanings?
An example of scenario is, The Players are China, its neighbors, and the United States
and the peacemakers are The Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Pacific Forum, the International Institute for Strategic Studies, and others Several organizations began bringing U.S. and Chinese defense officials to the table unofficially after tensions rose over the 1999 U.S. bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade and the 2001 spy-plane incident on Hainan Island. The meetings have helped ease tensions even as China has begun flexing its military might in the greater Pacific region.
Another is India and Pakistan, and the peacemakers is the Pugwash Conferences on Sciences and World Affairs. The Pugwash group, a half-century-old peace organization, managed to bring together Kashmiris from both sides of the long-running conflict for the first time in decades in 2004; a formal peace process (if not actual peace) followed.
Also one of the successful track two dialogue processes can be the Oslo Accords of 1993 between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization(PLO), which achieved some remarkable breakthroughs in the Israeli–Palestinian relationship. The contacts began as a track two diplomacy, with an unofficial initiative by a Norwegian scholar, but had transitioned into track one diplomacy by the time it was finished, finalized with a handshake between Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO head Yasser Arafat on the White House lawn.
The practice of backchannel diplomacy has five dimensions. First this practice is a performance, it consists of a number of actions and processes that unfold in real time. Second this practice is patterned. Whenever there is conflict, this practice is there. Third, parties exhibit degree of competence. The practice is socially recognize, and audience able to appraise this practice. Fourth. Performances rests on a form of background knowledge. For instance, participants would shake hands to show cordiality. And fifth, the practice is discursive and material. non-state actors spend a lot of time planning to bring parties together. And to do so, they need variety of materials such as conference rooms, ceremonial artifacts.
And what do we expect from this practice? What can it constitute? This practice constitutes interaction between states to fix their conflicts, also summits, bilateral relations. I argue that this practice is really important. It emerged due to necessity to keep peace in world affairs. We cannot deny the fact that tensions will always be there in world affairs, non-state actors just have to help resolve conflict. So this practice is a tool and common in conflict resolutions. And can help maintain international peace.
References:
Emanuel Adler and Vincent Pouliot (2011). International practices. International
Theory, 3, pp 136 doi:10.1017/S175297191000031X
Jérémie Cornut (2015). The Practice Turn in International Relations Theory.
DOI: 10.1093/acrefore/9780190846626.013.113
Horman Charles (2011, June 20) Track II Diplomacy: A Short History Retrieved from: https://foreignpolicy.com/2011/06/20/track-ii-diplomacy-a-short-history/