John Service, the son of missionaries who grew up in China, was one of the Department’s “China hands,” an expert…
The Civil War in China, Part II –The Dixie Mission and Losing China
After attempting to convince Washington that a civil war in China was imminent and that the Communists would be the…
The Civil War in China, Part I – The Bureaucratic Fight in Washington
Oftentimes the greatest foreign policy struggles are not with the host government but rather with the government bureaucracy back home.…
Come Spy with Me: Cold War Espionage Against China
Intelligence services spend a great deal of time trying to recruit new assets, spies who have access to sensitive information…
Nixon Goes to China
“There is no place on this small planet for a billion of its potentially most able people to live in…
China Confidential
Back to Diplomats and Diplomacy China Confidential: American Diplomats and Sino-American Relations, 1945–1996 “An insider’s view of how American policy…
China Boys
Back to Diplomats and Diplomacy China Boys: How U.S. Relations with the PRC Began and Grew “Nick Platt, a key…
A Hostage in Communist China, 1948-49
As Mao Zedong’s People’s Liberation Army swept through China during the Civil War against the Nationalists in 1948 and 1949, it took…
Frank Wisner
MY FOREIGN SERVICE ROLE MODEL- – AMBASSADOR FRANK WISNER by Kenneth M Quinn My wartime experience as a Foreign Service…
Distinguished Service: Lydia Chapin Kirk, Partner in Diplomacy, 1896-1984
An intimate glimpse into life in the diplomatic corps, recalling pre-World War II London, Moscow during the early days of…