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The Foreign Service Journal covers foreign affairs from an insider's perspective. Articles range from hot topics in global economics and politics to chronicling the development of American foreign policy. The Journal keeps readers informed about who's who and what's what in foreign affairs in Washington as well as features how-tos on living overseas as a foreign affairs professional. Contributors include Foreign Service officers, academics from leading international relations programs and diplomatic correspondents from major newspapers and magazines.
In the Journal's December issue, six analysts review the eight years of Clinton administration foreign policy, each writer focusing on a different aspect of international relations.Focus on the Clinton Record From the Council on Foreign Relations, Walter Russell Mead and E. Benjamin Skinner grade Clinton as "Barely Passing: the C+ President." Despite much bumbling along the way, the strong U.S. economy enabled the administration to maintain U.S. power and prestige, the authors say. Journalist Bob Deans writes, in "Humanitarian Intervention, Clinton-Style," that the greatest legacy of the administration may well be a greater U.S. willingness to intervene abroad in pursuit of humanitarian goals. Bill Nichols looks at one aspect of foreign policy in "Clinton to Africa: I Care--Really." The author notes that despite two presidential visits and his ability to establish rapport with African leaders and people, Clinton actually changed U.S. involvement with the continent very little. "Did the Clinton Team 'Lose Russia'?" asks Charles William Maynes, and explains why he believes the answer is no. Despite some divergence in the two nations' foreign policies, Maynes observes that the U.S. has helped to foster positive grassroots changes in Russia. President Clinton had to conduct his foreign policy while overcoming frequent sniping from experts in the think tanks, universities and journals, explains Leon V. Sigal. Despite the president's initial lack of expertise, on most matters, Sigal declares, "Clinton Was Right, the Foreign Policy Establishment was Wrong." Clinton came into office hoping to pursue a low-cost, low-involvement foreign policy. But, says Pulitzer Prize-winning correspondent Roy Gutman, in his article "Clinton, Albright and the Learning Curve," the administration was forced into a more activist role. On other topics: AP correspondent George Gedda tracks the latest flare-up of rhetoric and reality concerning security problems within the State Department in "(In)Security at State." FSO Susan Stevenson explores how strange life can be when one tries both to keep one's family together and to advance one's State Department career. The upshot: "Why I'm Paying $250,000 to Keep My Job." In our December supplement on schools, Foreign Service spouse Pat Olsen's article, "Homeschooling FS Kids? It Worked for Us" gives many useful tips on how to do it. She also describes the positives and negatives of trying to homeschool your children when you are stationed at a remote post.
When the child of an American citizen is taken overseas (typically by the other parent) the left-behind parent may well feel anguish and anger, and often expects the U.S. government to help bring that child back. Our focus for November's Journal looks at what the U.S. government is doing and should be doing in these situations.In "Abducted Children: Should State Do More?" , diplomatic correspondent George Gedda explores why American parents may feel abandoned by the U.S. government. Though the State Department Bureau of Consular Affairs has the responsibility to help those parents, the attention and clout of the U.S. government have seldom been brought to bear. State Department children's issues specialist Barbara J. Greig presents the other side of the picture in "What We're Doing Now About Child Abduction." State's Office of Children's Issues has greatly strengthened its work in recent years, though parents and the media seem slow to recognize that improvement. On other themes: Should the United States build a national defense against ballistic missiles? Joseph Cirincione tries "Making Sense of Missile Defense," by examining the military, diplomatic and arms control aspects of that thorny question. There's diplomacy, and then there's "Diplomacy"--the board game FSOs and other gamers have been playing since the 1950s. Caroline Benner explores the origins of the game, who plays it, and what can be learned "When Diplomacy is Fun and Games."
"FSOs, In Their Own Write" (apologies to John Lennon) is a the first appearance of what is planned as a new feature in the Journal--a roundup describing books written recently by Foreign Service authors. Check out these books, which range from scholarly works on international affairs to how-to books to science fiction. Edited by Steven A. Honley.
The October Journal looks at a concept which is central to the work of the Foreign Service, but which is rarely discussed: loyalty. In the modern world, people often have complex, shifting loyalties--to family, professions, ethnic groups and ideologies, as well as to their nation-state. Articles in this issue shed light on how we form loyalties, how we reconcile conflicting loyalties, and the changing nature of national loyalty in a globalizing world.Yossi Shain examines the loyalties and politics of ethnically identified Americans in "For Ethnic Americans, The Old Country Calls." He finds that Greek-Americans and African-Americans (for example) not only act as advocates for their ancestral homelands; they also export American values back to those countries. A striking but little-noticed change on the loyalty landscape is the growing acceptance of dual nationality as a normal and unremarkable phenomenon. Peter J. Spiro traces this change in our political culture in "Multinationals Among Us: The Rise of Dual Citizenship." There was a time, not so long ago, when the problem of Americans working for the U.S. government and spying for or otherwise helping the Soviet Union was at the top of the national agenda. Historian Maurice Isserman examines the people who spied and what motivated them in "Disloyalty as a Principle: Why Communists Spied." On other topics:
U.S. law now allows the victims of terrorists to sue the governments that sponsored the terror in U.S. courts. George Gedda considers how that affects the conduct of U.S. foreign policy in "When Victims Sue Terrorists."
Our September Journal focuses on the 2000 U.S. elections. In order to enliven our coverage of a presidential race that was not extraordinarily exciting in itself, we decided to go abroad. That is, we invited five journalists who are covering American politics for foreign media to give us their perspective -- and the views of people in their home countries -- on the U.S. candidates and campaigns. CBC Washington correspondent David Halton gives the view from Canada in "Vive La Difference!" He notes that the Canadian government has come surprisingly close to endorse Gore, and explains why. On the other hand, Nikkei's chief Washington correspondent Tsuyoshi Sunohara observes that Japan and other Asian countries are suffering from a bad case of "Clinton fatigue." His conclusion: "East Asia: Tilting Toward Bush." From Hamburg, Die Zeit's Andrea Bohm notes that German's are officially appalled but are also amused by and envious of the American political campaign circus. Brazilian reporter Paulo Sotero writes that Latin Americans know that their region is a total non-issue in the U.S. campaign. Still they like the way that President Clinton really listened to them and are "Sorry to See Clinton Leave." "From Egypt With Love/Hate" is a good way to describe Thomas Gorguissian's take on his country's views of the American election season. Still, notes the journalist for the independent newspaper Al Wafd, Egyptians are always optimistic that the next election will bring a more balanced U.S. policy in the Middle East.
On non-electoral matters, the September issue includes "Hacktivism: A Threat to Diplomacy" by Georgetown computer sciences expert Dorothy Denning. The Internet and other computer systems are increasingly becoming tools in foreign policy disputes, she observes, giving some startling examples.
The July-August Foreign Service Journal is our annual summer fiction issue. In it, you'll find six short stories set overseas -- tales of culture clash, intrigue, and the day-to-day insanity of trying to represent American interests abroad. "The Siege" by James F. O'Callaghan: American Foreign Service officers hunker down in their compound and await the wily aggressors -- from the Department of State. "Caviar and Kurds" by Henry Precht: A young FSO in Iran becomes a pawn in the hands of the Shah's apparatus of repression. "When in Rome, Wear Running Shoes" by Barbara Neu: Becoming friends with two sophisticated Romans seemed like the most exciting thing in the world--until reality broke in. "The Orchard" by Amanda Holmes: The Falklands/Malvinas war produces a deep sense of dislocation in an Anglo-Argentine nurse who cares for wounded Argentine soldiers. "Down the Gazebo Road" by Steven Wangsness: What could go wrong at a simple embassy Fourth of July party? And whose idea was it to have an elephant and a donkey at the festivity? "A Nicaraguan Fish Story" by Nancy J. Nelson: It started with a simple phone call from an American in Baltimore: Do you think it's a good idea to invest in a Nicaraguan fishing business? And back in the real world, the issue includes these articles: Ambassador Prudence Bushnell describes how community was essential in dealing with the aftermath of the U.S. embassy bombing of August 1998 in "After Nairobi: Recovering from Terror." In "The Genetically Engineered Secretary of State," Lincoln P. Bloomfield describes what it was like to work under the brilliant, egotistical, and extremely well-bred John Foster Dulles. What makes a hardship post difficult? Lottie Erickson discusses the day-to-day trials in "The Post of Living Dangerously." The Journal's June issue examines the concern of the physical security of embassies and overseas posts. It is, understandably, of paramount concern to members of the U.S. Foreign Service, and we look at it from several different angles. In "The Identity Crisis of the American Embassy," historian and policy analyst Jane C. Loeffler looks at the many demands made on American posts abroad (security, attractiveness, efficiency, accessibility). The question is, how to fulfill all those needs on a limited budget? Sen. Rod Grams, R-Minn., makes a strong case that the conventional State Department wisdom about embassy security is wrong in his article, "Vulnerable Embassies? Don't Blame Congress." The importance of embassy security became terribly clear on Aug. 7, 1998, when two U.S. embassies in East Africa were bombed. Lucien Vandenbroucke tells what it was like to be there in "Eyewitness to Terror: Nairobi's Day of Infamy." Former Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security Robert E. Lamb describes the department's efforts to make its embassies safer in "Have We Inmanized Yet?" On other topics: David Newsom is being honored with AFSA's Award for Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy on June 22. In "The FSO in the Eye of the Storm," Steven Alan Honley tells why that honor is so well deserved. FS employee Roger Johnson tells a tale of woe and anger in his opinion piece, "The Personnel Horror Show." Johnson cites many cases in arguing that the concept of customer service has yet to reach the State Department's Bureau of Personnel.
And as the lead article in our Schools Supplement for June, Ani Stoyanova surveys educational options for young people who have a predilection for the performing arts in "So Your Kid is An Aspiring Artiste?"
The May issue of the Journal focuses on Arab-American connections of several kinds: the history of Arab immigration to the U.S., how Americans view the Arab world and Americans of Arab ancestry, and the ways in which Arab Americans organize around political issues. Arab and Muslim Americans, after more than 100 years in the United States, are still seeking ways to get political clout. Richard Curtiss describes that quest in "Out of the Middle East: Forgotten Immigrants." Elizabeth Warnock Fernea observes that feminists in Muslim countries are discovering their roots in Islam, rather than in imitating Western women's movements. Her article: "Islamic Feminism Finds a Different Voice." Arab-American activist James J. Zogby poses the question, "Are Arabs 'People Like Us'?" He observes that because of stereotypes prevalent in American popular culture and news coverage, many Americans tend not to sympathetize with Arab concerns. On other topics: Veteran diplomat Herman J. "Hank" Cohen looks back on a rare moment in U.S.foreign policy in "Waging Peace in Africa." During the Bush administration, the end of the Cold War gave the U.S. the opportunity to create a new peace-oriented policy in Africa--an opportunity the author seized with enthusiasm.
The April Journal commemorates the 25th anniversary of the fall of Saigon and the end of the U.S. war in Vietnam. We examine in particular the role of the Foreign Service in Vietnam, and how the controversy surrounding the war changed the Foreign Service.In "Hearts and Minds: USAID in Vietnam," author Marc Leepson tells a story that has often been forgotten--the key role AID workers played in carrying out the U.S. mission in that wartorn nation. John Marks recalls his personal metamorphosis from Vietnam War supporter to State Department dove to whistle-blowing anti-war activist, in his article "From Diplomat to Dissident." "Advise and Dissent: The FSO as Protester" describes the impact of the war on the internal workings of the State Department. As David Jones tells it, FSO protests may not have played a big role in ending the war, but they did lead to creation of the Open Forum and the Dissent Channel. Former FSO Richard Thompson was on one of the last U.S. helicopters out of Vietnam. His article, "Leaving Saigon: The Last Day" takes us through that harrowing experience. On other themes: J. Chapman Chester was an FSO in Yugoslavia in the 1960s. His piece, "Cracks in Croatia," describes how, even during the Communist period of enforced unity and solidarity, nationalist tensions were already visible. A Speaking Out column by Niels Marquardt, who works on entry-level personnel issues in the State Department, takes issue with critics who have written that State does not look out for the interests of junior officers. "Why They Stay In" argues that conditions for most JOs are good and are getting better. Our "Housing Resource Directory" is a useful chart of information on extended-stay hotels and property-management firms in the Washington area.
Our March issue dredges up a famous concept from American history and political science--namely, American exceptionalism--the idea held by many Americans over the centuries that the U.S. is unique and has a special role to play in the world. Our focus articles look at how that concept plays out in the realm of foreign policy.In Pax Americana: The Impossible Dream, Charles William Maynes explains that the U.S. has everything it needs to be a world hegemon--except the will to be one. Historian Walter LaFeber looks at the many faces of exceptionalism--from the Monroe Doctrine to the present day-- in American Exceptionalism as Foreign Policy. The United States was a long-time advocate of an International Criminal Court to try war crimes, but somehow wound up as odd man out when the treaty was signed. Yale Professor Ruth Wedgwood analyzes a U.S. diplomatic mess in Courting Disaster. And on other topics: Kurt Jacobsen looks at the prospects for peace in Europe's longest-running guerrilla war in Guarded Pessimism in Northern Ireland. In Bonn Voyage: the Leavetaking, Richard Gilbert examines the
emotional side of moving the U.S. embassy in Germany from Bonn to
Berlin.
The focus for the February issue of the Journal is the rising importance of Europe, Euro-American relations and the new Euro currency.In The Euro Vs. the Dollar: Should We Care? economist Barry Eichengreen looks at how the new European currency will make a real difference--not this year, not next year, but eventually. Former diplomat Michael Calingaert dissects some myths about Europe and America in Transatlantic Economic Relations: A Ten- Point Guide. He points out that while trade disputes capture headlines, economic cooperation and interpenetration are the real story. "Who lost Yugoslavia?" is the kind of question Americans like to ask, while pointing an accusing finger at their European allies. EU diplomat Fraser Cameron offers quite a different perspective in his article, Europe, Yugoslavia and the Blame Game. In other areas, this issue of the Journal features: Winners of the Contest of the Century, in which we pick the best and worst diplomatic moves of the 20th century. How to Write Foreign Service Fiction --a guide for aspiring authors from published novelist and former FSO Diana Deverell. Shipping Bibles to Afghanistan by R.T. Davies: When an American with missionary fervor violates Islamic law, it's useful to have an ambassador who can quote Scripture. AP diplomatic correspondent tracks the revival of U.S.-Philippine
military cooperation in MacArthur, We Are Back.
The January issue of the Journal, the first issue of the new millennium, looks, appropriately enough, at some big issues.Carroll Doherty, a seasoned analyst of Washington politics, examines the U.S. presidential campaign and the leading candidates in Campaign 2000: Does Foreign Policy Count?, the issue's cover story. In In Jubilee for Third World Debt, conservative analyst Brett D. Schaefer offers a "tough love" proposal for the highly indebted poor countries of the world: First, forgive their debt; then shut the lending window for good. Ralph Buultjens goes for the big picture in his essay, Breaking The Cycle Of The 20Th Century. Buultjens notes that the century just ended has been racked by three cycles of war and peace -- World War I, World War II and the Cold War -- and he considers how this dreadful cycle can be avoided in the century to come. Kissinger and Angola: Setting the Record Straight, by former Assistant Secretary of State Nathaniel Davis, looks back at a controversial chapter of the Cold War. Davis finds that Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, in a recently published memoir, blames everyone but himself for a failed "covert" U.S. intervention in Africa.
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