American Diplomat

With so much disinformation flying around, Senator Chris Van Hollen sets the record straight and takes down Secretary Rubio at the same time.

From wartime to prosperity, Ambassador Ted Osius shares his personal experience of change in US/Vietnam relations since the end of the war 50 years ago. Best question: Why is Amb. Osius optimistic, even in today's trade climate?   Hint: Nothing is Impossible, the title of both Amb. Osius's book and his previous episode with us. For bonus fun, enjoy the video of Vietnamese female rap artist Suboi!

How did a utopian vision for society lead to one of the bloodiest regimes in history, Cambodia's Khmer Rouge? Why does it matter today? Was it mediocrity? Arrogance? Or is it just easier to seize power than it is to govern? Prof. Andrew Mertha of Johns Hopkins' School of International Studies, whose new book Bad Lieutenants – out today, lays it out for us.

Acting Undersecretary for Management, Ambassador Tibor Nagy, had a front row seat to the twenty-something DOGE Musketeers and their slash and burn approach to “re-organizing” venerable national security infrastructure. Tibor reflects on that and opines on whether the worst is over.

Overseas, mugged, sick, arrested, who are you going to call and will there be anyone to answer? Tom Yazgerdi, the President of AFSA, the State Department labor union, fears what budget cuts will mean for traveling Americans.

Is it simply mutual self-interest or is it Bukele's head start on the authoritarian's handbook?  Both?  AmDip's own Pete Romero breaks it down, with feeling!

Former US Ambassador to South Korea Kathleen Stephens answers the question: How was martial law was defeated within hours and the would-be dictator impeached?  Hint: The citizens, and the soldiers(!) said no.  Putting up barricades with sofas and chairs, and grabbing a gun from a soldier, one woman asked, "Aren't you ashamed of yourself?"  Even the president accepted the rules set forth in the constitution.  But why?   For another one of Amb. Stephens's episodes with us, click here.  Vive la republique!

US colleges and universities are a battleground for First Amendment rights. Each side of the political spectrum wants to limit these rights for the other side. Now the Trump Administration has weaponized these issues by cutting grants and detaining students. Is there a neutral path forward? ASU honors student Sami Al-Asady breaks it down for us.

Trump has led a relentless attack on Diversity Equity and Inclusion, saying it undermines a meritocracy. Former State DEI chief Ambassador Gina Abercrombie Winstanley asserts that equity and inclusion are simply effective management tools for molding smart teams. You be the judge.

And why does it matter how regular South Africans feel about US behavior toward their country?  Ambassador Charlie Ray untangles the powerful dynamics within South Africa domestically and vis-a-vis the United States, and helps us understand what this means for our present and future.  Plus:  It's up to us to create our world and it all starts with voting.  Always vote!

What happens when the US washes its hands of its international obligations?  Ambassador Mike Polt, Co-Founder of ASU's Leadership, Diplomacy and National Security Lab, views our president as our chief diplomat and calls the Zelensky-Trump Oval Office meeting a pivotal moment.  We have humiliated the rest of the world, including our friends.  Now what?

A foreign policy grandmaster strategist? Or is our president guided simply by whim and spite, without a cohesive plan? Pete and Laura break it down. You be the judge.

Tony Wayne, former Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs and US Ambassador to Mexico, pulls apart the strands.  First, what is an import?  How many times would you guess a raw material or auto part crosses a Canadian or Mexican border in the process of making and assembling a car?  4?  5? Each crossing carries a 25% tariff.  That's a lot of crossings!  And a whole lot of tariffs!  And the point?  To make our neighbors tougher on smuggling into the US things we don't want such as fentanyl.  But the drug trade runs two ways, depending largely on American-made guns that cross into Mexico.  All three countries must work together or everyone loses.  And what's this about an external revenue service?

Diplomat and Author Edward Fishman reveals how globalization is giving way to zero-sum self-interest. Can we win the emerging economic warfare?  Listen, and read his new book Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare.  

Peace in the Middle East starts in Gaza and the West Bank.  But beautiful parks and fountains and casinos…the Riviera of the Middle East, a beautiful vacation spot in what is now rubble?  And somehow the US would own it.  But what about all those Gazans, walking home along a highway, carrying all of their belongings, some with donkeys, on their way back to rubble.  Enter USAID.  In asymmetric warfare nothing, absolutely nothing, can defeat hearts and minds, and no one can impact those more effectively than USAID, at a minute financial cost.  And this is how you neutralize the seduction of bad actors.

How many "Mar-a-" conquests will there be?  US Ambassador (ret) to Panama John Feeley breaks it all down, with a quick review of the relevant past, and substantive, yet richly candid view of Trump's foray into the Canal Zone today.  Get smart on what is true and what is not true at all.  

The Arctic is a serious US national security issue. NATO, particularly Denmark, agree and have offered significant resources to better secure the area from China and Russia.  Will Trump accept these or hold out for Mar-a-Greenland?  Can we divide the policy rhetoric from the policy outcomes?  Luke Coffey, former adviser to the British defense minister and prior to that a US service member, now a fellow at the Hudson Institute, knows his brief!  Bonus: Who was Eric the Red?

Was Trump's big showdown with President Petro of Colombia a show of might and power, or was there another reality behind the smoke and mirrors?  Pete has a thing or two to say about optics, policy and human lives, from the standpoint of the practice of diplomacy.

Ambassador (and ASU professor) Ed O'Donnell offers a close look at the economic impacts of Trump's foreign policies "Tariff is a beautiful word”, “The Chinese are going to take over the Panama Canal!” and "Drill, baby, drill."  What's the reality beneath the bombast, globally and in American households?

Predictive data help make us aware of conflicts and atrocities we can anticipate.  Keith Noble, Director of the Office of Advanced Analytics in State's Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, shares his work with State's Academic Centers for Conflict Anticipation and Prevention. How do students, undergraduates and graduates, work with State to inform solid policy?  How can a young, passionate, smart person get involved?  Go get ‘em, tiger!  Uncle Sam needs you.

Welcome to 2025 from AmDip!  Amb. Patrick Theros unpacks Syria for us, from the Halcyon 1970s of mini-skirts and old cars on the streets, to the chaos of the present day.  What was the West's role in Syria's changes, and what should the US do now? 

Ambassador Dick Hoagland, having served many years in Russia and former Soviet republics, has had ample opportunity to consider the high-stakes drinking game of vodka diplomacy. Bottoms up and happy New Year!  

Pete and Laura look back on their favorite episodes of the past year, covering cybercrime, space diplomacy and gangsterism among others.  And what's to come in the new administration?  Borders north and south, changes in the Middle East, and Ukraine.  We expect challenges with adversaries, but more importantly, how will the new administration engage our friends?  

Ambassador Luis Arreaga, Senior Advisor at the Partnership for Central America, brings companies such as Meta, Mastercard, Microsoft, together with the World Bank, NGOs and civil society organizations to address one of the root causes of immigration: lack of economic opportunity.  The result speak for themselves: 90,000 jobs. 

Ambassador Deborah McCarthy unpacks the benefits to the global community, particularly the American public, of the recently concluded UN Convention on Cybercrime.  The mission: to better protect our children from predators and our data from thieves.

Got a leak? Call a plumber. Want security and prosperity for you and the family, call a diplomat. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma and Ambassador Mike Polt (Arizona State University) speak to gearing up the career Foreign Service to meet intensifying global challenges and explain why talent, experience and expertise matter more than ever.  Listen and learn, also, what Little League has to do with diplomacy.

“I feel wonderful!”  Hosay Erfani, who appeared on our show as the Taliban took over (They Will Cut Our Heads, Of course, And What of Our Friend Toobah), had a harrowing escape from the deadly regime.  Now in the US for two years, she is an unbelievable young woman, turning adversity into opportunity, opportunity into success.  Here is her tale.  Bravo, Hosay!   And happy Thanksgiving, all.  Cheers!

Nadya Bliss, the executive director of ASU's Global Security Initiative, helps us understand disinformation from the ground up.  What is the algorithmification of information and what are the technological incentives for its distribution?  When is AI just fine, when is it a problem, how do we detect it and what should we do?  What is the power of diplomats working together with technologists to keep us safe?

We all recognize the intractability and tragedy of the Arab/Israeli conflict but what are the dynamics of Iran's proxy forces, separately fighting Israel, working together?  What is each of their relationship with Iran?  And what will be the Trump impact?  Ambassadors Jeffrey Feltman and Jake Walles, who spent decades in the Middle East, share stories.

Campaign promises - repatriating the undocumented, Mexico's role in securing the border, tariff quid pro quos and NATO's role in a Russian/Ukraine peace - will require expert diplomacy.  Will the new administration be up to it?  Secretary Tom Shannon, who led State in the first Trump administration, is here to tell us what Trump's early days will look like.

Oh, the stress of the election!  We're feeling the strain!  So we thought we could all use a little break.  Here's one of our earliest, most fun episodes.  Larry Dinger regales us with tales of tires on fire, pollution, trekking, and one of the most bizarre episodes in monarchy in the world.  Now Laura wants to join the Foreign Service and all of us want to go to Kathmandu.  

David Scheffer, our countrys' foremost diplomat on war crimes, reveals the unstoppable forces seeking justice.  The bad get badder and the good get better.  

An inspirational story of personal redlines and resilience that has stuck with us:  Ambassador John Feeley left a beloved job as US Ambassador to Panama, at the pinnacle of his career. Why?  He could in good conscience act as the personal representative of a particular US President.  John Feeley shares candidly the painful but surmountable experience of depression and recovery upon departure from the Foreign Service. May we all share as generously as our friend John. There is always hope.

Soviet occupation of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania ended 30 years ago but to many, it could have been yesterday.  How secure are these states, and what will happen to them if Ukraine falls?  Is there any change in security policy, in case of a Trump victory in the US? 

Out with the old, in with the new?  Will Claudia Sheinbaum, new (and first female) President of Mexico, allow the departing leader AMLO to control her presidency, as designated successors of autocrats often do, or will she govern on her own terms?  What will happen with all of those door-to-door check giveaways?  Sheinbaum does not tip her hand.  Amb. (Ret.) John Feeley guides us through Mexico's new frontier.  We watch with interest.

And what does Behghazi have to do with our withdrawal from Afghanistan, and why are people investigating our exit from that country on the third anniversary of the withdrawal, not, say, on the first or second anniversary?  Ambassador Dennis Jett has a thing or two to say about this. 

Prominent Brazilian journalist Cecilia Tornaghi shares the major struggle between Elon Musk and Brazilian Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, after the judge shut down X.  The episode begs the question: Since these platforms have become a public service, do they bear responsibility for who uses them?  Who decides what is truth, disinformation, or that which is likely to incite?

Janessa Goldbeck, ex-Marine, CEO of Vet Voice Foundation and producer of the new film War Game, explains what a war game is and how it became the basis for this unusual and highly effective film.  What will happen if we experience another insurrection at the coming inauguration?  Why are vets and servicemembers special targets of foreign disinformation campaigns?  Join us and learn in depth what the Insurrection Act is, why it exists, and how powerful and potentially dangerous it is.  Now in theaters, streaming on September 27.  Go to https://wargamefilm.com for more info. 

FSO Chad Houghton takes us back to 2020 when John Kerry, the first Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, brought the US back into the Paris agreement. Quiz: Which is worse, methane or CO2? Also, what argument won people over diplomatically (hint – not the moral or scientific angle)? And how do we work with adversaries like China to cool things down? And why would a petrostate like the UAE host a global climate conference? Join us, and see also this month's Foreign Service Journal for more. 

David Thomas, Executive Director of ASU's Milo Space Science Institute, describes the global stability benefits of providing countries of the world access to space through education (what's it like to mine ice water on the shadow region of the moon?) and ridesharing (yes, ridesharing) to space. Prada is making space suits and Hilton is designing crew quarters. Milo fosters global opportunity to join the space economy and in so doing, fosters the creation of values-based laws and policies.  Prepare to be inspired.

Steve Herman, author of Behind the White House Curtain, is back to tell the tale of the time the Trump administration tried to seize editorial control of the Voice of America and turn it into a propaganda agency.  Why is it in our interests as Americans for VOA to remain an independent, credible source worldwide, even covering negative events in the US?  What are the risks to those, like Steve, who resisted the takeover?  See also a review of his book in June's Foreign Service Journal.  

The Maduro regime told breathtaking lies about voting tallies, but the opposition has proof.  What are diplomats doing to promote a democratic outcome?  Keith Mines, Vice President of the Latin America Program at the US Institute for Peace, explores the options and shares first-hand tales of similar instances in the region.  Over seven million Venezuelans have fled poverty and mass misery already.  What will happen if no one can help?

Journalist and FSO (you read that correctly!) Steve Herman's new book Behind the White House Curtain delves into the balance between, as Pete says, being the pitcher and the umpire at the same time.  Especially during the Trump White House, what was it like to be “the enemy of the people”?  Trump's priority was to feed his base red meat, was he really out of control?  Join us to hear Steve talk about his experience in this extraordinary dual role.

General Brook Leonard is back to focus on China as our competitor in space.  What is rivalry in space – economic, military, both?  And what can we learn from China's holistic approach to space?  The technological environment is rapidly changing and the stakes are very high.  We are not the leader.  How does diplomacy address this?  

Major General Brook Leonard joins us to parse “coopetition” in the 3rd space age.  With vital interests ranging from movement of money to food security, space technology is moving faster than rules and norms.  What are the red lines? There is no geographic separation in space as on earth, and no way to be sure what a communications satellite in space is actually doing.  Will global powers follow the law of the jungle or establish rules of the road?

NATO celebrated its 75th year anniversary last week. It doubled down on Ukraine support and the Alliance now sees Itself as the bulwark against growing anti-democratic regimes. Ambassador Kurt Volker, a Trump appointee, provides insight into what his former boss might do if re-elected.

Tricks, tricks, tricks.  General Robert Schmidle, expert in cognitive warfare, helps us understand that although this has gone on for centuries, what's different today is the scope and scale.  How do you fight it?  Bonus question:  What famous statesman said, “a lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on”?

Recently the indigenous of the Amazon have been gifted with Starlink, but to what effect? Years ago, Pete visited a similar community, botched up a boar hunt, drank the mystery drink chicha, and received upon his departure a marriage proposal, ambiguously addressed either to himself one of the other (finer?) young gringos.  Which is worse, Pete or the Internet?  Give us your thoughts on whether Starlink is a gift or curse for the Marubo via our socials or via voicemail on our website.

Years ago, Pete visited the Amazon and made friends with some very remotely located people.  His visit raised questions: Did he do the right thing? Now others, far more remote, have been visited by Elon Musk's Starlink – by their own request!  With an updated perspective, we repost this gem from our early days recording American Diplomat. First of two in a series. Give us your thoughts on whether Starlink is a gift or curse for the Marino people via our socials or via voicemail on our website.  Enjoy!

What does expertise look like in diplomacy with recent rapid changes in technology?  Will AI replace diplomats?  What is AI good at, and where is it dangerous?  Large language models are great for brainstorming but can they replace relationships and judgment?  Tune into Dan Spokojny, former diplomat, now Ph.D. and CEO of the nonprofit FP21, while he breaks it down for us.

Finally, a home at State for what we have learned about global conflicts.  Will it make us smarter?  Will we demand deeper buy in from Allies and friends?  Or do we continue to treat each conflict as a “one-off”? Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Mark Iozzi joins us from State's Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations to share his story from concept to implementation of the innovative Global Fragility Act.