Cultural diplomacy of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the context of the vision 2030 strategy implementation

- agreement conclusions on cultural cooperation;

- work with ex-pats (Pajtinka, 2014).

According to H. Ismaik, the soft power of Saudi Arabia has four unique characteristics that are combined only in the Kingdom. In particular, it is the centre of Islam and the Arabs, as well as the balance in international relations. The fourth characteristic is Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and his views of the state's future progress (Ismaik, 2020). The main task of KSA public diplomacy is to build international bridges. Today, Riyadh uses several public diplomacy components, such as cultural diplomacy, educational exchange programs, and international broadcasting. The Kingdom promotes its foreign policy interests using a unique approach that involves the use of both hard and soft power. This approach is directly related to the fact that Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and is one of the world's richest countries with enormous oil reserves (Sallam, 2018).

In the summer of 2018, Saudi Arabia participated for the first time in the Venice Architecture Biennale (Konopka, Strykhotskyi, 2020, p. 105) and the Cannes International Film Festival, which were used as platforms to increase international interest in the prospects of the Saudi film and television industry (Mogielnicki, 2018). According to the Ministry of Culture, a crucial role in the country's cultural development should be played by cinema. In April 2018, for the first time in 35 years, the Marvel film Black Panther was shown in the Kingdom. Moreover, in March of the same year, the Council for Cinematography was established within the Ministry of Culture. Concurrently, the development of this sphere is connected with state censorship and state intervention in the media sphere. Since its inception, the Ministry has joined two programs to develop Saudi cinema: Daw Film Directors Competition, which aims to support local filmmakers (Daw film, 2019), and the internship program for young directors at the world's best universities (Filmmakers, 2020). In early 2021, the Saudi State Cinematographic Commission signed cooperation agreements with 28 directors who won the Daw competition and signed contracts worth more than $ 10 million (Saudi Film, 2021). The commission will collaborate with directors in screenwriting films and producing feature films. Furthermore, the Saudi film Scales won the Verona Film Festival Award in the Innovative Category (Saudi-directed film, 2019).

In early 2021, the Ministry of Culture established the Cultural Development Fund (CDF), which is linked to the National Development Fund (NDF) and is designed to promote the development and transformation of various cultural sectors within the Vision 2030 (Saudi Culture Minister, 2021). According to CDF leader Badr bin Hussein Al-Zahrani, every effort is being made to promote Saudi art and culture, which will increase GDP by about $1.2 billion (Steps, 2021).

At the same time, the Ministry of Culture has implemented some initiatives that stimulate Saudi art development, support artists and promote global cultural exchange. One of the first initiatives represented in 2019 was "cultural residence": Saudi Arabia offered to grant the right to permanent residence in the Kingdom for foreign artists (Radwan, Tashkandi, 2019). In January 2020, an Al-Balad Art Residence Project was announced in Jeddah; it is open to both Saudi and foreign artists, writers, and cultural managers. For six weeks, the artists were able to work on their own project under the auspices of Athr Gallery, one of the Kingdom's leading contemporary art galleries. Back in 2019, under the auspices of the gallery, Saudi artists had the opportunity to meet with their colleagues in New York, Paris, Barcelona, and Beirut (Chaves, 2020). In addition, it provides for the provision of scholarships, awards, and the creation of a cultural fund (created in early 2021 - NK, TS) to support artists, the fashion sector, and other areas of culture. At the end of 2020, there was announced governmental readiness for implementing the second part of the project Art Residence of Al-Balad for 2021-2022, which will involve both Saudi and foreign artists, critics, researchers, and writers (Saudi Culture Ministry, 2020). In early 2021, the Ministry of Culture of the KSA announced a competition named Marathon of Cultural Initiatives with a prize fund of $80 thousand, which is part of the Quality of Life Program, aimed at achieving the goals of the Vision 2030 strategy. During this marathon, the Centre for Cultural Initiatives was launched, aiming to stimulate the development of various culture sectors and the generation of creative ideas (Saudi Arabia opens, 2020).

Since 2019, Saudi Arabia has opened to tourists and plans to invest $64 billion in the entertainment industry's development over the next decade (Saudi Arabia to invest, 2018), but the pandemic has made its adjustments in this sector as well. In an interview with the Arab News, the Minister of Tourism of the Kingdom Ahmed al-Khateeb said that Saudi Arabia is on track to achieve its ambitious goal - to reach 100 million tourists per year by 2030 (Frankly Speaking, 2020), of which 36 million should be religious tourists (6 million during the Hajj and 30 million during the small pilgrimage - Umrah) (Umrah, 2020). Unfortunately, due to the coronavirus crisis in 2020, a number of restrictions were imposed on a religious pilgrimage and the tourism industry as a whole. Most restrictions still apply today. Moreover, the KSA tourism sector expects $ 200 billion in investment income by 2030. The government hopes that the tourism industry's revenues will reach 10% of annual GDP by 2030, compared to 3% today, and will create more than 1 million jobs. To achieve these ambitious goals, the government has adopted the National Tourism Strategy, which should unleash the powerful tourism potential of the Kingdom. The first phase of the strategy is creating the Tourism Development Fund (Fahy, 2020), which provides an increase in foreign investment, the search for international partners, effective strategic communication.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Culture plans to expand the country's network of museums, as this will attract tourist flows. In December 2020, Laila Alfaddagh, a well-known museum specialist, was appointed to the position of director-general of the National Museum of the Kingdom. She played a key role in creating a children's museum in the monarchy, founded the Ithra Art Prize and contributed to the launch of the Art Cafe program (a project of the Saudi Aramco energy company) (Laila Alfaddagh, 2020).

By 2023, a unique museum of modern digital art, called TeamLab Borderless Jeddah, will be built in Jeddah by the Japanese company TeamLab. This museum will be the fourth worldwide after similar interactive museums in Tokyo, Shanghai, and Macau. The museum's opening is part of a campaign to promote Saudi Arabia's cultural values, which allows it to diversify its economy and create a more "open image" of the country in the context of Vision 2030 (Harris, 2020). The idea of creating a museum is in tune with other special cultural events, including the Desert X Sculpture Exhibition, which opened in the Al-Ula region of north-western Saudi Arabia in early 2020.

In April 2020, the Dar Al-Qalam calligraphy centre in Medina was renamed after the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Now, The Prince Mohammad bin Salman Global Centre for Arabic Calligraphy contains a museum, an exhibition hall, and an institute dedicated to the art of Arabic calligraphy. Under the royal decree, the Ministry of Culture will oversee the Centre's work with the Royal Foundation for Research and Archives to transform the Centre into a global calligraphy platform for scholars from around the world (Tashkandi, 2020a).

The Ministry of Culture actively uses the latest means of communication in the implementation of cultural diplomacy. In April 2020, the Ministry announced an online platform for the study of Arabic calligraphy by renowned artists (Tashkandi, 2020b). This activity is aimed primarily at the Arabic-speaking audience because the platform works only in this language. Moreover, the Ministry of Culture has initiated the creation of the Cultural Database, which will include professional and personal data of Saudi artists. A single database can facilitate the creation of strategic cultural projects and increase the level of communication between the Ministry and artists (Ministry of Culture Launches, 2020).

The MiSK Art Institute (MAI) was founded in 2017. The head of the Institute is the famous Saudi artist Ahmed Mater, and the chairman of the board is Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The MAI was created to support Saudi artists and promote cultural diplomacy and exchange. It is headquartered in Riyadh, with offices in London, Venice and Abkha (MiSK Art). The MAI has already begun implementing an international program at the Museum of Contemporary Art in New York; held discussion panels and virtual reality screenings at Art Dubai, the Kennedy Centre in Washington, DC, and the Monde Arabe Institute in Paris. On December 3-7, 2020, the Institute held its fourth MiSK Art Week and launched the first annual grant to support and promote Saudi artists (Works, 2020).

In June 2020, the Saudi government announced plans to launch a new biennale of contemporary art in 2021 and Islamic art in 2022 in the historic site of Ad Diriya on the outskirts of Riyadh. According to the National Newspaper, the 15th-century city of At-Turaif, known as the "pearl of Saudi Arabia" and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is located in the Ad Diriya area. The city of At-Turaif is a central element of the Kingdom's tourism strategy and rebranding initiative (Harris, 2020), but falling oil prices and a pandemic have delayed cultural events there. Furthermore, by 2022, an oil museum in Riyadh and a Saudi music museum named after Tariq Abdul Hakim in Jeddah will be established.

The leading global structure directly related to soft power is UNESCO. The organization promotes not only educational and scientific cooperation but also supports cultural diversity around the world. Vision 2030 aims to deepen Saudi Arabia's cooperation with UNESCO and double the number of cultural heritage sites in the country, thus increasing the number of jobs. With the establishment of the Ministry of Culture, Saudi Arabia has deepened its cooperation with UNESCO: in 2019, the country was first elected to the organization 's World Heritage Committee. In addition, in 2020, KSA allocated $ 25 million for projects of the organization that aim for preservation of cultural heritage sites and support of the creative economy (Saudi Arabia commits). Active cooperation with UNESCO can stimulate the development of Saudi science and promote the Kingdom's culture worldwide.

Despite the absolute dominance of the state in Saudi Arabia's cultural diplomacy, there is also a private sector represented by the Al Saud family members. Princes Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud play the most prominent roles in promoting Saudi culture. The Prince Sultan Foundation cooperates with several world universities and international organizations to spread knowledge about Islam, the Arabic language, and the state and fights against negative stereotypes about the KSA and Islam (Cultural Communication). Moreover, the Prince Sultan Foundation supports a joint program with UNESCO to promote the Arabic language in which numerous activities are carried out. With the active support of the Foundation, December 18 was recognised as World Arabic Day (Prince Sultan).

While the Prince Sultan Foundation works mainly with organizations and universities, the Prince Alwaleed Foundation promotes Islamic art among Western countries. In 2005, the Foundation allocated $23 million to establish the Centre for Islamic Art in the Louvre, and in 2019 it financially supported the opening of the Education Centre in its structure. Former President of the French Republic Francois Hollande and Saudi Princess Lamia Bint Majid Al Saud (New spaces, 2019) were present at the opening of the renovated Centre. Furthermore, the Prince Alvalid Foundation is funding the expansion of The Museum of Islamic Art in Berlin.

However, according to experts, due to the coronavirus crisis, falling oil prices, and reduced foreign investment, ambitious Vision 2030 projects will dwindle. Some high-ranking officials in the Middle East claim that the Gulf's economy may never return to pre-crisis conditions; hence political elites are taking steps to optimise its current state. This pause will also be a time to reflect on various aspects of Vision 2030 and its timing. According to Scott Livermore, the chief economist at Oxford Economics Middle East, Saudi strategy "was already under review" even before the 2020 crisis (Castelier, 2020).

At the same time, the G20 summit held on November 4, 2020, outlined the results of two years of Saudi cultural reforms. The inclusion to the agenda of the development of culture, among other means of economic regeneration after the pandemic, indicates that the reforms will continue and will have not only a regional but also a global impact. As a result, KSA cultural diplomacy will become a key component of Riyadh's soft power, which will be actively broadcast by regional and global media. At a summit of culture ministers, Saudi Arabia offered a tripartite vision of culture as a way of life, a factor in economic growth, and an opportunity for international exchange. The pace of cultural transformation is evidenced by the fact that in 2019 alone, more than 5,000 books translated into Arabic were published, as well as 161 novels by Saudi writers. Also, 11 universities in the Kingdom opened clothing design programs, 101 films were made, and Saudi theatre figures collaborations with foreign partners received more than 300 international awards, 255 art exhibitions were held, 8 Saudi projects received the international award Aga Khan in the field of architecture, 7 cultural sites of KSA were included in the UNESCO's lists of the intangible cultural heritage. The culmination of these achievements, according to S. Altari, is the launch of the first Saudi Fashion Incubation Program, the granting of the first licenses to two music institutes of the Kingdom, and the election of Saudi Arabia as a member of the UNESCO Committee for Intangible Cultural Heritage (Althari, 2021).

The need for cultural diplomacy has become a modern norm, to which Saudi Arabia is trying to adapt. The kingdom has a powerful tool of soft power, which consists of religious weight, economic power, and a stable political regime, but lacks a cultural factor to attract the societies of developed countries. In recent years, the country has been trying to change the image of a conservative state, but without significant changes in domestic policy.

The status of the KSA as the centre of world Islam allows the country to actively use religion as an integral tool of cultural diplomacy and creates prospects for the development of religious tourism. The policy in this direction is implemented by the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance, which deals with the spread of Islam by supporting Islamic communities, organizations, and educational institutions abroad. The Ministry oversees the printing industry, which allows the Saudi vision of Islam to be represented in most Muslim countries and countries with a significant Muslim population.

Since 2017, the monarchy has been carrying out systemic reforms to implement which the newly created Ministry of Culture plays an important role. Therefore, the Kingdom seeks to make the most of cultural diplomacy tools for positioning in the international arena. Despite the pandemic, Saudi Arabia managed to implement a number of projects in various fields of culture, in particular: the creation of the Cultural Development Fund, the launch of the project Art Residence Al-Balad, online courses in Arabic calligraphy, and others. Cinema and museum work are effective tools for transmitting Saudi values, lifestyles, fine arts, language, and historical heritage to the global level; hence they have become top priority areas of culture.

At the same time, Saudi Arabia has begun to put the cultural sector more actively on its own political agenda. Evidence of this is the creation and operation of KAICIID and the establishment of closer cooperation with UNESCO.

Undoubtedly, an obstacle to the implementation of cultural development programs was the global pandemic COVID-19, which made adjustment to the process of international events and tourism development. It is the pandemic that will determine the scope of the country's cultural diplomacy in the short term, as cultural sector reform could boost the Kingdom's revenue from the non-oil sector and become one of the foundations of Saudi prosperity due to economic diversification. Thus, it is safe to say that the KSA will not only not abandon the chosen path in the field of cultural policy in the context of the implementation of Vision 2030 but also intensify efforts in this direction. This makes the topic promising for further research into cultural diplomacy and the soft power of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in general.