From Moo Deng to Marriage Equality, How Thailand Is Redefining ‘Soft Power’

Moo Deng can only seem like to most people an adorable viral baby hippobut for the government of Thailand, where she is from, she is a cultural ambassador and a shining example of the country’s efforts to strengthen what it calls its “soft power.”

Term soft power coined at the height of the Cold War by the American political scientist Joseph Nye, who used to describe “when one country makes other countries want what it wants” without the use of force, as opposed to hard power “to order others to do what it wants”.

But in the past year and a half, since the Pheu Thai Party came to power in August 2023, Thailand has sought to redefine soft power instead of forcing others to want what it wants. there is— with a special emphasis on emphasizing the country’s cultural significance for attracting tourists and foreign investments.

Moo Deng is not the only one. Lalisa “LISA” Manobala Thai singer and member of the K-pop powerhouse BLACKPINK, is also praised for her contribution to the “soft power” of Thailand.

While the Thai cultural wave has been bubbling for years, and “soft power” has been promoted by previous governments, the main impetus launched when Prime Minister Srettha Thavisinjust weeks after the election last year, he announced the establishment of the National Soft Power Strategy Committee (NSPSC), which set out 11 key areas of focus: food, gaming, festivals, music, film, literature, art, design, sports, fashion, and tourism.

In the months since, Thailand has been supportive extending its Songkran festival from three days to a month, legalization of same-sex marriagesand promoting films and TV produced in Thailand (from its own exports such as critically acclaimed How to make millions before grandma dies and awarded Hunger international productions such as the upcoming season White lotus and the upcoming meal Jurassic World franchises), among other measures – all in the name of strengthening its “soft power”.

It seemed that 2024 a big year from “wins” for Thailand’s global image, and the soft power strategy shows no signs of slowing down. When Srettha was removed from duty Constitutional Court in August 2024. his same-party successor Paetongtarn Shinawatrawho was already the Deputy Chairman of the NSPSC, was keen to assume the mantle of soft power. That was the centerpiece of her opening policy statement in September, and in October she listed soft power as one of “main strategies” for the next decade.

But while the private sector has accepted and praised the strategyfor which he was criticized by some academics and observers lacks clarity and coherence.

“Although well-intentioned, the government’s heavy focus on soft power initiatives that boost tourism, trade and investment is too narrow, said Assistant Professor Peera Charoenvattananukul of Thammasat University’s Faculty of Political Science,” in a recent article in a Singaporean journal The Straits Times. “It will take much more than just promoting your local and cultural assets to the world to gain influence and credibility in the geopolitical sphere, added Professor Peera, who specializes in foreign policy.”

Indeed, for all its self-proclaimed achievements this year, Thailand has barely budged from 2024. Global soft power indexwhere it ranks a modest 40th out of 193 UN member states assessed by Brand Finance on a range of metrics that assess familiarity, reputation and influence—though it scores highly in the “business and commerce” and “culture and heritage” subcategories. “

Kitti Prasirtsuk, a professor of international relations at Thammasat, says Thailand should instead take a “more comprehensive view of soft power” that focuses on more than just culture and tourism and also recognizes that change takes time. “A country’s image depends on its overall reputation in politics, economy, foreign policy, values, and domestic systems and institutions,” Kitti tells TIME. In his a book about soft powerthe originator of the term Nye wrote: “Seduction is always more effective than coercion, and many values ​​such as democracy, human rights, and individual opportunity are deeply seductive.” And in these areas, Thailand, Doc is improving slightly from his years board rulestill is far behind.

But host Paetongtarn seems to care less about what “soft power” really means than she hopes it can deliver. “I think the definition is not really that important because the government is trying to achieve larger goals by promoting industries to promote soft power and boost the economy,” she said. said last December. Economic stimulus certainly is much needed: Thailand’s GDP growth is lagging behind regional neighbors Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, and the tourism-flooded economy is still struggling to fully recover from COVID-19.

At the end of the day, Thammasat’s Peera tells TIME, Thailand’s pursuit of cultural influence will ultimately be judged by whether it benefits Thai people: “The government’s understanding of soft power may differ from Joseph Nye’s definitions of soft power,” he says. “but … if it can boost the economy, who cares?”