«Soft power» as a catalysator of socio-political conflicts

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of a set of technologies united by the term soft power from the standpoint of using the potential of these technologies in order to manage socio-political conflicts in target countries. The essence and purpose of soft power in the contemporary activities of international political actors is revealed and investigated, and practical experience is used to study the key tools of soft power, including as an instrument of influence and propaganda in the global information space. The author makes a reasoned attempt to prove that in the era of globalization the importance and influence of soft power increases compared to traditional hard tools of influence, that soft power is actively used as a theoretical and practical guide at the global geopolitical level. The positive and negative potential of soft power are critically evaluated, the basic methods of protection against its destructive influence are analyzed.

Keywords

• soft power
• soft influence
• geopolitical project
• socio-political conflict
• socio-political conflict management