Discours, identité et relations interrégionales : la « construction culturelle » du rapprochement entre le monde arabe et l’Amérique latine

Abstract

Political, economic and cultural contacts between Latin America and the Arab world have been supported and legitimized in a double idée-force: the claim of a common past shared by Latin Americans and Arabs and the potential to build a shared future. The construction of this discourse of a “shared identity” and a “common destiny” has been designed along the 20th century through the initiative of intellectuals, activists, diplomats and community leaders from both sides of the Atlantic, revealing at the same time the construction of an “origin myth” and the outlining of geopolitical plans.This worldview has recently permeated both the political discourse and the design of rapprochement actions between the two regions, especially in the field of public and cultural diplomacy, either bilaterally or in the process of interregional dialogue, as was the case of the Summit of South America-Arab Countries, or in global instances such as the Alliance of Civilizations project.This work aims to firstly show, who the promoters of this discourse are and how it has evolved; and secondly to revise its concrete manifestation in terms of policies and interregional contacts, especially in the last decade. This outlined path will constitute an initial contribution that will allow rethinking the links between foreign policy and cultural identities.

Keywords

• identity
• culture
• public diplomacy