In 1972, a group of Palestinian terrorists shocked the world by kidnapping eleven Israeli athletes during the Summer Olympics in…
The Berlin Blockade and Airlift of 1948
Beginning in April 1948, the USSR blocked Western Allies’ access to Berlin as a means of protesting the introduction of…
Somalia — From Great Hope to Failed State
While today the mention of Somalia may conjure up images of a destitute nation run by warlords, such was not…
Terror in the Sky — Hezbollah Seizes TWA Flight 847
The summer of 1985 was a particularly gruesome one for terrorist incidents. One of the more memorable was the hijacking…
The NPT and the Aftermath of India’s Nuclear Test — May 1974
Operation Smiling Buddha was the assigned code name for India’s first nuclear weapons explosion on May 18th, 1974. India declared…
The Mind of the African Strongman
Back to Diplomats and Diplomacy The Mind of the African Strongman — Conversations with Dictators, Statesmen, and Father Figures “Hank Cohen’s…
The Longest Day — Tales from D-Day, 1944
The June 6, 1944 invasion of Normandy marked the beginning of the end of World War II. Planning for what would…
The Ivory Coast’s Félix Houphouët-Boigny – “A Master Manipulator and Destabilizer”
The late President Félix Houphouët-Boigny of Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) did not look like a “strong man.” He was small…
Responding to the Threat of Mass Atrocities
Drawing on his experiences as U.S. Special Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan, Ambassador Princeton Lyman highlights the decision making trade-offs he…
The Carnation Revolution – A Peaceful Coup in Portugal
“There was real jubilation in the streets the first few weeks. It’s still known as the Revolution of the Carnations,…