When it comes to determining the world’s greatest films, we may focus on Italian giants of neorealism like Bicycle Thieves…
Peace Corps to Ambassador: Darryl Johnson in Thailand
Many young people enter the Peace Corps with the idea, if not the outright goal, that they might eventually become…
Life as a Diplomatic Courier: Connecting China to the World
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to jet off across the world continent-to-continent at a moment’s notice?…
The “Leaky Bucket”—Brazil and the Cuban Missile Crisis
In the early 1960s, President John F. Kennedy sought to maintain an open dialogue with Brazil with the intent to…
The Variety of a Foreign Service Career: Bananas, Beaches, and a Plane
Robert Reis, a longtime State Department official, is a perfect example of how far one can come from the American…
The Last Days Before the Fall of Saigon: Evacuating Vietnamese Refugees
The Fall of Saigon is perhaps one of the most infamous moments of the Vietnam War. Following the fall of…
Peace Between Egypt and Israel in Jeopardy: The Return of Sinai
In 1979, Israel and Egypt signed a historic peace agreement committing to diplomatic and commercial ties. Peace seemed imminent for…
Negotiating the Helsinki Final Act—Soviet Style
Following Allied victory in World War II, the world plunged headfirst into a bitter rivalry lasting decades between the two…
A “Typical Roberta Cohen Operation”—Establishing USIA Programs in Addis Ababa
Like much of Africa, Ethiopia experienced a watershed moment at the end of World War II, emerging out from under…
Daily Life in Japanese Custody: Japan Takes Over U.S. Consulate in Vietnam During WWII
About one month before Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and the United States officially entered World War II, tensions were already…