Nagorno-Karabakh is a highly contested, landlocked region in the South Caucasus of the former Soviet Union. The present-day conflict has…
Cyprus — August 1974: “It was a blind shot that got the Ambassador”
On August 19th, 1974, recently appointed Ambassador to Cyprus, Rodger Davies, was shot dead during a Greek Cypriot protest outside…
Cain and Abel: Splitting Up North and South Korea
With the end of World War II in August 1945, there was still no consensus on Korea’s fate among Allied…
Zimbabwe — The Death of a Nation
On April 18th, 1980, Southern Rhodesia, the richest nation in Africa, officially gained independence from the United Kingdom and established…
An American Diplomat in Vichy France
Shortly after Nazi Germany invaded France in May 1940, the French government surrendered and signed the Second Armistice. Under its…
The Nazis Take Paris
After German troops invaded Poland in September 1939, Britain and France declared war on Nazi Germany. Despite this, there were no…
El Tanquetazo — Chile’s Coup That Wasn’t
In the early 70’s, Chile was in a state of political unrest— its socialist president Salvador Allende and largely conservative…
“It was something out of a B movie” — The 1980 Coup in Bolivia
Social unrest, political fragmentation, drug trafficking, and violence all characterized the late 70’s in Bolivia. All of the major parties…
A Completely Lawless Place – Beirut and the Assassination of Ambassador Meloy and Robert Waring
The Lebanese Civil War was a 15-year conflict that took the lives of more than 130,000 people. Throughout the early…
The Art of Protocol
Understanding the rules of protocol is essential to conducting diplomacy, as any diplomat would attest. Everything from knowing how to…