Oil Those Wheels The Ambassador Way

Today, a princely Machiavelli style tidbit blog.

After bellicose soundbite diplomacy between Russia and America over the latest Syrian astonishments tilts slightly towards seeking ‘trust and progress’, I heard commentary from a former UK Ambassador to Damascus (2000-3), Henry Hogger.

A man with vast experience trying to build and maintain relationships with representatives of governments his paymasters were “very strongly at variance of”, but with whom you wish to “oil those wheels” and “bring on board”.

Consider this context of discussing what could be done to ‘coax someone away from staunch support of an alternative position’. Check out his solution sales nous when noting an “extraordinary contradiction” in a position;

“the usual way to persuade anybody is not to put unbearable pressure on them … but rather to try and persuade them that it’s in their own interest”