American diplomats and their families abroad become accustomed to living through exciting or harrowing events; but occasionally their lives provide…
Fighting Where the “Wango-Wango Bird Couldn’t Get”—U.S. Diplomats and the Ecuador-Peru Boundary Dispute
In 1895, the United States intervened in a long-standing border dispute between Great Britain and Venezuela, forcing its resolution—and forcing…
One for All and All for One: The Conception and Early Development of NATO
During his opening remarks at the Munich Security Conference in February 2020, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg declared that “[I]n…
The Road to Reunification: Remembering the Reintegration of East and West Germany
The road to German reunification was long, turbulent, and beset with political obstacles. Despite the challenges, German reunification represents a…
Let There be Productivity—U.S. Aid Efforts in Europe and India
The world bore witness to an unprecedented degree of violence and destruction in the wake of the Second World War.…
A Diplomat’s Wife in Showa Japan
1930s Japan—a time of emperors, tension in the Pacific, and mysterious unspoken social rules of the Showa Era. When Dorothy…
At the Negotiating Table for SALT
U.S.-Soviet relations during the Cold War were marked by increasing tension. Emerging from WWII as the two strongest countries, competition…
A Precursor to the Downfall: Living Through Soviet Perestroika and Glasnost
The international community hoped great changes would come to the Soviet Union after Mikhail Gorbachev came to power in March…
An Honest Broker: Remembering Brent Scowcroft
Brent Scowcroft was an Air Force lieutenant turned two-time United States National Security Advisor who served under Presidents Gerald Ford…
Fiscal Relief in a Tumultuous Time—The Paris Club in the Nineties
At the end of World War II, Argentina was entrenched in debt and on the verge of defaulting to its…