track two diplomacy
n.— «All this was what is sometimes called “Track Two” diplomacy, i.e., quiet sessions out of the headlines. Whatever its results, it is a lot better than future headlines of nuclear catastrophe.» —“Sleepwalking Towards a Nuclear Catastrophe” Embassy (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) Oct. 4, 2006. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In 1916, a small-town newspaper in Pennsylvania printed a fanciful item about a local gathering with a guest list that included, among others, Miss Ella Vader, Mr. Ray Zor, and other punny names. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of...
In her book, Canadian English: A Linguistic Reader, University of Toronto professor Elaine Gold writes extensively about the common Canadian discourse tag eh? This word can serve as a confirmation marker, much like the discourse tag right? The word...