The Role of Youth Diplomacy in Shaping International Relations

Youth engagement in international processes is changing the content, forms, and social foundations of interstate dialogue. The central problem is that youth diplomacy is often treated as symbolic participation, while the conditions that turn it into transnational influence remain insufficiently systematized. This study aims to identify the mechanisms through which youth diplomacy shapes international relations and to explain its connection with formal diplomatic practice. The analysis used qualitative content analysis, purposive case-study comparison, and thematic coding. The units of analysis were youth initiatives, transnational networks, diplomatic dialogue platforms, and forms of influence on the political agenda. Comparative interpretation showed that youth participation becomes international influence when transnational networks operate sustainably, dialogue outcomes reach political institutions, and youth organizations retain relative autonomy. The coding process distinguished information exchange, trust building, agenda promotion, and mediation as interconnected functions of youth diplomacy. The study’s scientific contribution is a conceptualization of youth participation not as simple representation, but as a multilevel diplomatic mechanism operating through networks, institutional channels, and processes of political translation. This framework clarifies how informal actors can affect international agendas without replacing formal diplomatic accountability. It also provides a basis for evaluating international dialogue programs, comparing diplomatic practices across contexts, and designing participation mechanisms that connect youth initiatives with durable policy processes. Future research can examine how these mechanisms vary across regions, institutional settings, and types of transnational networks.