Images of the U.S. military in Vietnam are part of the American consciousness. But these images are only part of…
A USAID Officer Recalls Vietnam’s Tet Offensive
It wasn’t just soldiers. USAID officer George Laudato was at his home in Mỹ Tho in 1968 when mortars started…
A Reluctant Welcome From Notorious Warlords in Afghanistan
A USAID officer secured a meeting with two senior and notorious Afghan warlords in the late 1980s when he appeared…
Reopening the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam: Conflicting Emotions
Secretary of State Warren Christopher arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam in 1995 to reopen the U.S. Embassy just after three weeks…
Bombing North Vietnam into Accepting Our Concessions: Christmas Bombings, 1972
President Richard Nixon ordered plans for retaliatory bombings of North Vietnam after talks to end the war in Vietnam broke…
“The Wild West” — Peshawar and the Afghan Mujahedeen
In the late 1970s, the USSR had been supporting the Afghan government in its fight against rebels, who had made considerable…
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…
A Bum Rap for April Glaspie — Saddam and the Start of the Iraq War
In the summer of 1990, concerns were growing that Saddam Hussein, who was massing troops near the border with Kuwait, was…
Billion-Dollar “Plan Colombia” to End Decades of Civil War
Published January 2016 A guerrilla organization known as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias…
Leveling the Playing Field in the Salvadoran Civil War
The Salvadoran Civil War, lasting from 1979-1992, pitted the military-led government of El Salvador against a coalition of five left-wing guerrilla…