In a world as technologically advanced and reliant as ours, one would expect adaptation to be a staple component of…
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…
The Foreign Service at War (Part 2): Rice, Roads, and Winning Hearts and Minds
“Winning hearts and minds” is at the very core of diplomacy. Sometimes that takes place in an embassy or a…
A Growing Community: The Early Days of EU Enlargement
When people think of the European Union (EU), they think of Brexit. They think of the rise of nationalism and…
Surviving the Storm—Turkey’s Labor Movements Under a Junta
In the late 1970s, Turkey faced intense political fragmentation as its parties each struggled for a majority; due to lack…
Pinochet’s Trip to London: How the Arrest of the Chilean Dictator Inspired Unprecedented Global Transparency
In October 1998, the British government arrested former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet at the London Bridge hospital, where he was…
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…
Only the Good Die Young—Attending Bobby Kennedy’s Funeral
Nineteen sixty-eight was one of the most chaotic years in American history. As the unpopular Vietnam War raged on, protests…
Finding Resilience in the Bombing of the Al Rasheed: Beth Payne in Iraq
Life in the Foreign Service extends far beyond the office, following its officers into all realms of existence abroad, at…
Do You Hear the People Sing?—Democratic Promotion in Haiti, Mozambique, and Iraq
E Pluribus Unum. The average American will unwittingly encounter these very words on a daily basis and hardly give them…