Title: The Power of Small and Smart

Author: Dr. Armen Sarkissian

Abstract

If there is an overwhelming priority or a paramount preoccupation common to all small states, including small city states, it is survival. The world has never been structured to facilitate the survival of small states, and treating small states as disposable has been the norm through most of recent history. Survival, therefore, has largely depended on the will and skill of small states themselves.

To preserve themselves, small states must be agile, adaptable, and adroit. Internally, as Aristotle said of the city-states in the 3rd BC, they must train their populations to be “jacksof-all-trades”. Externally, they must exert themselves to mobilise an international order reinforced by institutions and equipped with the means to uphold its rules. In short, small states must also be smart states. In international relations, there are three kinds of power: hard power, which involves coercion; soft power, which flows from a nation’s cultural output; and what one can call “smart power”, which amalgamates components of hard and soft power, but also, crucially, makes an effort to bolster itself by leveraging technology intelligently. Unlike conventional approaches, smart power actively embraces and harnesses emerging tools such as artificial intelligence, aiming not only to adapt but also to derive significant advantages from these innovations. The essence of smart power lies in its ability to synergise traditional sources of influence with cutting-edge technologies, positioning itself strategically to navigate and capitalise on the ever-evolving landscape of power dynamics.

Keywords

Small states; S20; Soft power; Hard power; Smart power; Club of small states ; Free Global Cities; Free Global City