A church, a mosque, a museum, and then a mosque again; Istanbul’s Hagia Sofia reflects Turkiye’s tumultuous history.
Commentary
Turkiye’s First 100 Years by W. Robert Pearson
PEPFAR and the Future of US Responses to International Medical Emergencies by Alisha Smith-Arthur
Ending Wars: When Does Diplomacy Have a Role? by Raymond F. Smith
Reconciling with a Former Enemy: Post-War Diplomacy between the US and Vietnam by Justin Ahn
Eyewitness
I Didn’t Join the French Foreign Legion, but It Helped Rescue Me in Chad by Jim Bullington
The Tarnished Gold of the Amazon Women: Anita Ekberg on Trinidad by Johnathan Rickert
From Our Archives
Do We Really Want Turkey as a NATO Ally by retired Foreign Service Officer Sol Schindler, 2015.
In the wake of the current coups in Africa, we recommend Mark Wentling’s look at core issues facing African nations in their struggle to establish functioning democracies.
Democracy in Africa is like a Flashlight Without Batteries by retired USAID Foreign Service Officer, Mark Wentling, 2022.
As conflict in the Middle East is sadly current, Ralph Bunche’s approach to diplomacy there can be instructive. https://americandiplomacy.web.unc.edu/2020/02/ralph-j-bunche-u-n-mediator-and-nobel-peace-prize-laureate/, by Renee Earle, 2000.
Few, if any, Foreign Service officers have had as much direct experience in Gaza as Thomas McAndrew, author of the article below. It offers his on the ground observations of the rise of Hamas to leadership in Gaza. It should be read as worthwhile background to the current war, but no condonation of Hamas terrorism should be inferred. https://americandiplomacy.web.unc.edu/2007/09/reminiscences-from-gaza-1981-1985/ by retired Foreign Service Officer, Thomas McAndrew, 2007.
ADST Moments in Diplomatic History
The link below is from John Gunderson’s oral history at ADST and recounts his experiences as consul general during the period leading to Ukrainian independence.
In this link, Donald Kursch, who was minister counselor for economic affairs and later deputy chief of mission in Bonn, recalls what it was like to deal with the German government in the immediate aftermath of reunification.
Links
A dispassionate, informed analysis of the deterioration of the US-Russian relationship over the past two decades.
https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/us-russia-putin-relations-nato/
The author sees a renewed Global South that focusses on national interests rather than on ideological affinities.
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/world/return-global-south-critique-western-power
In Memoriam: Ambassador Anthony “Tony” Quainton
Book Reviews
The American Imperative: Reclaiming Global Leadership through Soft Power Reviewed by Logan M. Williams
Getting Russia Right Reviewed by Louis Sell
Books of Interest
Sparks
By Ian Johnson
The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism
By Martin Wolf
Waiting to Be Arrested at Night By Tahir Hamut Izgil
Autocracy Rising
By Javier Corrales
Discriminatory Clubs By Christina L. Davis
Five Times Faster
By Simon Sharpe