As a matter of strategy and vision, it is wise and smart for the Philippine state to combine the use of soft power in foreign relations with the much more developed concept of public diplomacy. The success of states in enhancing their international reputation and support in the international community heavily depends on effective public diplomacy and the deft use of soft power in the contest for hearts and minds in international opinion.
The drawn-out dispute between states in the South China Sea — notably between China and Asean claimant states and particularly between China and the Philippines — has plainly developed into a contest in public diplomacy and soft power. It is no accident that China has won little support in the dispute with its policy of spurning international law and the international maritime order under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos) and of ignoring the sovereign rights of claimant states to their exclusive economic zones (EEZs)