“It was the worst day we have ever seen, but it brought out the best in all of us.” –Senator…
Life as a POW in the Japanese-Occupied Philippines
Ten hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese forces successfully invaded the Philippines. Those Americans and Filipinos who did not…
Turning the Tables: An Interview with Stu Kennedy
In this interview with the Foreign Service Journal, Charles Stuart Kennedy talks about his Foreign Service career and pioneering work creating American…
“A Recipe for Endless War” – The Rise of the Taliban
After conquering Kabul in April 1996, the Taliban established the ultra-conservative Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, enforcing a radical interpretation of…
The Search for Peace in Southern Africa – Oil, Angola, and the Proxy Wars
During the Cold War, the United States and the USSR engaged in a zero-sum game throughout the globe; while mutually…
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
The Gulf of Tonkin attack on August 2, 1964 and another many believed to take place on August 4 led…
The Vietnamese Boat People
After the United States withdrew from South Vietnam in 1975, communist North Vietnam quickly took over and established the Socialist Republic…
India and Pakistan on the Brink: The 1998 Nuclear Tests
In May 1998, India conducted its first nuclear bomb tests since 1974 at the Indian Army Pokhran Test Range. Known…
Kashmir and the 1965 Indo-Pakistani War
In the summer of 1965, India and Pakistan returned to the battlefields of Kashmir in a renewed attempt to establish…
A Never-ending Tragedy — The Onset of the AIDS Crisis in Africa
The spread of AIDS in Africa in the 1980s and 90s presented unique challenges for U.S. diplomats suddenly faced with…