“But if I really say it/ the radio won’t play it/ unless I lay it between the lines.” This song…
Ping Pong Diplomacy, April 1971 — Opening the Road to China
Following the Chinese Civil War and the establishment of the People’s Republic of China on the mainland, a “Bamboo Curtain,”…
The INF Treaty, Part II — Moving from Arms Control to Arms Reduction
From November 1983 to March of 1985 negotiations between the United States and the USSR languished, leading the U.S. to…
The Inspector General — Rooting Out Fraud and Abuse in the State Department
With thousands of employees from dozens of countries spread across the globe, the U.S. Department of State sometimes falls victim…
George Kennan — Containment and the Cold War
George Frost Kennan was, and still remains, a very controversial and legendary figure in American diplomatic history. As a historian,…
What Goes on Behind the Scenes When POTUS Comes to Town
One of the most daunting and stressful tasks a Foreign Service Officer abroad can face is supporting a visit by POTUS,…
Brother, Can you Spare me some Stew?: Hot, Hungry, and Abandoned in Vietnam
Speaking a foreign language is critical in the Foreign Service and can sometimes rescue you from the diciest situations. Case…
Pain at the Pumps: The 1973 Oil Embargo and Its Effect on U.S. Foreign Policy
It may be a challenge for those who did not experience it to imagine a time when the supply of gas…
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…
Julia Chang Bloch’s Whole-of-Mission Approach in Nepal
In 1990, Nepal’s centuries-long history of monarchical rule and more recent autocratic substitutes were finally brought to an end in…