Nepal’s Soft Power Sources

Yuba Nath Lamsal:--- The power of a state has many forms and dynamics. Country’s geography and physical size, strategic location, military strength, economic might, technological superiority, maritime position, moral and civilisational values, art, culture, literature, political and popular legitimacy, human resource, natural resources, alliance systems, dynamic civil society, free media, academic institutions, education system, and pragmatic foreign policy and diplomatic acumen are some key tools and levers of power and influence in the realm of international relations. These tools of power are categorised mainly as hard and soft power. The hard power is the coercion-based power which includes military, money and muscle or “3M”, which are used and often misused to bring the adversaries to terms. Military assaults, economic and technological sanctions, trade barriers, and travel restrictions are hard-power tactics used by powerful countries in international politics. The use of coercive power is sometimes necessary to tame rogue states/governments and also terrorist outfits. During World War II, the use of hard power was instrumental in defeating Hitler and Mussolini’s fascism and restoring peace and order in the world. Even in the present 21st century, military power and its use were necessary to dismantle and defeat Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network and its global onslaught. These are representative incidents that justify the need and use of hard power for the common good. Hard power:-- Building hard power or military might consumes huge resources which not all countries can afford. The use of hard or coercive power does not always achieve the intended outcome and it sometimes may turn out to be counterproductive. This is because the use of hard power may not always restore peace and it, instead, may lead to flare-up of protracted conflicts. Afghanistan is the clear case in point. War bleeds the economy and causes great human and material loss on both sides. In the present nuclear era, any war turns out to be a world war as it, in one way or another, impacts and affects the entire world. Thus, none wins in the use of hard power or war and instead both sides of the conflict lose. The best way to resolve differences and conflicts in the present era is, thus, the use of diplomacy and peaceful negotiation or in other word careful use of soft power. Superiority in hard power alone does not guarantee superiority in international politics. The use of hard power is said to be a zero-sum game in which one wins and the other loses. But in reality, war or hard power conflicts are not a ‘zero-sum’ game but a ‘lose-lose risk’. Soft power is a new concept in the world of diplomacy to attract and persuade others. Harvard professor Joseph Nye coined the terminology -- soft power-- in the discourse of international relations. According to Nye, culture, political ideals and foreign policy are the sources of soft power. However, the scope, sources and areas of soft power is quite enlarged than the traditional definition. Hard power is coercion-based power, whereas soft power is attraction-based power. The successful use of soft power alone ensures a ‘win-win’ situation which guarantees sustainable peace, genuine cooperation and productive partnership. ` In the present era of modern diplomacy, the relevance of soft power is even more important in building a country’s image and advancing national interest through different approaches, including public diplomacy. Even powerful countries that have an abundance of hard power prefer to apply and focus on soft power because this is more effective and less costly. Powerful countries use both hard and soft power concurrently, which Nye calls ‘smart power’. The use of smart power has been in vogue in the powerful countries. But for the countries that lack hard power, the only option left to them in the conduct of international politics and diplomacy is the astute and pragmatic use of soft power. Nepal is a mid-sized country, which is struggling to graduate from the position of the least developed country to the status of a developing country. Nepal does not have hard power to influence others. Moreover, the geographical position Nepal is situated—between India and China—has, to some extent, constrained its foreign policy choices. But, at the same times, the same geographical position may provide greater opportunity to maximise benefits. Although Nepal does not possess hard power, it is gifted with abundant soft power levers, which we need to identify, acquire, analyse and properly use to expand diplomatic leverage in the international arena for maximising the country’s interests. Soft power has different forms, which can be contextual and are to be chosen wisely depending upon actors, time and context. Sources of soft power:-- Nepal has not yet fully utilised its abundant sources of soft power. Pahsupatinath, the holiest shrine of more than 1.2 billion Hindus in the world and several other holy Hindu shrines are located in Nepal. Similarly, Lumbini, the birth place of Lord Buddha, is in Nepal, which is the holiest place for more than 500 million Buddhists in the world. Mount Everest and the great Himalayas, geographical, ethnic, cultural and environmental diversities, and multiple cultural heritages are Nepal’s soft power levers. Nepal’s commitment to international peace, contribution to UN-peace keeping missions, its non-alignment foreign policy, image of Gorkhas and Nepali diaspora are other soft power tools, which can be helpful in popularising Nepal. These soft power tools need to be utilised through public diplomacy and other appropriate channels. Public diplomacy is in itself a strong tool of soft power through which all other levers can and should be channelised and mobilised to take full advantage. Since the government has focused on public and development diplomacy, it bodes well if Nepal identifies its soft power tools and effectively mobilises them to secure and promote Nepal’s best national interest and contribute to the country’s prosperity. (The author is a former chief editor of this daily and a former ambassador. lamsalyubanath@gmail.com) This article was published in The Rising Nepal on July 8, 2026. To read it in original format, please visit: https://risingnepaldaily.com/news/83145