Consular Affairs is a booming business. In terms of staff numbers, the consular affairs department is the largest part of the foreign ministry in countries as diverse as the two BRICs Russia and China, an emerging economy like Mexico, and also in the Netherlands. Governments all over the world actively debate their consular work. Once known as the "Cinderella Service", the stunning rise of consular affairs has a considerable impact on foreign ministries. Consular affairs is also a hot topic outside MFAs. National parliaments and the wider public tend to follow high-profile consular cases critically, whilst press reports keep foreign ministers and their departments on their toes. Ironically, though, the literature on diplomacy tells us very little about this subject. In this book 16 authors from Australia, China, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Spain, Switzerland and the United States, break new ground and provide much-needed knowledge on consular affairs in the broader context of diplomatic practice. The study of consular affairs can actually serve as a lens to help understand change in contemporary diplomacy.
Praise for Consular Affairs and Diplomacy:
"Thoroughly and critically documented, I believe this endeavour is the ultimate reference in European consular affairs and a must read for anyone concerned with the subject." Giorgio Porzio, Head of Unit, Joint European Situation Centre, Council of the European Union.
"Consular affairs is now a hot topic, and this book makes a valuable contribution to it. It is lucidly introduced, rich in interesting detail, and in parts genuinely thought-provoking." G.R. Berridge, Emeritus Professor of International Politics at the University of Leicester (UK).
"Practitioners as well as historians and global citizens will learn from and enjoy this well-researched, timely book." Alan Henrikson, Director of Diplomatic Studies, The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University.
Contents:
1. The Consular Dimension of Diplomacy: An Introduction, Jan Melissen
I. Themes in Contemporary Consular Affairs
2. Changes in Consular Assistance and the Emergence of Consular Diplomacy, Maaike Okano-Heijmans
3. Risk, Populism and the Evolution of Consular Responsibilities, William Maley
4. Honorary Consuls in an Era of Globalization, Trade and Investment, Kevin D. Stringer
5. Consular Affairs in an Integrated Europe, Ana Mar Fernández
6. New Trends in European Consular Services: Visa Policy in the EU Neighbourhood, Mara Wesseling and Jérôme Boniface
II. The Consular Services of the Great Powers
7. The Transformation of Consular Affairs: The United States' Experience, Donna Hamilton
8. The Consular Service in Russia: Past Problems, New Challenges, Tatiana Zonova
9. China's Consular Service Reform and Changes in Diplomacy, Xia Liping
III. The History of the Consular Institution
10. The Many Past Lives of the Consul, Halvard Leira and Iver B. Neumann
11. A History of the Spanish Consular Service: An Institution in its Own Right, Jesús Núñez Hernández
12. The Dutch Consular Service: In the Interests of a Colonial and Commercial Nation, Albert Kersten and Bert van der Zwan
13. A History of the French Consular Services, Jörg Ulbert
Index
Jan Melissen is Head of the Diplomatic Studies Programme, Netherlands of Institute of International Relations 'Clingendael' and Professor of Diplomacy at the University of Antwerp. He is Co-Editor of The Hague Journal of Diplomacy. His latest book (co-ed.) is Public Diplomacy and Soft Power in East Asia (Palgrave Macmillan, 2011).
Ana Mar Fernández is senior lecturer in Politics at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and associate researcher at Sciences Po Paris (CEE). Her recent work has focused on the transformation of European institutional dynamics.