One of the great dilemmas in foreign policy is when and whether to negotiate with one’s enemies. Will a dialogue…
A Day That Will Live in Infamy
December 7, 1941 will forever be one of the most memorable dates in American history. The attack on Pearl Harbor, a preemptive…
444 Days: Memoirs of an Iran Hostage
More than thirty years later, the Iran Hostage crisis still ranks as one of the most traumatic diplomatic events in…
Dissidents, Spies, and Attack Cartoons — Life at the U.S. Interests Section in Havana
Diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba were frozen in time for more than 50 years. After the U.S. formally severed…
The Hungarian Revolution of 1956
The early 1950s witnessed a thaw in the Communist monolith. Stalin’s death in 1953 led to Khrushchev’s “secret speech” in…
The Hunt for Che Guevara
He is arguably the most well-known revolutionary in modern history and his now iconic photo can be seen on everything…
Murder in an Embassy, Part I — “I am not losing my mind”
A Communist plot, a gruesome murder, a maniacal dictator: all were elements in what would seemingly be the scandal of…
Chile’s Coup Against Salvador Allende and the Truth Behind “Missing”
In 1973, political tensions were high in Chile, with conflict arising between the socialist President Salvador Allende and the more…
Burma’s 8888 Demonstrations and the Rise of Aung San Suu Kyi
Political activist. Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. Political prisoner and inspiration to millions of people around the world. Aung San Suu…
Cain and Abel: Splitting Up North and South Korea
With the end of World War II in August 1945, there was still no consensus on Korea’s fate among Allied…