Brunei, situated on the northern shore of the island of Borneo in the South China Sea, is one of the…
Officially Unofficial – The Opening of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT)
On the first day of January 1979, the United States de-recognized the Republic of China (also known as Taiwan or…
Drug-Sniffing Mongooses and Other Tales of the Sri Lankan Civil War
In July 1983, tensions increased between Tamil minority separatists and the Sinhalese majority in Sri Lanka, erupting into civil war.…
Congo in Crisis: The Rise and Fall of Katangan Secession
When the Republic of the Congo (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) became independent from Belgium in June 1960,…
John Foster Dulles – Master Craftsman, Man of Paradox
President Dwight Eisenhower appointed John Foster Dulles as Secretary of State in January 1953, a job he held until almost…
The Resignation of Richard M. Nixon
Richard M. Nixon’s presidency was a tempestuous mix of stunning foreign policy achievements (his trip to China) and shameful lapses…
Through the Open Gate: The Communist Takeover of Nanking
On October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong declared the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, starting an era of Communist…
Rolling Thunder: Behind the Fog of War
The call by South Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyễn Khánh on July 19, 1964 to expand the Vietnam conflict led to…
Wives Gone Wild
Every Foreign Service Officer can have a difficult job of navigating cultural differences, memorizing customs and sticking to protocol while…
Kissinger and Lord in China: A How-To Guide for Secret Negotiations
At the height of the Cold War, with the death toll mounting in Vietnam and the split between the USSR…