In the Iran-Contra Affair, Colonel Oliver North and others within the National Security Council and CIA used back channels and secret bank accounts to funnel money from arms deals with Iran, which was then under an arms embargo, to the Contra rebels fighting the Marxist Sandinistas in Nicaragua. One aim of this plan was to… Read More "Iran-Contra: Who Knew What When?"
Implementing the 1993 Oslo Peace Accords
The 1993 Oslo Accords were a historic point in Arab-Israeli relations. Hammered out in complete secrecy in Oslo, Norway, by Israeli and Palestinian negotiators acting without intermediaries, the Oslo Accords forced both sides to come to terms with each other’s existence. The Accords at the time were viewed as an extraordinary breakthrough. Many analysts now… Read More "Implementing the 1993 Oslo Peace Accords"
Pablo Escobar and the Siege of Colombia’s Palace of Justice
Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar, the wealthiest criminal in history once responsible for 80 percent of the cocaine entering the U.S., was also believed to be the force behind the siege on Colombia’s Supreme Court on November 6, 1985. The assault marks one of the deadliest conflicts between the Colombian government and revolutionary groups. By… Read More "Pablo Escobar and the Siege of Colombia’s Palace of Justice"
South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission
After nearly 50 years of brutal apartheid in South Africa, it is almost impossible to imagine how people could coexist peacefully. However, the new, post-apartheid government demonstrated the power of reconciliation, which eventually served as a blueprint for similar initiatives throughout the world. Apartheid, the racial segregation system in South Africa, lasted from 1948 to… Read More "South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission"
Pierre Trudeau: One Long Curve, Full of Turning Points
With the October 2015 election of Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister of Canada, we take a look back at his father, Pierre Elliot Trudeau, one of the most influential and memorable Prime Ministers in Canada’s history. He served as Prime Minister from 1968 to 1979 and then again from 1980 to 1984. Throughout his time in power… Read More "Pierre Trudeau: One Long Curve, Full of Turning Points"
The Murder of Yitzhak Rabin, Israel’s Warrior for Peace
The assassination of 73-year old Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin came at the end of a peace rally in Tel Aviv in favor of the Oslo Accords. Rabin had served two terms as Prime Minister, from 1974-1977 and again from 1992 until his death. He was a soldier with extensive experience combatting Arab states, serving… Read More "The Murder of Yitzhak Rabin, Israel’s Warrior for Peace"
The “Other” Embassy Attack of November 1979 — The Siege of Embassy Islamabad
The attack on the American embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979 and the subsequent 444-day imprisonment of American personnel has become the stuff of legend – it was followed day by day on the news by millions of Americans, many of whom put yellow ribbons on trees and their houses as a sign of solidarity.… Read More "The “Other” Embassy Attack of November 1979 — The Siege of Embassy Islamabad"
The 1989 Romanian Revolution and the Fall of Ceausescu
1989 was the year of remarkable popular uprisings throughout the world, most notably Tiananmen Square, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia. December saw the fall of one of Eastern Europe’s most brutal dictators, Nicolae Ceaușescu and it did not come peacefully. The Romanian Revolution started in the city of… Read More "The 1989 Romanian Revolution and the Fall of Ceausescu"
Kopeks and Big Macs – Russia’s Move to a Market Economy
Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the winter of 1991, the newly-formed Russian Federation took on the challenge of creating a market-oriented economy from the world’s largest state-controlled economy. President Yeltsin’s economic reforms led to hyperinflation and loss of financial security for many who had depended on state pensions, and Russia’s GDP contracted… Read More "Kopeks and Big Macs – Russia’s Move to a Market Economy"
The Velvet Revolution, November 1989
In 1989, change was in the air throughout all of Eastern Europe. Mikhail Gorbachev’s policies of glasnost and perestroika – openness and restructuring – signaled a radically different tone from Moscow and people in the Eastern Bloc took notice. The Berlin Wall, which had long stood as a concrete symbol of the clash between East… Read More "The Velvet Revolution, November 1989"