Public image of Ukraine in conditions of uncertaint

Abstract

The publication outlines the trends of global changes and development trends of modern Ukraine – conditions of uncertainty – in which territories at all levels compete for influence on the process of world resources redistribution. It has been proved that place branding "from above" – by developing a strategy for its promotion by special authorities with the possible involvement of non-governmental actors is ineffective due to the inflexibility of this approach and limited state influence on external information space. The author clarifies the content of such key categories of branding discourse as strategic communications, public diplomacy, brand, image, reputation, visions, narratives. The publication demonstrates author’s attempt to build a model of stages for correction of the existing state public image through the tools of strategic communications, including public diplomacy, and to prove the feasibility of systematizing successful cases of public diplomacy "from below", because the future is in local place branding. A correlation is established between the stages of public image promotion, purposeful interactions of all subjects of public diplomacy and their results. The conclusion is made about the expected result of state strategic communications, which is in fixing the loyalty of the state – a high degree of trust, devotion and reliability of relationships that can become valuable, can spread interpersonal trust in society, institutional trust between states and act as a resource of a generalized trust in the process of territory self-organization and prospects of its brand. Such form of generalized trust as the loyalty capital is a serious basis for the competitiveness of the state in a new world order and the consolidation of the nation in conditions of uncertainty.