Comparative analysis of digital diplomacy strategies in Russia and the USA

One of the objectives of Russian Foreign policy is the enhancement the role of Russia in humanitarian world and promotion of Russian culture and science. To achieve that in the information space Russia presents and promotes achievements of the country and its people. By using the context of WWII, the MFA references to the soviet power and the role of USSR in Europe liberation, that aims to evoke a sense of European countries' obligation to Russia, it might be also a call for respect:

75 years ago, the Red Army launched the Vistula-Oder Offensive. Its objective was to liberate Poland from Nazi troops and to advance to the approach routes leading to Berlin, the capital of Nazi Germany. #Russia #Poland #Germany #USSR #WWII (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 12a).

The tweet above along with others which describe the role of Soviet Union in the liberation of Poland followed the dispute arose between Russia and US, Germany and Poland at the end of 2019. It started when Putin claims that Poland is responsible for starting the WWII, the US ambassador in Poland responded on Twitter that it is the Soviet Union which started the war right after invasion of Nazi-Germany in Poland. German ambassador and Polish Prime Minister supported her statements and condemned the role of Soviet Union in starting the WWII as well as Putin's words about role of Poland.

The topic of fake news continues the Russian attempts to defend the country's past and present. Defense from fake news is important for Russia “Intimidation through the use of a fictional Russian threat and spy mania is detrimental to #Russian-#Swedish relations. We are urging the Swedish newspaper @dagensindustri to choose its sources more carefully, so as not to mislead its readers. #Fake (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 6a). The main point is the bringing to the world society the objective information about Russian foreign policy, point of views on global problems and achievements in cultural and scientific spheres.

By highlighting the role of Russia in the part of the world of common use like Antarctica and cosmic space Russia's MFA construct countries' identity. The following examples could demonstrate that:

1) Sergey #Lavrov: #Bellinsgauzen and #Lazarev were the first to discover that #Antarctica is a continent. Russians were the first to discover that Antarctica is not an ice wall but a continent. Therefore, Antarctica does not belong to anyone. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 3b)

2) #Mir de facto became an international orbital scientific laboratory and a facility for testing numerous engineering solutions, now being used aboard the International Space Station (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 20a)

There are also a lot of tweets dedicated to achievements from other spheres. They praise great personalities which enriched Russian culture and science. Among those people there are linguist Viktor Vinogradov (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 12b), mathematician Sofia Kovalevskaya (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 16b), painter Valentin Serov (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 19) and a lot of others. It promotes Russian achievements in the world, show how rich the Russian land is in talents and what contribution has been made by the Russians to the world culture.

Russia demonstrates the intention to stand for human rights of fraternal people and those who experience the oppression of fundamental rights. It corresponds with the Concept of Foreign Policy (2016), which states the supremacy of international law, respect of human rights and territorial integrity. For example, MFA suggests that Ukraine abuses the rights of its citizens by saying “Large-scale violations of human rights and freedoms and discrimination against its citizens on ethnic or linguistic grounds are becoming common for #Ukraine. A merciless war against the country's heroic past has been launched” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 21a). The tweet related to the US sanctions in Havana rises the issue of human rights violations by eternal actor “Sergey #Lavrov: #Washington's sanctions against Havana prove that, in an effort to stifle the Cuban economy, the #UnitedStates deliberately violates human rights, and ordinary people always suffer, above all” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 7a).

Russia uses twitter of MFA to construct the unique identity and promote the country in the global information space. The country pursues a goal of taking a stronger role in the international arena while gaining credibility. There is no universal, generally accepted, national identity, in recent decades Russia tries to find or create it (Lukyanov, 2020). It might be the reason why Russia refers a lot to country's achievements in the past and glory of its famous citizens. The absence of one common national idea as well as formally stated digital diplomacy strategy might led to the use of contrast-oppositional approach implemented on Twitter. The Russian digital diplomacy strategy could be characterized as reactive, Russia's main idea to provide an alternative view to oppose western view of the world system. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Thus, Russia's MFA propagates multipolar world order and call for cooperation within intergovernmental institutions and international law. By promoting the country, its alternative views on the events Russia aims to fill and control the information space. All topics presented however are represented in the Concept of Foreign Policy, which means that Russian digital diplomacy is a subject of national foreign policy.

3.3 Comparative Analysis of Digital Diplomacy Strategies of Russia and the US

This section analyzes digital diplomacy strategies employed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia and the State Department of the United States in their online communications on Twitter from geopolitical and historical perspectives. Both countries actively use their Twitter accounts to inform their followers about recent events, foreign policy or official positions of country leaders on specific issues. However, the US and Russia show interest in different geographical regions as well as they differently use historical dimension while focusing on the past or the future. Starting with the geopolitics of the tweets this section proceeds to historical perspective implemented by countries.

Geopolitical dimension

The United States

As Figure 2 shows there are several regions of the US interest. The first one is the countries of Americas. The US enjoys its historical domination in the region. the region of historical influence of the US. According to National Security Strategy (President Donald J. Trump, 2017), “Stable, friendly, and prosperous states in the Western Hemisphere enhance our [the US] security and benefit our [the US] economy” (p. 51). The US on Twitter highlights the role of relationships with Brazil (Department of State, 2020, March 12) as well as Caribbean countries (Department of State, 2020, January 30) with stress on relations with the Bahamas (Department of State, 2020, January 27a). Among the countries of Central America, the State Department highlights ties with Panama (Department of State, 2020, February 19b) and “the strong U.S.-#Uruguay partnership” (Department of State, 2020, January 24b). Finally, the US' closest neighbors Mexico and Canada are mentioned in the context of “…USMCA, the largest, fairest, most balanced, and modern trade agreement ever achieved” as the State Department tweets (Department of State, 2020, January 31b). Trump (President Donald J. Trump, 2017) highlights the unique partnership with Canada “U.S.-#Canada High-Level Policy Review Group, a key component of our strategic partnership” (Department of State, 2020, February 21) which is also represented on the map (Figure 2). The strategy outlines that there are challenges with countries like Venezuela and Cuba because of dictatorship governments supported by China and Russia and Twitter diplomacy of the US proves that by showing more interest in Venezuela. The US in relation to Venezuela supports its people and re-elected President Juan Guaidу “The Venezuelan people will get what they deserve: a democratic, free #Venezuela. We will ultimately get a free and fair election for a new president” (Department of State, 2020, January 22).

Figure 2. Geographical dimension of digital diplomacy strategy of the US

European region gains attention from the US due to “shared commitment to the principles of democracy, individual liberty, and the rule of law” (p. 47), historical ties of the Cold War and modern trade relationships (President Donald J. Trump, 2017). According to the Strategy Europe is one of the regions where the US is going to prevent unfavorable shifts of power because of Russia and China activities in the region. That is why the US target European countries despite already strong ties with them “The U.S. will continue close cooperation with our European partners on issues of mutual concern” (Department of State, 2020, January 7b).

The Middle East is the next region to which the US is particularly interested. It represents both challenges and opportunities to the US (President Donald J. Trump, 2017). As the US do not lose hope to save the world from terrorism and reject radical ideologies and violence in the Middle East the US continues to focus on the countries of the region. The National Security Strategy (President Donald J. Trump, 2017) suggests the US to contribute to economic and political cooperation with those who are ready to partnerships. That is why in tweets in relation to Iran or Iraq the US communicate with people not the governments. The positive relationships with Israel are highlighted by the Strategy as well as it is presented on map (Figure 2). The State Department quotes the words of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo “We stand with the great Israeli people. And we stand for the unbreakable bond between our two great nations, rooted in our shared traditions of freedom and equality” (Department of State, 2020, March 3a).

Last but not least, the US views Indo-Pacific region as an area of “geopolitical competition between free and repressive visions of world order” (President Donald J. Trump, 2017, p. 45). The US interests in free and open Indo-Pacific regions that is why the countries of the region receive much attention from the US. The US attempts to collaborate with China “we want fairness, we want transparency, we want a relationship with #China that is balanced and equal” (Department of State, 2020, February 13). The US supports Hong Kong in its fight for the rights and promises “to promote Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy” (Department of State, 2020, January 7a). The Government (President Donald J. Trump, 2017) welcomes the rise of India as a global power “The U.S.-Indian partnership is now truly stronger than ever before” (Department of State, 2020, February 26. The US also maintains relationships with Japan and Philippines as important allies. “The value of the U.S.-Philippine alliance based on the deep, historic friendship & mutual respect between our two countries” (Department of State, 2020, January 31a). The US supports Australia because of forest fires and emphasizes that countries “have a truly unbreakable alliance” (Department of State, 2020, January 7c).

The National Security Strategy identifies the main threats for the US national security “the revisionist powers of China and Russia, the rogue states of Iran and North Korea” (President Donald J. Trump, 2017). Except North Korea the State Department demonstrates the conflict relationships with Iran, Russia and China (Figure 3). The reason why the US does not target North Korea as rival on Twitter might be the absence of this government on the platform and in the Internet. The US pays more attention to Iran because of the recent attack on the US embassy in Baghdad and ties with terrorist organizations. “Iran is the world's number one state sponsor of terror--and the world's largest state sponsor of anti-Semitism” (Department of State, 2020, February 29). Russia is presented on Twitter as the country which could interfere in elections (Department of State, 2020, February 25) or as a threat to possible democratic regimes (Department of State, 2020, February 24b).

Figure 3. Geographical dimension of digital diplomacy strategy of the US. Conflict relationships

This part illustrates that the US' approach to conduct digital diplomacy on Twitter on behalf of the State Department does not deviate from the main course of the US foreign policy stated in the National Security Strategy. Although the research period covers only three months, the digital diplomacy strategy on Twitter totally reproduces the US national interests and presents regional priorities.

Russia

As Figure 4 shows Russia focuses on different regions than the US. Although the Concept of Russian foreign policy (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2016) pays a lot of attention to the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Russian digital diplomacy almost ignores these countries. The only exceptions are Uzbekistan and Belarus which receive attention of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Twitter. “#Uzbekistan not simply an ally and strategic partner but a close friend of #Russia. Ties between our ministries are based not only on the political principles, but also on personal sympathy and comradely relations” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 16a).

Figure 4. Geographical dimension of digital diplomacy strategy of Russia

Despite the crisis in relationships between Russia and the Western countries as stated in the Concept, European Union remains the important partner of Russia. The analysis of Russian digital diplomacy on Twitter shows this as well (Figure 4). The Concept highlights the significance of bilateral ties with Germany, France, Italy and Spain (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2016). Tweets of Russian Foreign Ministry present only Italy as important ally, France and other European countries are just mentioned once or twice by the Ministry. “Our relations with Italy, which is our important international partner, are steeped in history and traditions. We have many years of successful cooperation under the belt and a significant mutual trust capital” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 18). The Concept emphasizes the intention to cooperate with NATO tweets by contrast highlight the role of NATO in escalating the tensions between countries. “Escalating tension, @NATO advancing its military infrastructure to the east, holding unprecedented exercises close to #Russian borders, and ramping up defence spending far beyond reasonable levels, all this leads to uncertainty” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 17).

The US is a subject of Russian interest too, despite the tensions between two countries. The Concept states that the stable dialogue with the US is important not only for bilateral relationships but for the world peace and security. The messages on Twitter in relation of the US mostly raise issues of international security. “#Russian and #American diplomats exchanged views on the situation in international #security, reviewed approaches towards maintaining strategic stability and the relevant doctrinal concepts as well as the future of #ArmsControl” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 23b). There are a few countries of Americas, except the US, which are covered by the Ministry on Twitter: Mexico, Cuba and Venezuela. The Concept does not particularly highlight none of them, only the Latin America and Caribbean region as a whole. On Twitter however Russia pays a lot of attention to these three countries. As there is a political crisis and Russia aims to help the authorities maintain power the US by contrast assists opposition and supports more democratic leader Juan Guaidу. Venezuela while being partner of Russia in economic and energetic spheres is paid attention by Russia's MFA on Twitter as country which confronts the US: “#Russia and #Venezuela take steps to protect our trade and economic ties from the illegal sanctions and egregious pressure being exerted on Venezuela by the #UnitedStates” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 10b). Cuba due to the USSR-Cuba relationships in the past and having authoritative government remains one of the regimes in the region of Russia's support. “Cuba is Russia's priority partner in #LatinAmerica and the Caribbean. Our multidimensional collaboration, based on strong traditions of friendship and cooperation, and objective commonality of interests, is looking towards the future”. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 7b).

The Middle East region remains one of the national interests of Russia. According to the Concept Russia aims to maintain relationships with Iran (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 4), Afghanistan (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 20b) and support collective efforts to neutralize threats from terrorist organizations. Despite the Concept does not mention Turkey as strategic partner tweets from Foreign Ministry suggest that it is one of the main Russian partners in the region. The reason might be that Russia-Turkey relationships improved in the context of peace process in the Middle East in 2017 after the publication of the Concept of Foreign Policy. Thus, the statement of Lavrov about Turkey is quoted: “Presidents of #Russia and #Turkey confirmed their firm determination to advance and expand the bilateral partnership across all areas in every possible way” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 20). In addition to bilateral ties, Russia works with that countries within Astana triangle, “which aimed to bring together the government of al-Assad & representatives of armed opposition” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, February 4).

As Figure 4 shows Russia covers a lot of African countries on Twitter, however all of them receive little attention. There is only one paragraph in the Concept about African region. By targeting the countries in Africa Russia fills the space which is free of the US as Figure 4 shows. Russia show its close relationship with South Sudan, Botswana, Guinea, Mauritania and Tunisia. For example, in the tweet of 12th of March the statement of Maria Zakharova is quoted: “We are confident that #Russia-Mauritius traditional relations of friendship and fruitful cooperation will further develop for the benefit of the two nations” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 12a).

Russia shows great interest to the countries of Indo-Pacific region (Figure 4). According to the foreign policy goals the main partner in the region is China. The digital diplomacy of Foreign Ministry proves that. Russia aims to improve the partnership with India and strengthening the bilateral ties in all spheres with the state (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2016). “India is the third largest #energy consumer in the world, while Russia is one of the world's key producers of hydrocarbons. The strategic interests of our countries in this area coincide (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 15). The Concept also underlines the strategic relationships with countries of South East Asia like Indonesia and Vietnam. The tweets demonstrate the interest to these countries too. “Today, #Indonesia is an important partner for #Russia in #SouthEast Asia and the #AsiaPacific region as a whole. Taking our relations to the level of a strategic partnership is on the agenda” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 3a). “Energy cooperation is a major element in #Russian-#Vietnamese comprehensive strategic partnership. The flagship of our cooperation - the #Vietsovpetro joint venture - has been successfully operating for almost four decadesand” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 30a).

The Concept of Foreign Policy states the crisis in relationships with the West (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2016). Despite Russia aims to improve relationships with the US it condemns the US' attempts of extraterritorial jurisdiction of the US as well as military, political, economic coercive measures. As Figure 5 shows the US is the first rival of Russia on Twitter. Great Britain in this list because of Skripal case and attempts of Britain to condemn Russia in the poisoning of Skripals. “We strongly condemn any attempts by #London to hold #Moscow responsible for the #Salisbury events. We insist on a professional, objective and impartial inquiry into the incident, and reaffirm readiness for substantive cooperation” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 6b).

Figure 5. Geographical dimension of digital diplomacy strategy of Russia. Conflict relationships

The geopolitical dimension of Russian digital diplomacy shows that it coincides in general with the objectives and regional priorities stated in the Concept of Foreign Policy. However, the Concept does not state conflict relationships with any of the states, but confrontation emerge in tweets in relation to the US, UK, Ukraine and NATO. Thus, Russian twitter represents contemporary changes in relationship with countries.

Russia and the US use geographical dimension of digital diplomacy strategies to target the countries of partnerships and maintain relationships with them. The findings from the section suggest that both countries follow the national foreign policy course and regional priorities stated in official documents, the US National Security Strategy and the Concept of Foreign Policy of Russia. The Department of State and Russian Foreign Ministry focus on different countries even though there are regions of common interests like Indo-Pacific, where both countries seek to obtain influence, however they do not engage in a direct confrontation on twitter, the only exception is Venezuela and the Middle East. The reason is the transition state of these regions, the domination is not determined, so both states seeks to fill this space by producing tweets favorable to them.

Historical Perspective

Tweeting the US and Russia mostly focus on present; they form and follow news flow at the same time. Both countries present major events of foreign policy “The U.S. took action to halt the former Maduro regime's theft of #Venezuela's assets and continued usurpation of democracy by sanctioning Rosneft Trading S.A.” (Department of State, 2020, February 24b) or state the contemporary world order “#Lavrov: We are in the middle of a long era marked by an objective development of a new, fair and more democratic #multipolar world order” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 22). Thus, their tweets aim to inform people and present country's position on the event, state the current situation.

Figure 6. Historical Perspective of Russia and the US

In the use of historical perspective, the US and Russia have diametrically opposite approaches (Figure 6). Russia uses a lot of references to the past, among the posts there are many related to historical events and even tweets which are about recent events sometimes include any historical facts or data. The use of future is eventual and very rare. The US on the contrary does not implement historical perspective while makes a lot of references to the future and by that maybe the country tries to strengthen its intensions. US and Russia historic references have different limits, in terms of how far they go to the past or to the future, to restore old or to create new images that can represent their country. Further paragraphs explore these ideas in detail.

First one to examine is the twitter of Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs [mfa_russia]. The Ministry goes far in the past while tweeting. The `oldest' tweet is about Crimea and refers to the origin of Russian Christianity and ancient Rus:

#Crimea is a vital part of Russian civilization. It is the point of origin of Russian Christianity (988), was in Ancient Rus (X-XII cent.) & Russian Empire (1783-1917), Soviet Russia & USSR (1917-91), reunited with #Russia (2014 - ?) - dear to the hearts of all Russians. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 18)

Russia uses historical perspective a lot to justify its right to the peninsula and underline its affiliation with Russia which lasted for years. Russia refers to Catherine the Great who established Sevastopol in 1784 (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 21b). Timeline (Figure 7) shows that Russia refers to the events since the middle of XVII century, the tweet of Crimea above is the only exception. The Ministry employs not only historic past of Russia but refers to the events in the world history which are hardly connected with Russian one like colonization of Southern Africa by East India Company in 1658 “the #Amersfoort dropped anchor in Table Bay. She brought first "shipment" of enslaved people to Southern Africa, giving start to nearly 200 years of slave trade at the Cape” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 28). It should be done with purpose either it is an attempt to demonstrate respect for the African countries or undermine the Netherlands.

As Figure 7 demonstrates below the Ministry mostly refers to the period of WWII because 75th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War. Most of them highlight the role of USSR (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 18) and its people in the WWII and for today “75 years ago, on January 27, 1945, #Soviet troops liberated the Auschwitz-Birkenau (#Auschwitz) concentration camp. In 2005, the @UN declared this day International #Holocaust Remembrance Day” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 23a). There are also tweets which highlight the negative role of other countries “At least 3,000 Soviet people died from the hands of the Estonian security police and Security Service during the occupation of Pskov in and around Moglino Camp” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 5). Russia rises the issue of memory wars too. The MFA concerns about the distortion of historical memory and call for stop of rewriting history: “Regrettably, we are seeing intensifying unseemly attempts to politicise history; falsify facts. The liberators are being smeared whereas the Nazis and their accomplices - whitewashed” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 12b).

Figure 7. Historical Perspective of Russian Foreign Ministry on Twitter

Another significant topic for Russia is the role of the Russians in Antarctic development. It is taken attention because of the anniversary too. However, the role of Russia is highlighted starting with the expedition of Bellingshausen and Lazarev “#Bellinsgauzen and #Lazarev were the first to discover that #Antarctica is a continent. Russians were the first to discover that Antarctica is not an ice wall but a continent. Therefore, Antarctica does not belong to anyone” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 3b). It continues with soviet treaties with the US “The #SovietUnion and the #UnitedStates made a joint statement on peremptory non-recognition of any claims and refusal to divide #Antarctica into sectors in order to preserve the continent as the common heritage of the humankind” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 3c).

Cosmic space is traditional area of interest and a reason for pride of Russia. MFA's tweets praise Soviet cosmonauts and achievements in the space exploration by the country “Fifty-five years ago, #Soviet pilot-cosmonaut Alexey #Leonov became the first person in the world to walk in outer #space. The whole world applauded this triumph of Soviet #cosmonautics” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 19). Russia also use the glory of its famous citizens and their achievements like mathematician Sofia Kovalevskaya (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 16b), artist Valentin Serov (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 19), and soldiers who sacrificed themselves on the war like Alexandr Prokhorenko (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 17).

One of the interesting examples is the tweets which underline the length of relationships with Russian counterparts. “Our compatriots had the good fortune to discover #Indonesia, a nation with a distinct identity, back in the 19th century, when Russian maritime expeditions started visiting the archipelago” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, February 3d). The MFA applies the same approach in relation to many partners of the country, Vietnam (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, January 30b), Turkey (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 3).

The reason why Russia refers to the past might be that Russia seeks to construct its identity based on heroic past of the country, the role in the building of contemporary world. Last 30 years Russia attempts to find what it can provide for the world (Lukyanov, 2020). In Twitter it provides the country's history, rich of glorious people and great achievements. The main topic is the WWII because of the 75^th anniversary of victory.

The State Department uses future perspective twice as often as historical one (Figure 6). In contrast to Russia, the historical perspective is implemented by the US several times over three months period and do exceed last 80 years (Figure 8).

Figure 8. Historical Perspective of the State Department on Twitter

The US refers to the past to celebrate anniversary of first international human rights declaration (Department of State, 2020, January 17); to remember the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz (Department of State, 2020, January 27b); to underline the negative influence of Iranian regime on human rights which came into power in 1979 (Department of State, 2020, January 15). However, even in the tweets with evident historical character there is reference to the future “Women's rights in #Iran have regressed since the Iranian regime came into power in 1979. We stand with the women in Iran in their struggle for a better future” (Department of State, 2020, January 14b).

The perspective of future is used a lot by the State Department. The US underlines the positive effect of the foreign policy “The groundbreaking new agreement with #China will defend our workers, protect our intellectual property, bring billions of dollars into our treasury, and open vast new markets for products made and grown in the United States” (Department of State, 2020, February 5). By employing future tense the country presents its intentions, desires, plans “The United States will continue to work with #HongKong and CCP officials to protect #humanrights and fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong, and to promote Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy” (Department of State, 2020, January 7a). The State Department uses future perspective to demonstrate the effect of the developments too “5G will change the world and power the future” (Department of State, 2020, January 31c).

The use of future perspective by the US might be an attempt to underline country's intentions in relation to particular subject or country. The US focuses on present achievements and praise modern `heroes'. It highlights `what is going today' and `will be done in the future' and almost ignoring `what was done in the past'. It represents the US foreign policy as purposeful, looking for the future.

Finally, the best illustration of opposite approach of two countries might be the International Women's Day (March 8). This day has rich past and remains popular today, so the countries are not limited in its interpretation and can choose what to emphasis. The US, for instance, sets the International Women of Courage Award and the whole March honors the women who made great progress for their communities and the world for the better future (Department of State, 2020, March 3b). The US aims to encourage women throughout the world to change their lives locally and globally by praising the modern women who already made their communities better:

On #InternationalWomensDay, the United States is proud to honor women and girls from around the world who have made contributions in lifting up those facing challenges and hardship in their communities. A world with gender equality is a better world for all. #IWD2020 (Department of State, 2020, March 8)

Russia prefers more historical approach. In 8th of March the country posted the Group photo of the 329th Anti-Aircraft Regiment of the Red Army (App. 2) (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 8a).

In addition, Russia's MFA explains the history of the Day in Russia. It highlights Russian role in the day by hashtag #RussiansDidItFirst:

#DidYouKnow #InternationalWomensDay has a rich history: #8March was adopted as an official @UN Day in 1975 in commemoration of a key milestone of the #WomensRights movements - 1917 Women's March in #Russia's Petrograd (#StPetersburg) #RussiansDidItFirst #IWD2020 @UN_Women (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2020, March 8b).

This case is a good illustration of countries' preference and traditions. If Russia looks back to the past, heroic and glorious by the way, the US focuses on the future.

The findings suggest that the US and Russia aim to enhance their global perceptions by conducting digital diplomacy and promoting the country on Twitter, its foreign policy and political views. By doing so both countries construct and reproduce their identities in the virtual space. Despite the main purpose of the countries is the same, the US and Russia implement different approaches to present the country on Twitter. The US use frames of defense, democracy, human rights to promote the country. The country considers itself as a world leader, savior of the world, defender of democratic values. For the US there is no need to compare the country with others while Russia construct its identity by implementing contrast-oppositional representation. Rebuilding the country's image after the collapse of the USSR Russia emphasizes the differences between itself and the other world. It grounds itself by referencing to the past, underlining the role of the country in the world history, in the WWII. The US by contrast focuses on the present and the future. Analysis from geopolitical perspective shows that despite different focus on regional priorities both countries follow national foreign policy goals formally stated in the US National Security Strategy and the Concept of Russian Foreign Policy.

Conclusion

The rapid transformation of the means of communication led to the emergence of digital diplomacy as one of the instruments of public diplomacy as well as to the overall digitalization of public diplomacy. This research explores how Russia and the US use these new instruments such as Twitter to conduct public diplomacy.

Developing from practice very close to propaganda techniques, taking instruments from public and cultural relations and implementing some tools from nation-branding, public diplomacy has developed into its modern form and employs digital technologies. Despite the medium has changed the purpose remains the same: by filling the information space to promote the country and construct national identity. By placing public diplomacy within the field of constructivism the research demonstrates that public diplomacy, on the one hand, has a productive power on social structures and hence governments' identities, on the other hand, countries' identities are reproduced in public diplomacy practices. Empirical analysis proves that. The US and Russia seek to promote their identities, to position themselves in the information space and fill as much place as possible. The countries have problems with their image at the global stage, their global perceptions are in decline for years. The US global perceptions decrease due to Trump nationalist policy and threat from Bush years. Russia suffers because of aggressive foreign policy. Considering the background of both countries the states have the same purpose of digital diplomacy strategies Russia and the US intend to recover and enhance country's image, in particular, by using Twitter.

The twitters of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the US State Department reproduce country's national identities. The message of tweets aligned with the foreign policy interests of both countries. The US applied the `America first' message, outlining the responsibility to protect its citizens by using the defense frame, highlighting its role of global leader and savior of world by exploiting ideas of democracy, freedoms and human rights. Russia employs different approach. The country rather focuses on the idea of international cooperation and aims to provide an alternative view to the US and other western countries. Attempting to find its own place on the international stage Russia compares its foreign policy with activities of other countries in the world. By referencing to the great historical achievements of the country the Russian Ministry seek to ground and empower its national idea. Tweeting the countries try to rebuild their global image by filling the information space with favorable image and make efforts to (re)construct countries' identities.

Despite the differences in the ways to promote national ideas in the global information space Russia and the US similarly use geopolitical dimension of their digital diplomacy strategies. Even though they have different national interests and foreign policy goals from the regional perspective the twitters of the Russian Ministry and the US State Department demonstrate the strong alignment between documents which determine foreign policy of countries and their digital diplomacy approach to target the certain regions. Thus, the US highlight the relationships with the countries stated as regional priorities in the National Security Strategy while Russia focuses on those which are underlined by the Concept of Foreign policy. However, the US pays much more attention to conflict relationships with Iran than to maintain partnerships with other countries. The reason is the intensification of the confrontation between countries due to attack on the US embassy in Baghdad by terrorists affiliated with Iran. Russia demonstrate confrontation in relation to the US, Ukraine and the UK that is explained by growing tensions in the relationships. However, the Concept of Russian Foreign Policy does not state these conflicts because it is quite outdated.

The historical perspective clearly shows that Russia and the US implement diametrically opposite approaches to frame their ideas. The US is presented as the state of the present and the future. Tweeting the country states the future implications of its policy, the future objectives, intensions and promises. Russia by contrast refers to the historical past of the country, the glory of famous citizens and the great role of Russia in the world history, especially in the WWII. The possible reason is the attempt to convince the world in Russian power, to provide the historical evidence of county's status and unique mission, to underline other countries' obligation to Russia. For the US, the use of future might be an attempt to promote its intentions and foreign policy goals.

Answering the research question Comparative content analysis of tweets posted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia and the State Department of the US helps to identify and examine countries' digital diplomacy strategies in detail. By comparing approaches used by two countries the analysis reveals the similarities and differences in the ways to conduct public diplomacy via Twitter. The US uses framing to promote the country, while Russia implements contrast-oppositional representation. The geopolitical and historical dimensions help to explore how similar and different the approaches of two countries are. From geopolitical perspective the US and Russia implement the similar strategy, despite the differences in regional priorities they follow foreign policy goals while targeting countries on Twitter. Historical perspective highlights the differences in the digital diplomacy strategies. The period of just three months reveals the strategies of both countries, makes possible to identify what image the US and Russia promotes and what methods each country implement to fill the information space and enhance its global perceptions.

This paper provides a detailed empirical research of digital diplomacy strategies of Russia and the US on Twitter and contributes to studies of Russian and the US digital public diplomacy and media research in the field of social media networks. The results can be useful for practitioners too because they reveal digital diplomacy methods of both countries and can help to improve public diplomacy conducting via Twitter.

The research period however is only 3 months, from January to March 2020, so it could be possible that countries strategies and methods identified are not limited by the findings of this paper. Furthermore, the study does not explore the media content of tweets and limits by textual messages. The technical features like number of likes, reposts, virality of tweets are not examined in the paper as well, that information might be useful to identify the influence of the tweets on audience. The empirical analysis focuses on Twitter, while other social media networks like Facebook, Instagram YouTube could contribute the knowledge of digital public diplomacy. The personal accounts of political leaders also could be subjects for future research.

Primary Sources

Tweets. Department of State

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 6a). President @realDonaldTrump has been resolute. We will defend America. Iranian proxy forces in Iraq thought they could act with impunity. We've made clear to the Iranian regime that wouldn't be the case. The American people should know we will always defend them [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 7c). @SecPompeo: I want to offer condolences to the people of #Australia for the tragic loss of life and property caused by the devastating wildfires raging across that country. We have a truly unbreakable alliance, and we will do whatever we can to assist our Aussie friends [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 11a). President @realDonaldTrump: "We must resolve to work together to end human smuggling, end human trafficking, and put these criminal networks out of business for good." https://t.co/SfvsZlR4JE #EndTrafficking #FreedomFirst [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 11b). As #AustraliaFires continue to spread, @USAID is supporting Australia's response in affected communities. The United States stands with the people of Australia. https://t.co/srNtfRZq9A [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 14a). @SecPompeo: #China - specifically the Chinese Communist Party - presents unique challenges, especially for the tech industry. Even if the CCP gives assurances about technology being confined to peaceful uses, you should know there is enormous risk [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 14b). Women's rights in #Iran have regressed since the Iranian regime came into power in 1979. We stand with the women in Iran in their struggle for a better future [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 15). Iran has a rich history of human rights from the time of Cyrus up until the 1979 revolution. The Iranian people have suffered from a regressive regime and deserve a brighter future [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 17). @SecPompeo: In 1948, the @OAS_official adopted the world's first-ever international human rights declaration, a major influence on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It's up to us to protect dignity and rights. It's up to us to sustain multilateralism that works [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 22). @SecPompeo: The Venezuelan people will get what they deserve: a democratic, free #Venezuela. We will ultimately get a free and fair election for a new president, and then the Venezuelan people can have a brighter, better, more prosperous future. https://t.co/icNfd8cOlZ [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 24a). @SecPompeo: America is a force for good in the world. President @realDonaldTrump is sincere in his efforts to make sure that America is doing what it needs to do. https://t.co/SG1A0nelBG [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 24b). This morning, Under Secretary Hale met with President-elect @LuisLacallePou & incoming Foreign Minister Ernesto Talvi to discuss the strong U.S.-#Uruguay partnership and steps to strengthen our promotion of democracy, economic growth, & security for our countries and the region [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 27a). @EconatState Assistant Secretary Singh and Bahamian Minister D'Aguilar signed the Air Transport Agreement today. It expands our strong economic partnership with #TheBahamas and creates new opportunities for airlines, travel companies, and customers. https://t.co/KluNYrGvrB [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 27b). Today #WeRemember the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and mourn those murdered within its fences. America will not rest in combating Holocaust denial; anti-Semitism; and all forms of hatred, racism, and discrimination. #NeverAgain [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 30). Building on @SecPompeo's recent call in #Jamaica for closer ties with all Caribbean nations, Under Secretary Hale and @WHAAsstSecty met with Caribbean ambassadors to advance measures to make our nations safer, more prosperous, and more resilient to disasters. #USCaribbean2020 [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 31a). Today, Deputy Secretary Biegun welcomed Philippine Foreign Secretary @TeddyBoyLocsin to the State Department, where they reaffirmed the value of the U.S.-Philippine alliance based on the deep, historic friendship & mutual respect between our two countries. #FriendsPartnersAllies [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 31b). On January 29, President @realDonaldTrump signed the #USMCA, the largest, fairest, most balanced, and modern trade agreement ever achieved. It opens a new chapter in trade relations with #Mexico and #Canada. Learn more here: https://t.co/UXLjus5vMx [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 31c). 5G will change the world and power the future, but as the world builds out its #5G networks, we must choose carefully to keep ourselves safe. Securing 5G networks is vital to protect privacy, to safeguard human rights, and to ensure national security [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, January 31d). @SecPompeo: The Islamic Republic of #Iran remains the world's largest state sponsor of terror. The work the United States has done to put enormous pressure on their economy has reduced their capability to harm people. https://t.co/1APxtCxYjo [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, February 5). President @realDonaldTrump: The groundbreaking new agreement with #China will defend our workers, protect our intellectual property, bring billions of dollars into our treasury, and open vast new markets for products made and grown in the United States. #SOTU2020 [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, February 13). @SecPompeo: President @realDonaldTrump has made clear we want fairness, we want transparency, we want a relationship with #China that is balanced and equal. https://t.co/yOkcRQd8vq [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, February 19a). There is no higher priority for the State Department than the health and safety of U.S. citizens overseas. The Department is working closely with @CDCgov and @HHSGov to combat the spread of #COVID19 and assist all U.S. citizens affected [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, February 19b). Deputy Secretary Biegun met with Panamanian Foreign Minister @aferrerl to discuss how the United States and #Panama, a key partner, can continue to counter irregular migration, combat the flow of illegal narcotics, and promote democracy in the region. https://t.co/e4gH1pdulC [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, February 21). Under Secretary Hale & Assistant Deputy Minister Costello co-chaired the U.S.-#Canada High-Level Policy Review Group, a key component of our strategic partnership. The group advanced coordination on @NATO, Iran, the Middle East, China & Venezuela. https://t.co/WxokDYRZP2 [Tweet].

Department of State [StateDept]. (2020, February 24a). When Venezuelan interim President @jguaido visited the United States, he found support for #Venezuela at every stop. The United States stands with the people of Venezuela, the democratically-elected National Assembly, and interim President Juan Guaidу. #EstamosUnidosVE [Tweet].