Cultural Diplomacy of BRICS

The article analyzes the current state and prospects for the development of cultural diplomacy of the BRICS group, which includes the Federal Republic of Brazil, the Russian Federation, the Republic of India, the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of South Africa. The authors study the history of the term “cultural diplomacy” emergence and its evolution in the second half of the XX – early XXI centuries, separately focusing on the modern understanding of this phenomenon as an instrument of “soft power”. In addition, the place and role of BRICS as a unique interstate dialogue format of countries representing Latin American, Eurasian,

Indian, Chinese and African civilizations, each of which has its own unique path of historical, political and cultural development, is considered. It is argued that intercultural communication within the framework of BRICS has been actively developing since the mid-2010s as a result of signing a number of intergovernmental agreements. At the moment, several interaction tracks in this area have been formed at once. Special attention is paid to the implementation of an innovative project within the framework of cultural diplomacy — the BRICS International Youth Model at the School of Public Administration of Lomonosov Moscow State University. The authors conclude that the cultural dialogue of the BRICS member countries is actively developing today, however, the association still faces many tasks, the main of which is the formation of a consolidated policy in the field of cultural diplomacy, the interpenetration of cultures and their perception by both political elites and civil society of five states. In this regard, the holding of youth events with the participation of representatives of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa is really important.

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