There was a lot of unfinished business on the Korean peninsula in the 1940’s. It had been ruled by the Empire…
An Embassy at War: Labor Management in South Vietnam
The roles of embassies and their staff vary greatly by countries and regions, though few can claim themselves to be…
Picturing the “War of Ideas”: Wartime Film-Making in Korea
Throughout the Cold War, democratic and communist nations waged a “war of ideas.” The United States, seeking to expose the…
Mission Unspeakable: When North Koreans Tried to Kill the President of South Korea
On October 9, 1983, while South Korean President Chun Doo-Hwan was on a visit to Rangoon, Burma to lay a…
“Austria is Free!” Post-War Vienna Escapes the Soviet Bloc
May 15th, 1955, was a momentous occasion for a war-battered Europe, and for the national history of Austria as the…
North Korea Blows up South Korean Airliner
Someone once described the dissolution of the USSR as a typical Soviet divorce — you’re no longer married but you’re…
“Like Star Wars and Fiddler on the Roof” — Life with the Sinai Field Mission
The relative peace between Israel and Egypt, particularly on the Sinai, has been one of the few bright spots in…
Dean Acheson – Architect of the Cold War
Dean Gooderham Acheson served as Secretary of State under President Truman from 1949-1953. Noting his enormous influence, historian Randall Woods…
An Iraq War Dissent
In 2001 Ann Wright served as the first political officer in the newly reopened U.S. Embassy in Kabul. Two years…
The Assassination of Anwar Sadat, Part II
As a result of Anwar Sadat’s growing authoritarianism and treatment of his opposition, tensions in Egypt began rising shortly after…