During most of history, diplomacy was mostly concerned with bilateral relations, or negotiations between one country and another. A diplomat might travel to a foreign country and present a request or demand, known as a demarche, to the host government.
Often these negotiations led to formal agreements, or treaties. A treaty was an official contract between two countries that was negotiated and ratified by the parties involved. The most formal kinds of diplomatic agreements were treaties between kingdoms or empires.
In modern times, diplomats might also engage in multilateral negotiations. These were largely conducted in international organizations like the United Nations. Diplomatic ties can help countries to access new markets, find partners for economic development and encourage innovation. These benefits can also be used to address global issues that cannot be solved by one nation alone – from environmental degradation, pandemics and climate change to poverty, war and terrorist activities.
When stripping away the protocol and ornate settings, diplomats are people with families, hopes and concerns. They are influenced by psychology, and their interactions with each other can be both cooperative and competitive. Often, they are able to overcome these competing forces thanks to personal relationships built on mutual trust and respect. But that dance can be difficult to execute in a time when politics is increasingly dominated by power politics and ideology. In addition to those competing influences, diplomacy is being intruded upon by a growing number of non-governmental organizations, or NGOs, which are seeking to shape international decisions.