The leader of the Bangladesh’s independence movement, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, helped create a sovereign nation, successfully taking on Pakistani occupying…
Getting Kosovo Right: Working to Avoid Another Bosnia
Yugoslavia had long been a simmering caldron of ethnic and nationalist tensions. After the death of Yugoslav strongman Josip Broz…
Lost in Translation while Posted Abroad
Working as a U.S. diplomat overseas requires patience, composure, and the ability to communicate cross-culturally. Oftentimes, diplomats can speak multiple…
Diplomacy Despite It All – Kissinger’s India Fix
Secretary of State Henry Kissinger visited India October 28, 1974 to discuss its nonalignment policy, which aimed at preserving India’s…
The PFLP Hijacking of TWA Flight 840
Thomas Boyatt was on his way to Cyprus to resume his post as political officer on August 29, 1969 when…
The Division of Cyprus: Paradise with a Problem
Cyprus gained independence from the United Kingdom on August 16, 1960, but the agreements that led to sovereignty failed to…
Srebrenica and the Horrors of the Balkan War
The break-up of Yugoslavia caused some of the most heinous human rights violations and ethnic mass killings seen in the…
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…
Operation Winter Warmth – Helping Armenia in Its Darkest Hour
When Armenia gained its independence after the collapse of the USSR in 1991, it was in dire straits. It was…
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…