Heritage Diplomacy at Times of War: Media Narratives and Strategic Communication of Ukraine and the EU in the ‘Global South’

This article introduces the Special Section EU-Ukraine Heritage Diplomacy: Media Narratives and Strategic Communication in the ‘Global South’. The section presents outcomes of a transnational research project that explores challenges and opportunities of EU-Ukraine heritage diplomacy during the ongoing war against Ukraine. As a specific direction of cultural diplomacy, heritage diplomacy and its securitization have acquired a sense of urgency for the EU. Contributing to this novel field and arguing the importance of attentive and systematic listening by the EU to its external partners, this Special section focuses on the analysis of narratives and frames of Ukraine’s cultural and historic heritage and the EU in leading media in the selected countries of the ‘Global South’ – Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, and South Africa. Our Introductory article outlines the place of the strategic communication perspective in heritage diplomacy by the EU and Ukraine. It details the ontology that guides the methodology of our multi-country comparative study and introduces five empirical cases featured in the Special section. We conclude with our arguments about the relevance and importance of the in-depth systematic research into narratives surrounding cultural and historic heritage in international relations. In a turbulent world, the securitization of cultural and historical heritage adds another layer of complexity to the international dialogue and collaboration, including that between the EU and Ukraine.