Diplomacy was a necessity for the Byzantine Empire because it had enemies on all of its borders and there was always a threat of invasion while for a certain time it had limited military power. The military force of the Byzantine Empire never exceeded the number of 140.000. While the threat of invasion came from all quarters, e.g., from Nomadic people to Germanic people, from Slavs to Hungarians and Russians, its internal resources were not enough to keep a military permanently in order to give a military response to these threats. Since the rulers of the empire were aware of their military weakness, they first adapted the practices of former civilizations and developed their own way of diplomacy with their political and cultural contributions. For example, they adapted the practices of protocol and dynastic marriages from the Near Eastern civilization, oration as a tool for public speaking from Greece, and the divide and rule tactics from the Roman Empire. In this manner the diplomatic methods they exercised were ranging from the, formation of alliances to dynastic marriages, from exploiting the enemy’s weaknesses, to deception and the use of religion. for a certain time it had limited military power. The military force of the Byzantine Empire never exceeded the number of 140.000. While the threat of invasion came from all quarters, e.g., from Nomadic people to Germanic people, from Slavs to Hungarians and Russians, its internal resources were not enough to keep a military permanently in order to give a military response to these threats. Since the rulers of the empire were aware of their military weakness, they first adapted the practices of former civilizations and developed their own way of diplomacy with their political and cultural contributions. For example, they adapted the practices of protocol and dynastic marriages from the Near Eastern civilization, oration as a tool for public speaking from Greece, and the divide and rule tactics from the Roman Empire. In this manner the diplomatic methods they exercised were ranging from the, formation of alliances to dynastic marriages, from exploiting the enemy’s weaknesses, to deception and the use of religion. In fact, the main motive in the use of diplomacy for the Byzantine Empire was to avoid war, and all diplomatic practice was devoted to this aim. Therefore, the empire used diplomacy as a means of foreign policy continuously, employing more emphasis on it than military means. The Byzantines employed a number of tactics, both overt and covert to achieve their aims through diplomacy rather than military force. It is therefore common to label Byzantine diplomacy as “war by other means” (Antonucci, 1993: 11). They were unique in their method of involvement in internal affairs of other countries. For this aim, the empire initiated a new institution for diplomatic practice, the Bureau of Barbarians. The Bureau of Barbarians as a department of government was responsible for foreign relations, primarily with the barbarians living on the Balkan Peninsula. The correct answer is Choice B.