To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the American Diplomacy Journal, a panel of distinguished former diplomats discussed ways in which diplomacy benefits Americans. (Top row: Amb Charles Ray, Amb Lino Gutierrez. Amb Piper Campbell. 2nd row: Amb Robert Pearson, Prof Mary Thompson-Jones)
Celebrating American Diplomacy by Senator Chris Van Hollen
Commentary
Colin Powell’s Legacy by W. Robert Pearson
Transforming Cambodia’s Killing Fields into Farm Fields: American Diplomacy and Combatting Genocide by Kenneth Quinn
American Leadership and a Global Offensive Against COVID by John Blaney and Christopher Datta
Mentoring Partnership Aims to Boost Diversity at State Department by Tom Brannan
Eyewitness
William Rockhill, The Man Who Shaped China Policy a Century Ago by Peter Bridges
A Soviet Diplomat’s Memories of Beijing 1973-1975 translated by Simon Schuchat
My British Exequatur, “By Her Majesty’s Command” by Jonathan Rickert
Harnessing Halloween for Diversity in Sweden by Beatrice Camp
ADST Moments in Diplomatic History
In 1975, Embassy Saigon staff managed to help thousands of Vietnamese civilians escape, in what was one of the largest evacuations in history.
National Archives
More records of the Department of State have been digitized and are now available online through the National Archives Catalog.
Book Reviews
The Enduring Struggle: The History of the US Agency for International Development and America’s Transformation on the World by John Norris, reviewed by Desaix Myers
Why Nation-Building Matters: Political Consolidation, Building Security Forces, and Economic Development in Failed and Fragile States by Keith W. Mines, reviewed by Renee M Earle
From Sheikhs to Sultanism: Statecraft and Authority in Saudi Arabia and the UAE by Christopher M. Davidson, reviewed by Albadr Alshateri
Books of Interest
Links
What We Need to Learn: Lessons from Twenty Years of Afghanistan Reconstruction
https://www.sigar.mil/pdf/lessonslearned/SIGAR-21-46-LL.pdf
Upgrading U.S. public diplomacy: A new approach for the age of memes and disinformation
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/issue-brief/upgrading-us-public-diplomacy/
U.S.-Iran Relations: 40 Years of Antagonism, Distrust, and Frustration
https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/iran/2021-09-20/us-iran-relations-40-years-antagonism-distrust-and-frustration?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=bb17ee0c-9874-4a88-8b39-0f2f527e826f
Engagement Revisited: Progress Made and Lessons Learned from the US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue
https://www.ncafp.org/new-report-us-china-strategic-economic-dialogues/
In Memoriam
Colin Powell served as Secretary of State 2001-2005; a four-star general, he also held positions as National Security Advisor and Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Powell
George S. Vest helped lay the groundwork for the Helsinki accords with the Soviet Union in the 1970s and later served as Director General of the Foreign Service
https://www.adst.org/OH%20TOCs/Vest,%20George%20S%20.toc.pdf
Robert S. Service served as Ambassador to Paraguay and as a diplomat in Nicaragua, Brazil, Mexio, Chile, Spain, and Argentina.
https://www.adst.org/OH%20TOCs/Service,%20Robert%20E.toc.pdf
Patricia McMahon Hawkins began her career with the U.S. Information Agency, later serving as ambassador to Togo after assignments in France, Zaire, Burkina Faso, Columbia, the Ivory Coast, and the Dominican Republic.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patricia_McMahon_Hawkins