In the present globalised international environment managing perceptions is the raison d'être of diplomacy and foreign policy to garner favorable outcomes for the country and its peoples. At the national level, it is the sum of all direct and indirect projections made by a nation with the purpose of getting a target audience to believe what one wishes it to believe and respond in positive directions with desired outcomes. The target audience could be both internal and international. Perception Management targets the minds of the select audience through direct and indirect actions, such as, declarations, displays of intents and capabilities and even power, both military and non-military.

Articulations such as ‘management', ‘influencing' and similar intent driven adjectives are off limits.

Perception Management is a patently proactive endeavour. It occupies a very vast canvas which has within its ambit multi domain tools. These tools have often been discussed interchangeably in discourses without establishing a clear hierarchy; the domains of their application; and most importantly, the interplays. Whilst Perception Management is an acknowledged important component of statecraft at play by all nations, the greatest challenge that is being faced by western democracies, and now even a totalitarian state such as China is the definitional aspect of this endeavour and its tools of the trade. The matter at the heart of the problem is a growing sensitivity towards international opinions. Terminologies that imply, ‘control' or desire to ‘control' have become anathema. Therefore, articulations such as ‘management', ‘influencing' and similar intent driven adjectives are off limits. As a result, the endeavour gets couched in acceptable terms, such as, ‘Strategic Communication', ‘Information Operations', etc. with all the tools of Perception Management being put into such nebulous boxes. This ‘air brush' then creates ambiguity on the real objectives of the various tools that are employed in managing perceptions. This article therefore endeavours to establish the distinct character of the diverse tools employed in managing perceptions. Each one of them deserves in-depth analysis and research and shall be discussed in greater detail in subsequent articles.

Important tools of Perception Management are:

• Psychological Operations.
• Information Operations including Cyber Operations.
• Strategic Communication
• Soft Power Play.
• Kinetic Actions in the Military and Economic Domains.
• Leadership Projections

All the above tools are time, context and audience specific, and therefore remain dynamic in nature, depending on the prevailing social and geopolitical environment and the intent of the moment. A recent example was the supply of the much-needed vaccine by India to other countries during the COVID Pandemic. Although this was clearly a humanitarian outreach, it also served the purpose of managing favourable perceptions in those countries. It was India's Soft Power that was at play here. Another example of Perception Management through Strategic Communication were the many sharp and incisive statements made by the Minister of External Affairs of India in the backdrop of the ongoing Russo Ukraine conflict whenever India's stance in this conflict was questioned. His measured statements exposed the double standards of the European countries, whilst convincingly articulating India's needs and its independent foreign policy. Earlier on, the Balakot air strike by the Indian Air Force was another example of a nonverbal strategic communication directed at Pakistan for having crossed the threshold of tolerance of proxy war. Other recent examples of Perception Management by Kinetic Actions are the ongoing air violations and firing of missiles close to Taiwan by China, conveying ominous outcomes if Taiwan steps out of line. China has over the decades perfected the art of perception management through proactive Information and Cyber Operations, thereby indirectly attempting to convey her capability to interdict and impact the infrastructure and economies of her adversaries. Economic Sanctions against countries also fall within the ambit of managing perceptions in those countries urging them to mend their ways or more aptly, fall in line with the policies of the enforcing countries or agencies such as the United Nations. Sanctions on Iran, to wean her away from nuclear ambitions is a prime example. At another and interesting level Leadership Traits in leaders of major global powers create perceptions of the foreign policy directions that these countries are likely to adopt. In recent times, personality traits of leaders such as Narendra Modi, Volodymyr Zelenski, Donald Trump, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, and even Kim Jongun has created perceptions of the likely direction of the foreign policy and security strategies of their respective countries. Psychological Operations is another subset of Perception Management. Unlike the other tools, these operations have very long gestation periods to produce the desired outcomes. It is a continuous process. Success or failure is often known only months or years after the execution of the operation. Yet, success, though incalculable can be overwhelming and failure, though undetectable can be extremely damaging. It attempts to modulate the human mind and exploit emotions, fears, hopes and aspirations in a systematic manner to create a favourable image of the sponsor. It is the planned use of propaganda and other measures, designed to influence opinions, emotions, attitudes and behaviours of contesting parties, collaborators, friendly forces, and even own population in pursuance of National Security Objectives. Psychological Operations, by its nature, generally has a military orientation, relating to adversaries. It also has relevance in internal conflict-ridden areas to win over and enlist the participation of the local populations in nation building. Through its various projects and enterprises, Psychological Operations aim at gaining and remaining in an advantageous position by actions; during peace, pre conflict phase, the conflict period, and post conflict. It would enlist the interplay of the other relevant tools of Perception Management in achieving its objectives. Psychological Operations to accrue strategic payoffs cannot be employed by the Armed Forces in a ‘stand-alone' mode, but would need a whole of nation approach, coordinated at the highest level. The Indian Army's Sadhbhavana Projects although undertaken with considerable zeal and resources is a clear illustration of this deficiency in simultaneous initiatives in other domains, especially Psychological Operations, to deliver the desired outcome of ‘winning hearts and minds.'

Although perception management operations are typically carried out in the international arena between governments, and between governments and citizens, its use has now become part of everyday life in society, where it is being considered as a synonym for persuasion. Agencies specialize in this to help businesses promote ventures and products. Advertising is a great example of perception management.

In the military domain, realization of the prohibitive costs of modern wars has led to the search for alternate non-contact supportive operations or strategies to collaborate, convince, deter, coerce, or even put down contesting parties, in pursuance of the National Military Strategy. In almost all of these, the objective is to ‘managing perceptions', with the desired outcome of winning wars or contests of national interests, without fighting, or if forced to prosecute war, degrade the adversary's capabilities before contact. During the Cold War, the Pentagon sent undercover US journalists to Russia and Eastern Europe to write pro-American articles for local media outlets. A similar situation occurred in Iraq in 2005 when the US military covertly paid Iraqi newspapers to print stories written by US soldiers; these stories were geared towards enhancing the appearance of the US mission in Iraq.[1] With the restructuring of forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US Army understanding the importance of managing perceptions amongst the local populace, moved cultural experts to be included in the transformed brigades and deal with "everything from analyzing the enemy's propaganda leaflets to talking with natives to see what the Army can do to make them their friends.”

Finally, “the struggle for power on international scene is today not only a struggle for military supremacy and political domination, but in a specific sense a struggle for the minds of men.” Perceptions of power can be more important than power itself