The United States and Cuba officially severed diplomatic relations on January 3, 1961, the culmination of months of increasingly hostile bilateral…
The Proxy of My Proxy: Saudi Arabia vs. Egypt in North Yemen
Led by President Gamal Abdel Nasser, the Egyptians funneled money, arms, and eventually ground troops to support revolutionaries in North…
Freeing American Hostages in the First Gulf War
Shortly after Iraq invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990, Saddam Hussein and his Republican Guard forces took hundreds of Americans…
Crazy Train — A Congolese Victory Tour
What’s a party without prostitutes, undrinkable whiskey, and the best seats in the house, cleared for you at sword-point? Following…
Dangerous Roads – Carjacking and the Foreign Service
Foreign Service officers are trained to handle and adapt to any number of highly dangerous situations. One such situation is…
A First-Class Spy Flap: CIA Agents Compromised in Ghana
Relations between the United States and Ghana were strained in the early 1980s. Its leader, the enigmatic former Flight Lieutenant…
“We are as Firm as a Monkey Tail” – Baby Doc Duvalier Leaves Haiti
For much of the 20th century, Haiti was under the control of the Duvalier family, headed by Francois “Papa Doc”…
The End of an Era — Handholding Ferdinand Marcos in Exile
Just minutes after returning from his three-year exile, former Philippine Senator Benigno Aquino Jr. was assassinated at the Manila airport…
Evacuating Uganda — With Style
From 1971-1979, Uganda was under the control of the mercurial Idi Amin, one of the most brutal military dictators ever…
Horrible Bosses: Internal Tension at the U.S. Mission in Geneva
After years of serving in Africa, you finally get a nice cushy assignment at the U.S. Mission in Geneva, with…