In September of 1959, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev visited the United States on an unprecedented goodwill trip spanning several days,…
Khrushchev Visits America – A Cold War Comedy of Errors, Act I
Amid the descent of the Iron Curtain, the Bay of Pigs Invasion, and the conflict in Vietnam lies one of…
Microwaving Embassy Moscow — Another Perspective
ADST’s post on Microwaving Embassy Moscow brought back a flood of memories to James Schumaker, who served most of his…
A Cold End to the Prague Spring
In 1968, growing opposition to the failing sociopolitical and economic policies of hard-line Communist regime in Czechoslovakia, led by Antonín…
The Suez Crisis — And A Different Side of Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser was one of the most influential modern-day leaders in the Middle East. As part of the Free…
Combating Blatant Racism during an Evacuation from Liberia
The process of evacuating a country is filled with unexpected challenges. Many of these are logistical, while others include safety…
As If Getting a Venereal Disease Weren’t Bad Enough…
Chas Freeman had an extraordinary career in the Foreign Service. He accomplished the unparalleled feat of becoming nearly bilingual in…
Being Gay in the Foreign Service
Public perception of gay rights, including the right to marry and to serve in the military, has undergone a sea…
A Book you can Swear By: Becoming Ambassador in the Most Unusual of Circumstances
Traditionally, U.S. government officials put their hand on the Bible for their swearing-in. In recent years, some have used alternatives,…
The Headache That Is the Fourth of July Party
The Fourth of July is a celebration of the United States’ independence. It is a day of family, friends, food,…