SPEAKING FOR THE U.S. RECALLING LARRY FOLEY TUNISIAN MEMORIES

$3.50 / JANUARY 2003 OREIGN ERVICE FJ O U R N A L STHE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS

EXPORTING TO THE WORLD The U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service

CONTENTS January 2003 Volume 80, No. 1

F OCUS ON FCS LEE BOAM: THE FOREIGN COMMERCIAL SERVICE IN ACTION / 51 21 / THE BUSINESS OF AMERICA IS EXPORTS The Commercial Office at Embassy Beijing is the Overall, prospects for the Commercial Service look good. largest in the world. Meet the FSO who runs it. But a number of short-term and long-term By Shawn Dorman factors could threaten its work. By Bob Guldin U.S.-CHINA TRADE: AN ECONOMIC SECTION VIEW / 54 29 / PIANO PLAYERS IN A MARCHING BAND: The Sino-American economic relationship requires close FCS OFFICERS cooperation between the commercial section and the AFSA’s FCS Vice President counts the ways that FCS rest of Embassy Beijing. Here is the economic officers are different from their Foreign Service, section’s perspective. Civil Service and private-sector colleagues. By Robert Wang By Peter Frederick

34/ GOING GLOBAL WITH THE F EATURE U.S. COMMERCIAL SERVICE APPRECIATION / 61 The U.S. Commercial Service helps Laurence M. Foley, 1942-2002 U.S. businesses, particularly small and medium-size ones, sell their C OLUMNS EPARTMENTS products and services globally. D Here’s how. PRESIDENT’S VIEWS / 5 LETTERS / 7 By Maria Cino Telling Our Story CYBERNOTES / 12 By John K. Naland BOOKS / 64 Page 21 39 / TWO DECADES ON NDEX O THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED SPEAKING OUT / 15 I T The creation of FCS was far from painless, but over the The Courage of ADVERTISERS / 70 past 22 years the agency has made substantial progress. Our Convictions AFSA NEWS / Now it must continue on that path, using new tools. By Ken Moskowitz CENTER INSERT By Stephan Helgesen FS FINANCES / 18 44 / FCS RECOLLECTIONS Claiming the Tax Exclusion A retired FS officer who “jumped the ship of State” for Gain on Home Sales reviews his experience in the FCS, from his presence By Edward J. Michal at the creation to the challenges of pre- and post-reunification Germany. The conclusion? REFLECTIONS / 72 If he had it to do all over again, he would. By Philip Breeden By Jack Bligh Cover and inside illustrations by Jeff Moores

THE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS OREIGN ERVICE Foreign Service Journal (ISSN 0146-3543), 2101 E Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 is published J O U R N A L F monthly by the American Foreign Service Association, a private, non-profit organization. Material appearing here- Editor S Editorial Board STEVEN ALAN HONLEY ARNOLD in represents the opinions of the writers and does not necessarily represent the views of the Journal, the Editorial SCHIFFERDECKER, Associate Editor Board or AFSA. Writer queries and submissions are invited, preferably by e-mail. Journal subscription: AFSA SUSAN B. MAITRA CHAIRMAN Business Manager Members - $9.50 included in annual dues; others - $40. For foreign surface mail, add $18 per year; foreign air- JUDITH BAROODY MIKKELA V. T HOMPSON MARK W. B OCCHETTI mail, $36 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Ad & Circulation Manager ED MILTENBERGER ELIZABETH SPIRO CLARK Send address changes to Foreign Service Journal, 2101 E Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037-2990. Indexed AFSA News Editor MAUREEN S. DUGAN by Public Affairs Information Service (PAIS). The Journal is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos SHAWN DORMAN CAROL A. GIACOMO or illustrations. Advertising inquiries are invited. The appearance of advertisements herein does not imply the Art Director LAURIE KASSMAN CARYN J. SUKO endorsement of the services or goods offered. FAX: (202) 338-8244 or (202) 338-6820. E-MAIL: [email protected]. CAROLINE MEIRS Editorial Intern WEB: www.afsa.org. TELEPHONE: (202) 338-4045. © American Foreign Service Association, 2003. Printed STEPHEN YEATER HOLLIS SUMMERS in the U.S.A. Send address changes to AFSA Membership, 2101 E Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037- Advertising Intern WILLIAM WANLUND DRÖFN HARDARDOTTIR TED WILKINSON 2990. Printed on 50 percent recycled paper, of which 10 percent is post-consumer waste.

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 3 4 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 PRESIDENT’S VIEWS Telling Our Story

BY JOHN K. NALAND

Boiled down people from 46 states since 1996; and t o one sentence, The Fund for American • International Associates program AFSA’s mission is to Diplomacy enables that brings together major American make the Foreign corporations with State policy-makers Service a more AFSA to to explain the role of diplomacy in pro- effective agent of support public moting U.S. economic interests. U.S. international education on the unique Obviously, it costs money to organize leadership while and conduct these and other outreach also making it a better supported, more contributions of the activities. The good news is that, way respected, and more satisfying place in Foreign Service to the back in 1956, AFSA established our which to spend a career. public good. Fund for American Diplomacy (origi- Key to accomplishing this mission is nally called the AFSA Fund) to sup- AFSA’s effort to build a domestic con- port public education on the unique stituency for the Foreign Service. women of the U.S. Foreign Service contributions of the Foreign Service Without a constituency, the Foreign who advance our nation’s vital inter- to the public good. The bad news is Service will continue to struggle to get ests in often dangerous locations. that, unlike the AFSA Scholarship the resources we need to do our jobs. Among the media outlets quoting that Fund, the Fund for American Without better understanding by the statement were: the Washington Post, Diplomacy has no endowment. general public, we will continue to suf- Washington Times, New York Times, That is why AFSA members receive fer from unfair criticism by outsiders Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, a letter once a year asking for dona- who do not understand what we do or San Francisco Chronicle, CNN, Fox tions to the Fund for American why it is important. News, MSNBC, BBC World Service, Diplomacy. While we realize that not One way that AFSA seeks to educate Associated Press, Reuters, and everyone is able to contribute, those Americans about the role and impor- Bloomberg News. who do provide vital, irreplaceable tance of the Foreign Service is by AFSA has other mechanisms by support for this important effort. Last reaching out to the media, both in which we educate our fellow citizens year, members contributed $27,000 to Washington, D.C. and beyond the about issues affecting their Foreign the Fund for American Diplomacy. Beltway. For example, after the despi- Service. They include AFSA’s: The 2003 drive is now under way and cable murder of USAID officer • Speaker’s Bureau that, within the we hope to raise $30,000. If you wish Laurence Foley in Jordan last past year, has sponsored 230 presenta- to contribute, please return the enve- October, most of our nation’s major tions by retired Foreign Service mem- lope that you should have received in print and electronic media carried bers to diverse audiences in 33 states; the mail last month or contact Lori AFSA’s statement condemning the • Annual national high school Dec at [email protected] or 1 (800) 704- attack and pointing out that it under- essay contest that, in 2002, drew 2372, ext. 504. scores the need for the president and contributions from 802 students from Your tax-deductible contribution to Congress to dedicate additional 49 states writing about the role of the the Fund for American Diplomacy will resources to protect the men and Foreign Service; help us to connect to our fellow citizens • Senior-citizen Elderhostel (adult at a time when their need and desire to John K. Naland is the president of the education) program that has told the understand U.S. international engage- American Foreign Service Association. Foreign Service story to over 3,000 ment has never been greater.

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 5 our search is over, choose a hotel where the federal Y per diem rate is available year-round.* State Plaza Hotel 2117 E. St. NW Washington, DC 20037 Telephone: (800) 424-2859 (202) 861-8200 Parking Available Luxurious Suites Full service restaurant 1 All rooms with full size Parking available Rated /2 by AAA kitchen & stove tops Across from Main State www.stateplaza.com Fitness center White House, The Mall, E-mail: Complimentary and Metro Foggy Bottom [email protected] in-room coffee station (blue & orange lines) within walking *per night, single or double Accommodations distance occupancy subject to availability

• WORLDWIDE COVERAGE HOW TO BUY AUTO INSURANCE OVERSEAS Fire, theft, comprehensive and collision protection are available THERE’S REALLY ONLY ONE WAY. at foreign posts. Select the agent who offers broad experience and a high level of repeat business. Experience that helps you avoid the • U.S. AUTO LIABILITY pitfalls of a highly complex business. Repeat business that Available for short term on results from providing what’s best for the customer not the home leave, change of agent nor the insurance company. assignment, and new auto Since 1969, Harry M. Jannette has provided dependable purchase prior to foreign coverage with U.S. carriers with a financial rating of A+ departure. This coverage must be or higher to thousands of Foreign Service Personnel issued in combination with an worldwide. Thus you gain the broadest U.S. terms and “Embassy Plan” auto policy. conditions and flexible value limits often not available from other insurance carriers. • OCEAN/AIR CARGO COVERAGE Transit available from U.S. to MAJOR CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED: SEE OUR WEBSITE APPLICATIONS post, post to post, and post to WHILE IN WASHINGTON, D.C, AREA PLEASE CALL TOLL FREE 1 800 256-5141 U.S. Harry M. Jannette International, L.L.C. • PERSONAL COVERAGE A Wood-Wilson Company Household goods and transit, 8111 LBJ Freeway, Suite 585 valuable articles, personal liability, Dallas, Texas 75251-1334 life insurance. Telephone (972) 783-4915 • Fax (972) 783-0545 • EMPLOYEE ASSOCIATION INSURANCE Call (800) 256-5141 • E-mail: [email protected] Including Directors and Officers. www.jannetteintl.com

6 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 LETTERS

FCS Belongs at Commerce the FSJ will continue to lead and somehow off-limits? Albert Zucca’s letter in the repeat the pattern in presenting Does it look like I have a bias of my November FSJ talks about both important issues. own? Yes, I do. I am pro-Israel and Congress and the White House back- A final comment: In both the July make no bones about it. I wish the ing the transfer of the commercial and October issues, Patrick Theros best for Palestinian Arabs, but I ques- function to Commerce. As I recall, repeatedly states what Jews “accept tion, like most Israel supporters, just that stemmed, at least in part, from a and believe.” As the beneficiary of a why their leaders squander every strong and continuous stream of com- classical Jewish education, I take opportunity they’ve been offered to plaints to both from the “customers.” umbrage at the erroneous assertions establish their independent state. I American business representatives felt surrounding events in Roman-gov- think you’d find bipartisan agreement they were being treated as second- erned Judea 2,000 years ago. His in the United States that Arafat squan- class citizens at many embassies, start- assertions are at variance with Jewish dered such an opportunity most ing with the ambassador. historians and religious experience. recently at Camp David, preferring a I was a third-tour economic/com- Michael S. Zak new intifada, with accompanying mercial officer then. I’ve never for- FSO, retired death and destruction, to a genuine gotten a deputy chief of mission telling Annandale, Va. offer of peace and statehood. As the me I was spending too much time with late Abba Eban once put it, the American business visitors and not Arnold’s Bias Palestinian leaders “never miss an enough time writing reports. State I just read Terrell Arnold’s October opportunity to miss an opportunity.” wasn’t taking care of business. FSJ article entitled “Palestine: The How is it possible that Arnold, Jonathan Bensky Problem and the Prospect” for a sec- reaching back into history to try to Foreign Commercial Service ond time to make sure that it was bad explain the present, fails even to men- Officer enough to prompt me to write in and tion any of the following: the history of FSI/The Senior Seminar take exception. Just by its title the arti- continuous Jewish presence in areas Arlington, Va. cle betrays a bias, which the author roughly equivalent to present-day doesn’t have the courage to acknowl- Israel, dating back to antiquity; the Thoughtful Coverage edge in the text, hiding instead behind Holocaust; and the persecution and I wish to congratulate the Foreign a thin curtain of so-called even-hand- eventual expulsion of Jews from Arab Service Journal for the well-rounded edness. Much media reporting nowa- countries around the time of Israel’s and comprehensive series of articles days follows this same pattern, bend- independence? focusing on India in the October issue. ing over backward to appear even- Arnold almost bemoans Israel’s The six thoughtful articles by handed, and in the process equating prosperity, as though it has been ill- American and Indian practitioners the intentional murder of Jewish civil- begotten and entirely at the expense of illuminate current internal and exter- ians by suicide/homicide bombers Arabs. True, some Arabs were dis- nal developments on the Indian sub- with Israeli attacks that aim for bomb- placed by Israel’s independence, just as continent and the evolving relations making laboratories in Palestinian Jews living in pre-independence Israel between our two nations. I learned areas but also cause civilian casualties. were frequently targets of bloody much from the articles and want to What do the bomb makers expect if attacks and ambushes by the Arab pop- express my thanks to those who they work in apartment buildings in ulation. We should be inspired by brought the issue to fruition. I expect densely populated areas, that they are Israel’s prosperity and survival and by

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 7 L ETTERS MARKETPLACE Web access to major advertisers. Go to www.afsa.org. Click on Marketplace tab on the marquee the accomplishments and advances Arab Anti-Semitism the Israeli people have made in sci- Was Terrell Arnold’s article (FSJ, Bukkehave www.bukkehave.com ence, agriculture, and medicine, not to October) written 20 years ago and mention the heroism and tactical bril- recently retrieved from a vault? Charles Smith Corp. Living liance of the Israeli Defense Forces. Arnold manages to hit most of the www.SmithLiving.com Arnold, perhaps dreaming that he myths once held dear by eternal Clements International was a Third World delegate to the Middle East doves, including the www.clements.com 1975 U.N. General Assembly that now-chastened Israeli peace move- equated Zionism with racism, writes: ment: Israeli occupation causes Diplomatic Auto. Sales www.diplosales.com “The Israelis want to preserve their Palestinian terror attacks. Yasser national identity and some of them Arafat wants peace, but cannot con- Executive Club Suites (my emphasis) want this to be a Jewish trol “extremists.” Both sides are www.execlubdc.com state.” “Some of them?” Is he serious? locked in a “cycle of violence.” Fairfax Retirement Community Robert Blau Only U.S. pressure can bridge the www.marriottseniorhousing.com FSO gap. And so on. Georgetown Suites U.S. Embassy Lisbon Perhaps that worldview was cur- www.georgetownsuites.com rent when Arnold retired in 1984, Harry Jannette International Back in the Fold but what has happened since? In www.jannetteintl.com Some years ago I came to believe September 1993, the Israelis agreed that AFSA, with the Journal as a to immediate Palestinian self-rule in Hirshorn Company, The house organ, had become just another Gaza and Jericho, limited rule for www.hirshorn.com union, not particularly engaged in the the Palestinians in the West Bank, John Cabot University political and economic currents of the and an agreement on self-govern- www.johncabot.edu world beyond our national borders. ment and the election of a Laughlin Management So I dropped out of AFSA. Palestinian council. That agreement www.century21laughlin.com Now I wish to backtrack, at least to was based on Arafat’s explicit recog- the extent of subscribing to the nition in Oslo of Israel’s right to exist Long & Foster Journal. This at least partial return to and his renunciation of terror and www.simunek.com the fold follows upon reading the other acts of violence. Oakwood October 2002 issue. The coverage of In July 2000, under enormous www.oakwood.com India and Afghanistan was outstand- U.S. pressure at Camp David, Israeli ing — approaching the level you Prime Minister Barak offered Arafat Potomac Hospitality Services www.theriverinn.com might expect in Foreign Affairs, on far-reaching, unprecedented com- the occasions when you are nerved up promises on the status of the West Remington enough to tackle that eminent journal. Bank and Jerusalem. Arafat rejected www.remington-dc.com Terrell Arnold’s coverage of the the offer and broke off the negotia- St Andrew’s-Sewanee School Palestine problem was, however, the tions without offering any proposals www.standrews.sewanee.edu outstanding contribution. That issue of his own. The Palestinian Authority is not just the third rail of American then made a strategic decision to SDFCU politics, but the hot poker of rational again take up terror as an instrument www.sdfcu.org analysis. In State, many know where of official policy. State Plaza the interests of the United States lie, Palestinian terror attacks are not www.stateplaza.com but outside the building the silence is the result of Israeli army incursions deafening. For Americans it is always or of the “occupation.” The WJDManagement easier and usually more prudent to Palestinian Liberation Organization www. wjdpm.com ignore the proposals of tiresome peo- has been launching terrorist attacks For more information regarding ple in other countries, such as those against Israel since well before 1967, AFSA branded products, mission French intellectuals. indeed before there were any occu- related programs and membership in the American Foreign Sewrvice Elmer C. Hulen pied territories to “liberate.” Association, see: www.afsa.org FSO, retired Despite the Oslo peace process, Potomac, Md. despite the interim agreements to

8 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 L ETTERS

implement self-rule, despite promis- settlements. The latter do so in the es at Wye River, Sharm-el Sheikh, belief that the settlements will has- Camp David, and Taba, the ten the return of Jesus. Palestinians and most of the Arab We must guarantee the existence world continue to seek the destruc- of Israel but not its territorial ambi- tion of Jews and the state of Israel. tions. Continued Arab support, The Arab media spews out raw with the obvious exceptions of anti-Semitic hatred almost every Syria, Libya and Iraq, speaks vol- day. Often they are simply quoting umes for the long-standing respect leading clerics and government offi- and admiration the Arab world holds cials. (Examples can be found at for the U.S. Honestreporting.com www.memri.org, the Middle Eastern and its cohorts are now keeping Media Research Institute Web site.) score of universities and individuals Ideas matter, and violent ideas who are not blindly pro-Israel, and spawn violent actions. Arab anti- they can put my name on the list. Semitism is the source of the current The message from us and 99 per- Middle East conflict. cent of the world is simple; get out Richard G. Miles of Gaza and the West Bank. If we FSO are going to continue to be accept- Washington, D.C. ed as the policeman of the world, we have to be a little more honest, Honesty about Settlements objective and democratic. This Why does the pro-Israeli lobby, issue should receive our concentra- including pressure groups like tion, not Iraq. honestreporting.com, always label Kurt Shafer objective reporting as anti-Semitic FSO, retired or “rehashed propaganda”? Look at Chatsworth, Ill. a map showing Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Gaza. Where are Glorifying a Terrorist? the Palestinians supposed to live? While I am always interested to Every American president has learn about a sister agency with severely criticized this latest Israeli whom we often share overseas expansion, but Israel is very adept at facilities, I was nevertheless sur- appealing to Congress or the prised by the recent cover story Christian right when the White about the Agency for International House becomes a little too pushy. Development (“Andrew Natsios: Do not doubt for a second that there Getting USAID on Its Feet,” FSJ, is a direct line from those settle- September). I am willing to stipu- ments to Sept. 11. late that USAID has accomplished Without question, Jews are the many great things over the years, but greatest people who have ever lived the report was less than balanced. and for 3,000 years their contribu- The article indicates, in a quote tion to the world of knowledge has by Andrew S. Natsios, “Congress been unequaled. Also, we know that wants information [on USAID pro- after each of the wars since 1948, grams] ... and we can’t do it.” I find Israel has offered to return Arab this disturbing, especially in light of land for peace, a concept scoffed at a piece in the “Brickbats” section of by the Palestinians. However, right the November issue of Reason mag- now, no one in the world except azine, which reports that USAID has hard-line Israelis and knee-jerk recently intervened to refurbish a fail- Christian conservatives supports the ing Palestinian high school.

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 9 L ETTERS

What is out of the ordinary about The Crusades, beginning in 1096, lent to the Western Enlightenment that? Nothing, other than the fact that were not the opening shot of and does not recognize as separate the school is named for Dalal Western imperialism against the and distinct the secular and reli- Mughrabi, a Palestinian terrorist who Muslim World that they are often gious realms, resulted in Islam’s participated in a bus hijacking in 1978 portrayed to be. Rather, they were refusal to accept the printing press. that left 36 Israelis and an American an attempt to retake for It was considered a sacrilege to use photographer (Gail Ruban) dead. Christendom the formerly the sacred language of the Qur’an One would think that in the post-Sept. Byzantine Christian areas of the for such secular purposes, and for 11 world, taxpayer funds would not be Near East, including Jerusalem, that centuries Ottoman sultans banned used to support institutions that glori- by 640 had been conquered by printing in Arabic or Turkish. This fy the memory of terrorists. invading Muslim armies. If any had the unsurprising effect of cut- Shane Myers opening shot of imperialism ting the Islamic world off from American Citizen Services occurred, it was in the seventh cen- many advances in learning. Deputy tury when invading Arab armies While the West continued to U.S. Consulate General forcibly incorporated Christian pop- advance, the Arabs and all other Guadalajara ulations into a growing Muslim subjects of the Ottomans were vic- Empire. tims of an Islamic — not Western Muslims and Modernization A review of history reveals that, — empire’s bureaucracy, regula- David Timmins’ letter to the edi- more often than not, it has been the tions, corruption, and consequent tor, “Remembering History”? and West under assault by Islam. By the failure to modernize, leaving them Richard McKee’s review of Bernard ninth century, the armies of Islam ill-equipped to meet the Western Lewis’s book, What Went Wrong? had conquered Syria, Palestine, challenge when it came. Comp- Western Impact and Middle East Egypt, Spain, Sicily, and part of the ared to the Islamic Ottoman legacy, Response (FSJ, November), offer Italian mainland, threatening Naples the British and French post-World explanations for Islamic hostility and Rome. Reading some of the so- War I League of Nations’ mandates toward America and the West. called post-colonial literature today, in the Arab world were short-lived Timmins argues that Western toler- one would never guess that for more and hardly the impediments to ance and appeasement encourage than four centuries (1453-1918), a modernization they are portrayed our “sworn enemies,” while McKee large part of the Arab world itself to be. notes as fact “the pervasive influence was subjected to the imperialism The Muslim world has a difficult of Western societies and states on and colonialism of Islamic brethren, time institutionalizing moderniza- the Middle East.” The underlying the Ottoman Turks. By the 16th tion due to obstacles inherent in cause, however, is neither. The century, the Islamic Ottoman Islamic culture itself. After the hatred that breeds Islamic terrorism Empire ruled not only most of the Muslim Empire’s zenith, from the against America and the West is Arab world, but also today’s Turkey, ninth to the 12th centuries, it began rooted in perceived historical griev- Bulgaria, Albania, Rumania, the to fall into eclipse. Various theologi- ances against the West. Crimea, all lands of the former cal systems emerged that shared a Many people condemn terrorist Yugoslavia, Greece, Crete, Cyprus, determinist and authoritarian out- attacks without questioning these his- and Hungary. Twice, in 1529 and look, denying causality as an expla- torical grievances. Left unchallenged, 1683, Islamic armies laid siege to nation of natural phenomena. All however, this portrayal of the Muslim Vienna. was ascribed to the will of God. This as victim of the West appears to legit- Despotic in nature, the had the effect of ending critical imize a false premise that justifies the Ottomans were imitators at best. thought and research. sympathetic milieu in which anti- As the West began to increase its Nowhere are the impediments to Western rhetoric and actions flourish. knowledge, modernize the design modernization inherent in Islam and To continue to blame the West for its and production of naval vessels and its interpretations more apparent ills simply serves to divert the Muslim armaments, and refine manufactur- than in its pronouncements regard- world from recognizing that much of ing techniques, the Ottoman world ing women. It is said that women its failure to come to terms with remained static. This, combined are protected under Islam, but too modernity is inherent in its own histo- with the fact that Islam has never often it is the protection afforded ry and culture. experienced a movement equiva- the caged. Women may inherit only

10 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 L ETTERS

half of what a man may inherit. In court, the testimony of two women is required to equal that of one man. Until women are elevated to a status equal to that of men, Muslim countries will continue to underutilize half of their human capital. In summary, for Muslims to per- sist in considering themselves his- torical victims of the West not only perpetuates a false view of history, but also diverts them from imple- menting reforms within Islamic cul- ture necessary for the institutional- ization of modernization and devel- opment. William H. Barkell FSO, retired Arlington, Va.

Support for the ICC The excellent “Cybernotes” piece on the International Criminal Court in the September 2002 issue of the FSJ can now be supplement- ed with the news that the ICC’s Assembly of States Parties met suc- cessfully at the United Nations in September. This completed the birth of the court, which has juris- diction over cases occurring after July 3. The assembly began the process of electing judges and hiring senior staff. An advance team is at work in the court’s building in the Hague to prepare for its full opera- tion beginning in March 2003. I am the convener for the American NGO Coalition for the ICC, which supports nationwide education about and promotion of the court. We have a comprehensive Web site at www.amicc.org, offering extensive material about the ICC, including the U.S. position on it. I would also note that the ICC has its own Web site: www.icc.int. John Washburn FSO, retired New York, N.Y.

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 11 CYBERNOTES

…and E-Government would like to strengthen embassies abroad, the ‘front-line troops’ in for All? the diplomatic world. We will need more money, clearly, [to improve Interested in filing your federal I income taxes online for free (and get- communications and working conditions at embassies]. I want to ting your refund twice as fast), or illuminate the whole subject in a way that it has not been illuminated in securing a 15-day extension with the some time. For our Foreign Service people to be more effective, we click of a mouse? By January 2003, need to have more going for them. about 60 percent of U.S. citizens should be able to use EZ Tax to do just — Senator Richard G. Lugar, R-Ind., incoming chairman of the Senate that, thanks to a milestone agreement Foreign Relations Committee, Nov. 21, 2002, www.washingtonpost.com the IRS reached with online software vendors to implement the project. EZ Tax is one of 24 high-payoff, Bush administration high marks for grams; government-to-business pro- government-wide “e-initiatives” iden- leadership on e-government, but cites grams; government-to-government tified by President Bush in October important problem areas including programs; and, internal efficiency and 2001 for priority implementation in an cooperation between agencies, obtain- effectiveness programs such as the e- effort to jump-start the e-government ing sufficient funding, and lack of user- training program for federal employ- effort begun under the Clinton admin- friendliness in government Web sites. ees already launched, and the payroll istration. There are four more initia- This is not news to the administra- process consolidation program. tives in the “government-to-citizen” tion’s e-government managers. Their An overarching e-authentication portfolio that range from making it latest report (www.whitehouse.gov/ initiative is aimed at finding common easier to reserve campgrounds at omb/inforeg/egovstrategy.pdf) solutions to the electronic signature national parks to finding federal bene- explains that during the 1990s, govern- needs and security of the e-programs. fits for which one might be eligible. ment agencies used IT to automate A similarly comprehensive e-govern- Mark Forman, managing e-govern- existing processes on an agency-by- ment architecture project is working ment strategy at the Office of agency basis, yielding over 35 million to develop a coherent federal enter- Management and Budget (www. web pages online at more than 22,000 prise architecture and a core set of whitehouse.gov/omb/), summed up Web sites with little, if any, gain in pro- standardized technology models, and the task: “The first phase is to get the ductivity or citizen usability. The Bush also conduct analysis to identify new information on the Web. That is the administration’s E-Government Task opportunities for e-government initia- low-hanging fruit. It’s pretty easy to Force found that there was significant tives in the areas of homeland security, do. The second phase is the re-engi- redundancy, with multiple agencies economic stimulus, social services and neering necessary to streamline the performing each of 28 major functions back-office operations. process. That is harder and takes or business lines separately. The result: The strategy has already produced longer.” Federal information technol- a community attempting to obtain eco- results. For instance, GovBenefits ogy spending will exceed $48 billion in nomic development grants, for exam- (www.govbenefits.gov) allows citi- 2002 and $52 billion in 2003. The ulti- ple, might have to file over 1,000 forms zens access to information on 133 ben- mate aim is to make it easy for citizens at more than 250 federal bureaus, each efit programs in 11 different agencies. and businesses to interact with the form containing similar data — a It is a one-stop-shop, where citizens government, eliminate redundant sys- wasteful and inefficient process. can determine whether or not they tems and save taxpayer dollars. Lessons learned from this inform qualify for any government benefits The Performance Institute the current strategy, which is based on and, if so, get help to apply. (www.performanceweb.org), a interagency collaboration on four port- Researchers commended GovBenefits public policy think tank, gives the folios: government-to-citizen pro- for staying up-to-date, an accomplish-

12 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 CYBERNOTES

ment which requires interagency organizations and processes work to cooperation — one of the toughest take advantage of the opportunities IT SITE OF THE MONTH: problems. Observers credit the Bush offers.” “The Global Beat” administration’s use of a carrot-and- — Stephen Yeater, Editorial Intern he Global Beat (www.global beat.org) is subtitled “Resources stick approach to solve it. The “stick” T for the Global Journalist,” but you side includes threatening to withhold Comparative Study of don’t have to be a journalist to add funding and embarrassing agencies for Foreign Ministries this excellent Web site to your not cooperating. Launched favorites list. Every week The Global FirstGov (www.firstgov.gov), the A hole in the area of diplomacy Beat presents a broad selection of the federal government’s primary portal to studies — the comparative examina- best coverage of leading issues of the its Web sites, including EZ Tax when it tion of diplomatic delivery systems — day, drawn from media and publica- comes online, and the existing is about to be filled. The Ministries of tion outlets around the world. A pro- GovBenefits, was rated one of the Foreign Affairs Research Project has gram of New York University’s Center most useful sites by Yahoo. just been launched by DiploProjects for War, Peace and the News Media, In the area of government-to- (www.diplomacy.edu), a nonprofit The Global Beat is run by veteran for- eign correspondent William T. government programs, local, state devoted to the use of IT tools in edu- Dowell. and federal agencies are working to cation, research and development for One week in November, for exam- implement the Social Security diplomacy and international affairs. ple, there were eight to 10 articles list- Administration’s e-Vital program. The project has two main compo- ed on the Iraq issue, each from a dif- Currently, it can take 170 days to nents: detailed analysis of 16 to 18 ferent, insightful angle; two or three process a death certificate, but with selected MFAs representing major on al-Qaida and Afghanistan; and list- the online system it is expected to take countries as well as medium powers ings on NATO’s evolution, Pakistan, five days. One cost-saving advantage is and small states, and a much broader Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, North Korea that states can ensure that they do not statistical survey carried out by all for- and Brazil. Each listing is headlined, provide benefits to someone who is eign ministries that may wish to partic- and has a short summary and a link to not eligible. ipate. Survey results will be collated the actual article. These listings are complemented by samplings from the A problem with the SSA program, and integrated with the country stud- Global Beat Syndicate, a sister pro- however, is that the main constituency ies into a book-length work due for gram headed by John J. Schulz, pro- (older and disabled persons) is less publication in a year. fessor of international communication computer-savvy or has less access to In keeping with its commitment to at Boston University and a veteran of the Internet. Also, state governments the use of IT tools for diplomacy, the 21 years with the Voice of America. have resisted cooperating with e-Vital Ministries of Foreign Affairs Research The site contains links to other because they receive a fee for provid- Project has its own Web pages, acces- Center programs and publications, to ing hard-copy birth and death certifi- sible from the home page of the information sources on U.S. defense cates. So far, the SSA has worked out DiploProjects Web site, Diplo, at the policy, the Middle East and journal- agreements with seven states and URL listed above. Essential informa- ism organizations, as well as links to plans to have all 50 on board by 2005. tion on the project’s objectives, stages extensive lists of experts on a range of foreign affairs issues. And, for those E-government has been given a of implementation, and guidelines for who are interested in the craft behind strong boost, but there is still a long participation can be found there, the news, there is also a link to “Zoned way to go. E-government is not simply including an open invitation to poten- for Debate,” NYU’s Web forum on a matter of “putting everything tial authors for the individual country current issues in journalism. online,” as the Task Force emphasizes. studies and contact information. A weekly e-mail Global Beat advi- “E-government, like e-business, is Provisionally identified for detailed sory is also available at no charge. about fundamental change in the way analysis are the U.S., U.K., Germany,

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 13 C YBERNOTES

France, Japan, Russia, China and the study and exchange ideas with survey Cooperation. Individual projects are European Union; emerging states participants. also supported by the European Hungary, Slovenia and Latvia; and DiploProjects is based at the Union, the United Nations developing countries Brazil, Egypt, Mediterranean Academy of Diplo- Development Program, the Com- India, Kenya, Mexico, Senegal, South matic Studies at the University of monwealth Secretariat, the Euro- Africa, and Vietnam. Focus will be on Malta, and is supported by the Swiss pean Free Trade Association, and the structure, functioning and meth- Agency for Development and the U.S. Institute for Peace. ods of foreign ministries, and their operational efficiency. By focusing on performance, project coordinators 50 Years Ago hope to be able to carry out bench- About the greatest surprise to me was the live and marking and identification of best practices, a kind of comparative exam- sympathetic interest displayed when the influence of ination not ordinarily carried out by McCarthyism on the political reporting of Foreign Service officers was MFAs. A May 2003 symposium is touched upon. That a reporting officer might eventually be led to play planned for contributors to the coun- it safe and to keep unorthodox thoughts and observations to himself, try-study part of the project. struck all as a real danger of which they had not been aware. The statistical survey centers on an Internet-based questionnaire. Res- — FSO Martin F. Herz, commenting on ten days of home leave spent as a pondents will be integrated into a reporter on a small-town newspaper, in “Bedford, Indiana Perspective,” broad interactive forum where Diplo FSJ, Jan. 1953. will share the results of the statistical

A SENIOR APARTMENT COMMUNITY for independent living at its finest-comfort, quality and convenience. • One & two BR apartment homes • Control access entrances • Beautiful lounges with fireplace • Library, art studio, game room, movie theater • Chauffered activities • Hair salon on site • Social & recreational activities • Dining room w/ optional meal program Call or Stop By For Information 301-926-0696 217 Booth Street, Gaithersburg, MD 20878 Off of Great Seneca Highway

14 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 SPEAKING OUT The Courage Of Our Convictions

BY KEN MOSKOWITZ

everal months ago, I mounted think this article is necessary. For in a major public affairs event Where did skilled the vacuum formed by the unwill- Shere in Tokyo, an afternoon and experienced ingness to address the boundaries, seminar on the Kyoto Protocol, to there is a pall cast by our more timid explain the Bush administration’s FSOs get the colleagues, who would have us offer policy. The program brought feeling that public speaker programs suitable for a Cold together speakers from the speaking on policy War-era people’s republic. But I am Japanese business community who not a commissar for a moribund, advise the government on green- issues is not ideological dictatorship. Rather, I house-gas issues, a young and artic- welcome? want us to fashion an approach to ulate advocate from the environ- public diplomacy worthy of a confi- mental NGO community, an ecolo- dent, democratic superpower. gy writer and journalist, and a high- ranking State Department col- Handling Dissidents league. The entire session was con- heard, for example, that our Gaining international support for ducted in Japanese. embassies do not need to mount the war on terrorism is obviously at Afterward, I complimented my public affairs campaigns at all. Or the top of the list of current U.S. for- embassy colleague, noting that it is indeed, since the issues are nuanced eign policy priorities. My State col- sometimes difficult to get my State and shifting, some officials maintain leagues in the public diplomacy field colleagues to speak publicly for the that it is best to leave public diplo- would doubtless cite various exam- embassy, and said I especially appre- macy out of the picture altogether. ples of speakers who would be obvi- ciated his daring willingness to do so Similarly, some of my colleagues ously unacceptable in that endeavor. in Japanese. have raised questions about my I think we could all agree that those “What can they do, fire me?” he choice of unofficial speakers (once who hold the U.S. government replied. known as “AmParts” and “American responsible for most of the ills of the Now, this was an odd rejoinder. Speakers”) and sought to draw world, including terrorism, or who Why should a veteran U.S. diplomat, boundaries marking how far I should would admire in any way the perpe- with a long and distinguished career, be permitted to go in engaging acad- trators of the World Trade Center express even joking concern that his emics and other experts whose pub- attacks, should never be engaged by advocacy would be somehow lic views might not dovetail with a U.S. embassy to speak officially on frowned on, even grounds for disci- State policy, and would therefore any topic. But what about a speaker plinary action, by State manage- run counter to U.S. government who supports the current war on ter- ment? How in the world did it come goals. rorism but has other ideas about to pass that skilled and experienced I recently posed these concerns how to pursue it — e.g., someone FSOs should get the feeling that to a State Department colleague who advocates that the U.S. distance public speaking on policy issues is with many years of experience with itself from the current Israeli leader- not welcome? speaker programs and public diplo- ship and support more vigorous I ask these questions as a former macy. Regarding State policy on moves toward Palestinian state- U.S. Information Agency officer how far “off the reservation” we hood? In my view, such an individ- who has experienced first-hand the could go in inviting U.S. speakers, he ual could be a U.S.-sponsored speak- chilling effect of remarks made by said, “nothing is written down.” This er, though I would pair him or her high-level State colleagues. I’ve is what I suspected, and it is why I with an articulate advocate of the

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 15 S PEAKING O UT

moderate individuals who understood and appreciated the official view, even I want us to fashion an as they articulated positions more or TEN TOP less at variance with it. approach to public At home, the public platform REASONS TO given by the First Amendment to JOIN diplomacy worthy of a such disparate opinions helps us bet- ter understand and refine our poli- confident, democratic cies. That approach can work over- seas, too — within the limits DACOR superpower. sketched out above. For example, members of Congress from the political party not holding the White (Diplomatic and House accept the traditional Consular Officers, administration’s Middle East policy. restraint on criticism of the presi- Or consider a less inflammatory dent when they travel overseas. This Retired) topic. I witnessed several years of so- is not merely a matter of patriotism. called trade friction in bilateral rela- The rationale for free speech at 10. Guest rooms at less than tions with Japan as a press officer home is that it sharpens public here in the early 1990s. During that debate, which helps refine and half of per diem contentious era, U.S. negotiators improve public policy. But foreign- 9. Sunday musicales with engaged in pitched closed-door talks ers do not necessarily contribute to rising stars while we in USIA’s Tokyo office domestic public policy discussions, 8. Annual conference on key fought battles for public opinion in so the value of free speech overseas issue or country sector-specific areas as diverse as rice, should properly be balanced with 7. Receptions for A-100 cars and car parts, and semiconduc- the national interest of building sup- classes and new tors. It was not difficult to find port for U.S. foreign policies. ambassadors American academics and journalists Such a balance will certainly work 6. Scholarships for Foreign who decried the Clinton administra- to our long-term diplomatic advan- Service dependents tion’s insistence on setting “numerical tage. In the communist bloc, I indicators” in bilateral trade agree- received no end of compliments — 5. Top lecturers on foreign ments, which many of them con- often expressed in a tone of amaze- affairs and culture demned as “managed trade.” ment — that the U.S. government 4. Reasonable dues half off In that atmosphere, I did not feel it would sponsor and host the voices for active duty personnel would have been responsible to invite that criticize it. And I am sure that is 3. Memorable venue for a speaker, even a prominent one, who still the case when we send our “dissi- private or representational would take such a position at the same dents” to China today. Both through functions time that our negotiators were in what the speakers say, and also 2. Five blocks from State town trying to sell the opposite view. through the very nature and scope of 1. Congenial collegiality in Had we sponsored such individuals, our public diplomacy programs, an elegant, historic home the Japanese press, already hostile to which should welcome a diversity of our position, would have had a field views, we set a valuable example for day highlighting yet another such regimes. In any country, more- Richard McKee, Executive Director American who belittled our stance, over, this diversity of speakers also 1801 F St., NW deeply embarrassing us. provides invaluable credibility to our Washington, DC 20006 On the other hand, during my first work. tour with USIA in Budapest, when 202-682-0500 Hungary was still part of the Soviet Handling Ourselves [email protected] bloc, I often hosted speakers who pub- Shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks, www.dacorbacon.org licly disagreed with various aspects of a young embassy colleague returned U.S. foreign policy. But these were from a conference on terrorism and

16 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 S PEAKING O UT

reported that many attendees — if what was said was in line with pol- including an Egyptian critic — were icy. Or perhaps we have even been critical of U.S. policies in the Middle burned that way ourselves. East. But he did not identify him- As for speaker programs, the self as an American diplomat and proclivity toward conformity of make counterarguments (which opinion stems largely from the very would have easily fallen within U.S. absence of clear policy regarding government policy guidelines), even this subject. This results in just though he had the knowledge and enough pressure in the form of skills to perform that role. He felt, I “suggestions” — “Don’t you think believe, the same reluctance to you ought to reconsider that speak- speak out expressed by my more er proposal?” or, “Do you really senior colleague mentioned above. believe that Washington (or the It’s a matter of keeping your head ambassador, the political section, down to get ahead, of recognizing etc.) would accept that individual?” that public advocacy won’t help your — to discourage us from hosting the career, but can certainly damage it if speakers we really need. Since your bosses don’t like what you have USIA’s consolidation with State in to say. 1999, many of my colleagues have I suspect that some readers of seen the writing on the wall and this article will claim that I’ve set up opined that the days of independent a straw man, and would argue that voices are over. (By contrast, before State leadership has never formally the merger, State officers rarely tried to muzzle dissident views in interfered with the speaker pro- speaker programs, nor discouraged grams of their USIA colleagues.) FSOs from publicly advocating U.S. My political section colleagues have government policies. But it is unde- occasionally reminded me that “you niable that the State Department work for State now,” and told me allows very few officials to speak on directly and indirectly that I will the record overseas (or back in the have to accept their political guid- department, for that matter). As a ance to win approval of my public result, FSOs are naturally reluctant diplomacy programs. Political cor- to do public speaking even away rectness — by which I mean the from the media, even though pressure to sponsor only the they’re supporting official policy, staunchest advocates of current which obviously diminishes the administration policy — now seems value of trained and knowledgeable to be the watchword. Several col- public diplomacy officers. Soon leagues have, in fact, discouraged after we’re minted as FSOs, we me from writing this article, suggest- begin to develop an appreciation of ing that it won’t help my career. But the strict limits on our initiative I think the discussion I’ve outlined when we read our first embassy would actually be healthy for the press guidelines and discover how Foreign Service as an institution. few people are permitted to speak Besides, after all, what can they on the record for the embassy. We do — fire me? also hear examples of colleagues who thought they were speaking Ken Moskowitz joined USIA as an either off the record or in an area FSO in 1986, serving in Budapest, free of reporters, but whose com- Washington, D.C., Kiev and Tokyo ments somehow got into the media (twice). He is currently director of and caused them problems — even the Tokyo American Center.

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 17 FS FINANCES Claiming the Tax Exclusion for Gain on Home Sales

BY EDWARD J. MICHAL

here’s just about nothing worse must have lived in the house being than having to pay a hefty tax There are several sold for at least 730 days, but not nec- Tbill on the gain from the sale of provisions in essarily during one continuous period; a house in which you failed to reside i.e., one year of residence, followed by in for two out of the last five years current law that a one-year tour overseas, and then because you were serving overseas. another year of residence would qual- AFSA has pushed for years to get this can help you avoid ify the taxpayer for the exclusion. injustice to Foreign Service personnel paying tax on Short absences during a period of res- rectified, and was on the verge of suc- idence, such as vacations or business cess with Congress in late 2002. [See your gains, or at trips, can be counted toward the peri- box, p. 19.] least reduce it. od of residence as long as the taxpay- A retroactive tax exclusion would er continues to maintain his or her be extraordinarily valuable, since it home at that address. could enable Foreign Service employ- ees who sold their homes since 1997 A Reduced Exclusion without being able to qualify for the up to $500,000 in gain from their tax- If the couple keeps records of their exclusion to claim potentially large tax able income. But married taxpayers “basis” — the cost of the property and refunds. FS personnel who do not must meet several conditions to qual- certain other expenses, as outlined in currently qualify for the maximum ify for this exclusion. First, a couple Pub. 523 (see Pub. 551, “Basis of exclusion, but who are nonetheless must file a joint return for the year in Assets”, for more details) — they can considering selling their homes on the which the home sale occurs. Second, minimize their tax bite even if they basis of the impending legislative one or the other spouse must meet have a gain of more than $250,000 provision, may wish to delay selling the ownership test — i.e., have owned that is subject to taxation. They will until after the bill has been passed. the property for at least two years out be taxed only on the difference But they should keep in mind that of the five preceding the sale. Third, between the “basis” and the sales even if the 108th Congress passes the both spouses must meet the use test; price, so the more documented bill, it could drop the retroactive that is, they must have lived in the expenses they add to their claimed clause due to changing fiscal circum- house for two years out of the five “basis,” the less gain on which tax will stances. preceding the sale. And, fourth, nei- be assessed. Another twist to the The good news is that if you have ther the taxpayer nor his or her spouse home sale gain exclusion is that the already sold your home, or must do so can have excluded gain from the sale spouse who lived in the house must whether or not such legislation is of another house during the two-year also have been on the title as an owner enacted in the near future, there are period ending on the date of the sale. for two out of the five years preceding several provisions in current law that Married couples who do not quali- the sale, but not necessarily at the can help you avoid paying tax on your fy for the full $500,000 exclusion same time as he or she lived in it. gains, or at least reduce it. These because the two of them did not live Thus, a taxpayer can count a period of provisions are described in IRS in the house for at least two years out residency as a tenant in a property Publication 523, “Selling Your of the five preceding the sale can, toward the use test, as long as he or Home,” available at www.irs.gov. nonetheless, avoid tax on up to she subsequently purchased the prop- Perhaps the best-known aspect of $250,000 of gain if at least one mem- erty and owned it for at least two years the home-sale gain exclusion is the ber of the couple lived in the house prior to the sale. fact that married couples can exclude for two years. The taxpayer or spouse Those who do not meet the two-

18 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 FS FINANCES year ownership or use tests can still another property at the new place of time living in and owning the previous qualify for a reduced exclusion if they employment, or to change employers. home toward the two-year use and sold their home 1) due to a change in To claim the reduced exclusion for ownership tests, respectively. To pre- place of employment, or 2) for health health-related reasons, the taxpayer sent the strongest possible case if reasons. The exclusion is reduced should be prepared to provide evi- questioned (and the stakes may well proportionally according to the dence of a specific health problem or be high enough to encourage the IRS amount of time the taxpayer lived in need that required the sale of the res- to challenge such a claim), the taxpay- the residence sold; for example, a tax- idence. er should be able to produce the tax payer who lived in the house for only return with the Form 2119 on which one year would be entitled to exclude Other Options the postponed gain was reported. a maximum of $125,000 in gain, as A Foreign Service employee can The taxpayer should also be prepared opposed to $250,000 if he or she had also claim the reduced exclusion even to substantiate his residence in the met the two-year test. if, during the two-year period ending previous home for the period of time A couple filing jointly can combine on the date of sale, he or she had that he wishes to count toward the use their individual exclusions, based on already sold another home at a gain and ownership tests. (Old utility how long each person lived in the and excluded all or part of that gain. receipts, if available, are a strong house. For example, if one member Ordinarily, a taxpayer would be proof of residence.) An unmarried of the couple had lived only four barred from claiming any exclusion taxpayer who has both the Form 2119 months in the house during the five under those circumstances. However, and proof of residence could qualify years preceding its sale, and the other if the second sale is due to a change in for the $250,000 exclusion while a had lived one year and nine months, place of employment or for health married couple filing jointly with such they could exclude the reduced maxi- reasons, the taxpayer can take a backup could qualify for the full mum of $250,000 in gain. The own- reduced exclusion. $500,000 exclusion. ership test also reduces the maximum Another means to obtain a full For example: You sold a home potential exclusion proportionately. exclusion works best for packrats who you lived in for nine months in 1985, And even if one member of the cou- never throw out their records or rolled the gain into a new residence ple filing jointly owned the property receipts. Taxpayers who postponed in 1986 and reported postponing that for a shorter period than the other all or part of the gain on the sale of a gain (by rolling it over into the new spouse, both spouses are treated as previous home when they bought the residence) to the IRS on a Form 2119 owning the property for the longer home on which they now seek to attached to your 1986 return. You period. Worksheet 3 of Pub. 523 exclude gain are entitled to count the were posted overseas in 1995 and did shows how to calculate both kinds of proportional reductions in the maxi- AFSA Will Keep Trying mum allowed exclusion. FSA Director of Congressional Relations Ken Nakamura reported Nov. 22 that the Although Pub. 523 lists “unfore- sought-after legislation failed to pass on a technicality and thus will have to be taken seen circumstances” as a third accept- A up in the 108th Congress next year. His Legislative Update e-mail provided the follow- able means by which to qualify for a ing synopsis of what the exclusion provision would have done for Foreign Service reduced exclusion, the IRS has not members: yet issued a regulation defining that “The capital gains tax exclusion provision, which affects both the uniformed and term. Until it does so, no one can Foreign Service, would have: claim a reduced exclusion under that • allowed a person to be away from the property for up to five additional years (tolled provision. There is increasing press years) as part of the “look back” criteria. Thus, within a 10-year period, the homeown- speculation that the IRS is preparing er would have had to occupy the property for two years. to issue a regulation defining “unfore- • the tax exclusion would have been retroactive to 1997, and would have been treat- seen circumstances.” ed as if it had been part of the original law when enacted. Foreign Service personnel • to qualify for the tax exclusion, the homeowner would have to be on official orders assigned to Washington who are retir- with the duty station more than 150 miles away from the residence. ing can take advantage of the reduced • the allowable five-year tolling of years could be used more than once. Thus, if a maximum exclusion by accepting person used the exclusion and tolled the full five years, and bought another house, the post-retirement employment outside five-year tolling would be allowable the next time the homeowner wanted to sell the new the Washington, D.C., area. The tax- house that was bought.” — Edward J. Michal payer is not required to purchase

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 19 FS FINANCES not return to the “new” residence in the sale of the property (consult later, after such a sale, not by April 15 the U.S. until 2001. Eighteen months Publication 523 for details). of the following year. Waiting until after resuming residence in the You cannot postpone the tax bite of April 15 to settle up will result in “new” residence, you sold it at a gain. this requirement, moreover, by engag- penalties and interest on the unpaid You can exclude the gain from taxa- ing in an installment sale because the taxes, assuming you do not have other tion under the current requirement full amount of the gain equal to the credits or tax payments to offset them. to have lived in the “new” residence depreciation previously taken (or the If you are unsure about whether for two out of the five years preceding amount of depreciation that should the examples provided in Pub. 523 the date of sale by counting both the have been taken, if you did not claim it) apply to your individual situation, you nine months of residence in the prior must be reported as income in the year should consult a tax preparer, CPA, home and the one-and-a-half years of of the installment sale. tax attorney or other qualified profes- residence in the “new” home. If you sell a property on which you sional. If done properly, the exclusion One final note on the home sale claimed depreciation while using it can save you many thousands of dol- gain exclusion: taxpayers who rented for business (including residential lars in taxes. out their homes or used them for rentals), and will therefore be subject business purposes, claimed deprecia- to tax on the gain equivalent to depre- Edward Michal was an FSO from tion, and then resumed using the ciation claimed after May 6, 1997, be 1975 until 2002, serving in Monterrey, houses as residential property prior to sure to either increase the amount of Santiago, Maseru, Kolonia, Port sale cannot exclude the part of their taxes withheld from your salary, or Moresby, Tegucigalpa and Washing- gain equal to any depreciation make an estimated tax payment prior ton, D.C. He currently resides in allowed or allowable as a deduction to the due date for transactions occur- Dripping Springs, Texas. He will pre- for periods after May 6, 1997. All of ring on the date of sale. Uncle Sam pare tax returns during the 2003 tax that gain will be taxable in the year of wants his money sooner, rather than season.

20 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS ON FCS

THE BUSINESS OF AMERICA IS EXPORTS Jeff Moores

OVERALL, PROSPECTS FOR THE COMMERCIAL SERVICE LOOK GOOD. BUT A NUMBER OF SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM “ FACTORS COULD THREATEN THE WORK OF THE AGENCY. BY BOB GULDIN

’m from the government and I’m here to help.” For most Americans, that’s a one-line joke, designed to provoke a wry smile from people cynical about the role of government in their lives. But for the Iclients of the U.S. Commercial Service, that line usually rings true. The organization, a part of the Commerce Department and an unusual hybrid of domestic and Foreign Service components, seems to grow more popular every year. Members of Congress frequently request that the Commercial Service open offices in their districts, and ambassadors demand Commercial Service officers. And last year, over 34,000 U.S. businesses met

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 21 F OCUS

with CS specialists to find ways of boosting their We just happened to sell candidates. This is an interna- exports. tional field organization that assists small and medium- [A quick note on nomenclature: During the 20th cen- sized businesses to export their goods and services.” tury, the U.S. government’s foreign commerce function Cino has rapidly put her own stamp on the organiza- switched several times between the Departments of tion. She notes, “In my previous life, you had a very short State and Commerce. In 1980, it moved again to time to get results. In a campaign, you have six months.” Commerce, where it was named the Foreign Her most visible initiative is the Export Achievement Commercial Service. The next year it was renamed the Awards, a program started in January 2002 to recognize U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service, which referred to U.S. companies that are new exporters. “We’ve already the combined domestic and international organization. given out about 370 awards,” Cino said in November. That is still the full and proper name of the service, but “We use elected officials to present the awards, so we the abbreviated “Commercial Service” is heard far more educate our officials.” often. Though the phrase “the Foreign Commercial Cino also aims to increase the number of U.S. compa- Service” is frequently used, particularly within the FS nies exporting and the countries they’re exporting to. “Of community, it does not officially exist.] the companies that are exporting, 64 percent are export- As one CS veteran told the Foreign Service Journal, ing to just one country,” she says. “We’re looked upon as a friendly face, a helping hand. She intends to continue to help “underserved com- Other government agencies aren’t viewed like that.” munities, women-owned businesses and minority-owned In large part, the Commercial Service is well-liked businesses,” but has told the Service to focus those efforts because its mission — helping American companies more precisely. In recent years, too many training semi- export — is universally popular. Exports increase busi- nars for U.S. companies were given for “companies that ness profits, create jobs for workers, and help the U.S. had no intention of exporting and were not able to,” Cino economy as a whole. What’s not to like? says. With more careful screening, the CS will work Professionals in the Commercial Service like to say more with companies that “are exporting a little bit, or that their agency is “the best-kept secret in the U.S. gov- are just under the line.” ernment.” But Director of Marketing and A less visible Cino initiative — but one much appreci- Communications Douglas Barry admits, “This appella- ated by the FSOs in the service — is making profession- tion is beginning to melt away.” al development a priority. Eric Sletten, a senior FSO, says, “We have a DG now who has put a huge emphasis Promoting the Commercial Service on training. For the first time, we have a junior officer If the Commercial Service is acquiring a higher pro- training [course] that mimics State’s A-100 experience, file, lots of credit must be given to Maria Cino, who has and senior commercial officer training. She has strength- been director general of the service since May 2001. ened us institutionally.” Cino, a lively and outgoing advocate, came to the service Cino clearly values the Commercial Service’s special from the front lines of Republican Party politics. In 2000, role as a “seamless operation” combining domestic and she served first as national political director for Bush for international operations. She adds, “It’s absolutely valu- President and then as deputy chairman of the Republican able to have a Foreign Service component. We have 162 National Committee, where she managed a $250 million international offices. We’re able to say to this customer media, mail and get-out-the-vote effort in all 50 states. in Des Moines, Iowa, that you have potential to export Cino admits that when Commerce Secretary Don your products to Russia, and I’m going to turn you over Evans first called her about the post, she told him, “I’ve to our senior commercial officer there and his staff, never had an expertise in trade.” But she’s quick to add rather than giving him a plane ticket, waving goodbye, that the job is “a very close fit to my background. For and maybe never hearing from him again.” most of my life I managed national field organizations. Too Political? Bob Guldin is a former editor of the Journal. He is now The presence of Cino, a top Republican political oper- a freelance writer and editor in the Washington area. ative, as DG points to an issue that critics of the Service

22 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

often raise — that the Commercial The U.S. Commercial the U.S. president did not have “fast- Service is moved too much by politi- track” trade promotion authority. cal factors and not enough by strictly Service, an unusual hybrid Since President Bush now has that economic export considerations. power again, Cino says she expects In a way, that criticism can be of domestic and Foreign that a number of new preferential made of the Commerce Department trade agreements or free trade as a whole. One senior commercial Service components, seems agreements will soon help American officer told the Journal, “Ever since exporters. the Nixon administration, the secre- to grow more popular Similarly, prospects for the tary of Commerce has usually been Commercial Service look good. But a the president’s chief fund-raiser, every year. number of short-term and long-term maybe on the assumption that that factors could threaten the work of the person has good ties to business. service. Those include the rising role And then, Commerce always gets more than its share of of the Internet and electronic commerce, the difficult political appointees. Since they can’t easily be put in the security/terrorism environment, and a huge budget hit on technical agencies like the National Oceanic and the service that may be looming just over the horizon. Atmospheric Administration, lots of them wind up work- ing in international trade.” A Budget Bombshell Stephen Craven, a veteran officer who until recently Like many federal agencies, the CS runs on a tight was director of the service’s Rocky Mountain and budget, and often has to shift staff and resources to meet Southwest Region, says that the political presence has urgent needs. Its annual budget is relatively stable, run- “both pluses and minuses. A minus is that it gives us a ning about $170 million per year. Imagine the agency’s layer of amateurs in several of the top positions. surprise, then, when it was recently told by the State Proportionally, we have more political appointees than Department and the Office of Management and Budget State.” But, Craven says, that proportion is smaller now that it might be required to contribute more than $40 than it was a few years ago. million per year for upgrading of embassy buildings. “Very often those political appointees come in with Noel Negretti, director of the Commercial Service’s their own agendas, such as promoting diversity or assist- Office of Planning, does not like the idea. He points out ing in election campaigns,” Craven says. “But some have that State has a plan to build new consulates and become dedicated to the mission of the [Commercial] embassies at a cost of $1.4 billion a year. “Rather than ask Service.” for that directly from Congress, they want to allocate the “As with a political ambassador,” Craven says, “it’s cost of those buildings across all the agencies that are tough to predict beforehand. They are more likely to be overseas. For the first year it would go into full effect, fis- subject to political whims. But on the plus side they may cal 2006, we would be asked to provide $48 million. This have strong contacts on the Hill.” year we’re being asked for $9 million. Regarding a related criticism — that too often the “The way they put it is, you can ask for it every year Commercial Service opens offices for political rather from the Congress. Of course we can ask for it,” Negretti than export-related reasons — Craven says, “It’s undeni- says with pained laughter, “but asking isn’t necessarily able that this has happened. We opened a number of receiving.” posts in Central Asia, the former Soviet Union” as politi- Carlos Poza, the deputy director general and an FSO, cal statements. argues that State should bear the responsibility, since it The Commercial Service has also opened offices in has absorbed the U.S. Information Agency and “is now the United States because of political pressures from the clearly the predominant Foreign Service agency.” He Hill, Craven says, “but those are a small minority of our adds, “It’s a terrible precedent. It’s taking trade promo- domestic offices.” tion funds and putting them into building buildings.” Cino is optimistic about the prospects for U.S. exports. Director General Cino agrees that “the fact that we She notes that for eight years — from 1994 to 2002 — would be involved in the building of embassies and the

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 23 F OCUS

shared cost of that is ludicrous.” But she is convinced mous problems for us,” says Sletten. “What we don’t that Congress will produce a better plan. “They don’t have is a ‘bench.’ We have no subs to send into the want four agencies deciding what colors the walls should game. One person curtails or resigns, and it creates an be. The money will go to the agency that is responsible. enormous ripple effect. You end up having to move sev- It will all be sorted out.” eral officers because of one unexpected vacancy.” The prospect of a huge budget hit is especially worri- The personnel shortage is about to get worse, Sletten some because the Commercial Service — and especially says. That’s because the Commercial Service was found- the Foreign Service component — feels strong budget ed in 1980, so some officers are beginning to retire after constraints already (though not as badly as in 1995, when putting in 20 years. “It’s already started this year. Out of Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich proposed abolish- roughly 40 senior officers, we’ve had four voluntary res- ing the Department of Commerce entirely). ignations and retirements this year. That’s 10 percent of The Commercial Service as a whole has about 1,800 the senior corps. employees, a number that has stayed fairly constant in “The next challenge will be how to prepare the next recent years. But Eric Sletten, the CS regional director generation of officers to take over and manage these for Europe, observes about the agency’s Foreign Service larger posts that are now being run by senior FSOs who contingent, “In the last year we either attritted or RIFed are close to retirement,” Sletten says. 100 FSNs, we ran 27 posts vacant and we closed six posts.” Overcoming the Distance Barrier Negretti adds, “The number of offices is staying pret- Life for the Commercial Service has become harder ty flat. We’ve opened as many as we’ve closed. We since Sept. 11, 2001. Business travelers would rather not closed one in Genoa and opened one in Accra, Ghana.” get blown up or taken hostage on their export-driven He says that the new DG made clear “her aim was to journeys. The changed environment shows up in lots of reduce or at least keep flat. She didn’t want to see us ways. growing.” At some posts, the number of U.S. personnel has Cino acknowledges, “We’ve tightened our belts a bit. been reduced. Says Commercial Service officer Pete We’ve looked at cost-cutting things such as reduced Frederick, “At one point we had six officers in Indonesia; rents, smaller spaces. We’re right-sizing our organiza- now we have one. We do have 20 FSNs.” tion, seeing where we need to put our people.” Marketing Director Doug Barry adds, “It’s a chal- Sletten takes a philosophical view of the current bud- lenge now to get U.S. companies to come to Indonesia. get restrictions: “We understand that in the current envi- Some companies have security concerns about the ronment, the money and the resources are being poured Philippines. But we still try to help companies, via the into security and homeland defense. It’s pretty hard to Internet and videoconferencing. Sales are still being argue that we’re being given short shrift. The adminis- made in these countries.” tration has its priorities where they should be. We’re not And it’s not just U.S. companies that are affected. at the top of that list.” “After Sept. 11, the number of foreign buyers coming to With a static budget and personnel roster, it’s U.S. trade shows declined,” says Barry. “But there’s a extremely difficult for the service to meet requests for recovery now — attendance is almost back to where it establishment of new posts. Says Sletten, “Quite frankly, was.” the pressure from ambassadors is just relentless. It’s a Donald Businger, director of the Office of Trade zero-sum game. If some ambassador somewhere is suc- Promotion Programs, was recently stationed in cessful in strong-arming us into opening up a post or Montreal. He observes that “the economy’s been slow, sending an officer, it comes at a cost to some other post.” companies are looking to cut expenses. If there’s any big “We have a lot of two-officer posts that over the last security threat out there, a lot of travel budgets and par- two or three years have become one-officer posts and ticipation in international events will be cut.” really shouldn’t be,” Sletten adds. But Businger says that even security threats can pro- Because the Foreign Commercial Service is so small, duce business opportunities. “We did a security equip- with 220 officers and 27 vacant slots, “this creates enor- ment show in Montreal where U.S. security product

24 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

companies attended. The market It is undeniable that harder for would-be business visitors was quite good. Canada is planning to come to the United States, on spending billions on security sometimes the Commercial because of tighter visa and entry equipment.” requirements. FSO Don Businger Security threats can really Service opens offices for recalled a recent case in which a increase customer interest in “e-ser- major U.S. multinational aerospace vices, what we call overcoming the political rather than company pleaded with him to help distance barrier,” says Erin Butler, an get a key Chinese employee to an international trade specialist. “Those export-related reasons. important meeting in Chicago. services had increased relevance in Businger tried his best, “but the the months after Sept. 11, especially Chinese person was rejected; they in regions where people aren’t comfortable traveling.” [the U.S. consulate] wouldn’t let him go,” Businger says. Butler, who was stationed in Jordan last summer, says Sometimes, CS employees can help get business visi- many American companies were interested in videocon- tors into the United States. “When we’re overseas, we’re ferencing with Jordanians. about 25 feet away from the consular section,” Businger “I’m sure in time that will fade,” says Butler. “But says. “There’s no official program — it’s mainly informal, there will always be regions of the world that might be personal relationships. I can walk over to the NIV [non- good potential markets but are not places that people are immigrant visa] chief and say, ’Can you cut us some slack eager to go.” on this one?’” Sometimes that kind of appeal works, The stricter security atmosphere is also making it Businger says, but often it does not.

Experience the Appealing Charm …

We offer spacious beautifully appointed suites Sliding per diems accepted at our which are ideal for business or pleasure. Rosslyn location. (First & second rates accepted. Second rates in a studio with weekly maid service.) Our Rosslyn and Arlington locations have shuttle service to and from NFATC. All loca- Our One Bedroom Suites offer: full kitchens, tions offer scheduled shuttle to and from stovetops, refrigerators, dishwashers and area Metro Stations. dinette area, living rooms with sleep sofas, master bedroom and full bath. Washington is minutes across the Potomac River. An abundance of activities close by… To name a few amenities: free continental for the History Buffs: quaint & historic Old breakfast, free weekly evening buffet and Town, Alexandria and museums… for our daily socials, maid service and health Outdoor Enthusiasts: walk- clubs. Seasonal outdoor swimming ing/ biking to Mt. Vernon pools at two locations - via the bike trail; Arlington and Alexandria, boating/sail surfing on the and jacuzzis at Rosslyn and Potomac. Arlington locations. Three Convenient Locations: 108 S. Courthouse Road 610 Bashford Lane 1730 Arlington Boulevard Arlington, VA 22204 Alexandria, VA 22314 Rosslyn, VA 22209 703-522-2582 703-739-2582 703-525-2582 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Central Reservations: 703-739-2582 extension 1405 www.execlubdc.com or [email protected]

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 25 F OCUS

Director General Cino emphasizes that the adminis- on a company, and putting it on a Web site. You can’t talk tration does not intend to let security threats cut off com- to that person. If you walked into somebody’s booth mercial relations. “Even in Muslim areas, we will hold overseas, someone would meet you and greet you; you the line. The president wants us to export there.” could see a product demonstration. With Webcasting As if to emphasize that point, the United States has you can come close to that, but I can’t ask you a question; posted a Commercial Service officer in battered Kabul, you can’t respond to me in real time.” Afghanistan. Ed Ruse emphasizes that “there are a lot of cultures Besides, Cino says, “American business men and where human contact is absolutely irreplaceable — the women are very resilient. If there’s an opportunity, I so-called high-context cultures, like France, Italy, the don’t usually see fear. I see people out there willing to Mediterranean, Asia and especially the Middle East. take some risks if they’re able to grow their business.” They still want to know who they’re dealing with, and having an advocate in the person of a Commercial The Internet Versus the Human Touch Service officer is an effective way to form that relation- The Internet and advances in telecommunications are ship.” rapidly changing the ways the CS does its job, but Or, as one FSO put it, “You can click with a mouse, but Commercial Service officers are confident that the you can click a lot better with a person.” human presence overseas is still an absolute necessity. Some functions can probably be done electronically. Both Sides Now Notes veteran commercial officer Pete Frederick, “In the Meanwhile, the Commercial Service is very active 1980s, we did credit checks on foreign companies. Now on both fronts: making person-to-person contacts with they can be done online.” exporters and foreign importers, and encouraging use That means some overseas programs can be cut back. of the Internet and electronic media. At one point, the United States had about 15 permanent For example, its International Buyer Program brings trade centers in other countries. Now there are just two, potential foreign importers to U.S. trade shows. It certi- in London and Mexico City. fies the trade shows, arranges delegations, and makes Long-time CS employees say, however, that modern sure that the international visitors are properly welcomed media cannot take the place of person-to-person meet- in the States. The trade show organizers pay the ings, such as the trade shows that are vital to business in Commerce Department for the service. Europe. Conversely, the Trade Mission program takes repre- Retired commercial officer Ed Ruse emphasizes that sentatives of six to 15 small and medium-size American “that’s how the Germans do their purchasing — they companies overseas, and sets up appointments for them build their year around being in certain commercial fairs. to meet with potential importers, a process called match- Trade fairs are part of the fabric of nearly every business making. person, especially in Germany ... but important through- CS posts abroad also set up catalog shows, in which out Europe. host-country businesses are invited to peruse a large col- “You get information about the market, find out if lection of brochures and catalogs from U.S. businesses your product is competitively priced, meet joint venture interested in exporting. These catalog events are increas- partners and long-term customers. And that’s something ingly being held online. you can’t accomplish by e-commerce,” says Ruse. Within the United States, the Commercial Service has “We do a lot of video-conferencing and that’s great. 108 U.S. Export Assistance Centers (called USEACs or But that’s not really a trade show,” says John Klingelhut, YOU-see-acks within the service). Focusing on small and a senior adviser for export promotion services. “When medium-size companies, the service’s domestic corps you get a monitor and a screen in a booth, and people are assesses a business’s export-readiness, shows business- talking from both sides of the ocean instantaneously — people the ropes, and helps them make contacts that may now that’s a virtual trade show.” lead to exports. Klingelhut says that many times what passes for a vir- In some cases, the CS may educate businesses on why tual trade show “is taking product literature, information it’s worth taking the trouble to develop exports —

26 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

explaining, for example, that when Defending FCS's relevance, “the same is true of NAFTA.” He business is slow in the U.S. it may explains, “It’s not driving us away be booming elsewhere, so exports one FSO says, “You can from our core function, but it’s can even out the business cycle. forcing us to define our role more One of the service’s fastest- click with a mouse, but you broadly, get into a more analytical growing programs is BuyUSA.com, function as opposed to a simply a massive Web site that brings can click a lot better promotional function.” together thousands of U.S. Interestingly, while the U.S. exporters and foreign firms. Says with a person.” government tries in many ways to Director General Maria Cino, “I promote exports, it makes no effort like to call it the Amazon.com of to get U.S. companies to buy exporting.” American, even though the U.S. trade deficit is running BuyUSA.com currently has about 5,000 American over $300 billion per year. seller members and 21,000 foreign buyer members. U.S. CS trade specialist Erin Butler commented, “It’s a firms must pay $400 a year for the service, but for that dangerous game for the government to get into playing. money they get their own Web presence, part of an active It’s one thing to encourage exports, it’s another thing international market. They can also set up a link to their entirely to discourage imports. This administration is own company’s Web site. Buyer and seller members can committed to the idea of free trade.” easily send inquiries or negotiate by e-mail. The Commercial Service certifies that member com- How Well Does the Commercial Service Serve? panies on BuyUSA.com are reliable. Marketing Director The essential, bottom-line question for the Doug Barry points out that this U.S. government role as Commercial Service is how well does it do its job? On “an honest broker” helps create confidence among buy- that, the evidence is mixed but with some strong posi- ers and sellers. “They don’t think they’re going to get tives. ripped off.” Gary Litman, the vice president for Europe and The service has long had its “Gold Key Program,” Eurasia for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, has heard which arranges a series of meetings for an American busi- from many companies about their experiences with the ness person in a foreign city. In a new twist, the Video FCS. He notes, “It’s very difficult to generalize, because Gold Key Program can do the same kind of matchmak- the quality of the people is the main thing. There are ing, but with the American company meeting prospective some folks who are high-energy, very knowledgeable. buyers or partners via videoconference instead of in per- But it’s very uneven. There are issues with training and son. competence.” CS officers find that this kind of Internet or video con- Litman says that smaller businesses trying to break tact often leads U.S. businesses to take the next step and into new foreign markets find the CS “terrific. ... We hear make personal visits. from companies that for the initial introduction to the While the Commercial Service’s mandate emphasizes market, the FCS people are particularly valuable.” helping small and medium-size businesses, Cino says, Beyond that, in “matchmaking” for particular deals, “it’s “We also help large businesses like Boeing, Pfizer, John more questionable what the FCS can offer,” he says. Deere. In China, we deal a lot with compliance” on mat- Small firms need an unusual combination of luck and ters like contracts and shipping problems, she says. perseverance to break into a foreign market, Litman says. While the Commercial Service has generally empha- “It’s such a random process, they make so many mistakes sized trade promotion, rather than the analysis and initially. But FCS can make that less random. You can reporting more typical of State Department officers, vet- save a lot of management time if you use FCS.” eran FSO Eric Sletten says that he has noticed a change Litman notes that “the Golden Key program is very in recent years. highly rated by our members,” though that program is In the European Union, he says, “standards and certi- used for the most part by larger businesses. fication issues are really huge issues for exporters” and As for the FCS requirement that businesses pay for

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 27 F OCUS

some services, Litman says, “There’s Small firms need an ic officers. “That doesn’t really exist an element of surprise and disap- any more,” Sletten says, though he pointment from smaller companies. unusual combination of complains that in a few of the largest They do not expect people who in U.S. embassies in Europe, commer- their minds are part of the U.S. luck and perseverance to cial officers are effectively excluded embassy to suddenly say, ‘You will from the country team. “Those few also get an invoice.’ It does look a lit- break into a foreign posts in Europe are exceptions,” he tle strange when the U.S. govern- emphasizes. ment charges you a fee when you’re market. But FCS can make Though the duties of commercial trying to export.” Larger companies officers and State’s economic officers don’t mind, he says. the process less random. may sometimes overlap, Craven says, The Commercial Service likes to “When a problem comes up, the rule proclaim the magnitude of its of reason tends to prevail. The per- achievements. It states, for example that in 2001 it son best qualified to deal with it tackles the job.” helped 9,000 businesses, “most of them small and medi- While commercial officers abroad are definitely part um-sized, export goods and services worth $34 billion.” of the embassy community, Sletten says, “We exist in Some critics say those are inflated figures, and that three cultures: a State culture, a Commerce culture and many if not most of those deals would have been made a private sector culture. ... The commercial officer has a without CS help. But FSO Stephen Craven says that the lot more hats to wear than the average State officer. We error may actually be in the opposite direction; i.e., many have to do the vast majority of our own personnel work. American businesses get valuable assistance from the We manage our own budgets and procurement. We typ- USEACs, but then never report back on their eventual ically manage FSN staffs that are much larger than State successes. “Some companies, especially here in the staffs.” West, are very suspicious of the U.S. government. To find people who can meet these challenges, the They’re afraid that we’ll share information with the IRS,” Commercial Service has over the years developed an he says, though the USEACs don’t do that. “We’re still “assessment” process for hiring new officers. The assess- not that good at tracking our successes,” Craven says. ment includes a set of exercises similar to the State Department oral exam, plus evaluation of qualifications The Foreign Service As Anomaly and previous experience in international trade. There are only 220 FSOs out of 1,800 Commercial Commerce doesn’t use the Foreign Service written exam. Service employees — and 35,000 Commerce Depart- Most recruiting is done at the FS-4 or FS-5 level, ment employees. though occasionally Civil Service employees are brought But, says Eric Sletten, “We’re very highly valued by in at higher FS ranks. The Commercial Service hires the department. Our officers, while they’re overseas, about 10 to 15 FSOs a year, and hopes to hire even more represent the Commercial Service, but they represent in 2003. every other element of this [Commerce Department] The U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service — partic- building. If NOAA [the National Oceanic and ularly its Foreign Service component — certainly faces Atmospheric Administration] needs something, we’re the lots of challenges: terrorism and security risks, rapidly go-to guys. That makes us a good value. People get a lot changing technologies that threaten to make old ways of from us for a relatively small amount of money.” doing things obsolete, and a tight budget that could be When they are posted overseas, Sletten says, com- made even tighter by State and OMB demands. mercial officers “identify as much with State as we do But the survival and continued vitality of the Service with Commerce.” Most Commercial Service officers are are not in doubt. As long as the United States remains an stationed in embassies and consulates, and all serve exporting nation, it will continue to value the domestic under their ambassador’s authority. and overseas components that make the Commercial In the 1980s, during the first years of the Service, there Service a key part of America’s strategy for economic were often tensions between the CS and State’s econom- prosperity. I

28 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS ON FCS

PIANO PLAYERS IN A MARCHING BAND: FCS OFFICERS Jeff Moores

AFSA’S FCS VICE PRESIDENT COUNTS THE WAYS THAT FCS OFFICERS ARE DIFFERENT FROM THEIR FOREIGN SERVICE, CIVIL SERVICE AND PRIVATE SECTOR COLLEAGUES.

BY PETER FREDERICK

hen I am asked to describe the way Foreign Commercial Service officers — the Foreign Service component of the Department of Commerce — are regarded within that agency, I draw on my experience asW a musician for an analogy. A piano player in a college marching band is indeed unique, and perhaps not fully appreciated. And even though he or she is as accomplished a musician as the others are, the choice of instrument is off-putting at best. We in the Foreign Commercial Service can well identify with that analogy. Even though FCSOs have demon-

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 29 F OCUS

strated skills equal to those of FS FCS is the only federal Commerce; 2) State and Com- personnel in the other foreign merce officials in Washington affairs agencies, there is some- government agency that think all is well, so there is no need thing about them that is different to change the agreement; or 3) from the rest of the Foreign offers the same service FSOs and FCSOs in the field have Service, the rest of the developed a professional working Commerce Department work- to its clients anywhere relationship without need of an force, and our counterparts in MOU. Whatever the reason(s), the private sector. I’d like to in the world. this isn’t the first case where those address each of those compar- who do the heavy lifting do it best isons in turn. without close supervision. Many embassies have formed a Commercial Team “Another” Foreign Service? (also sometimes known as the Ag-Econ-Commercial When serving overseas, FCSOs work closely with Team or the Econ-Commercial Team). Regardless of our other Foreign Service colleagues to accomplish the the name, the team consists of the State economic mission’s objectives. International understanding and counselor, the Foreign Agricultural Service officer and cordial relations with our host country are important. the Foreign Commercial Service officer. It has been However, the profit motive and business success are my experience that the econ officers take the lead on our principal motivators. economic reporting and direct negotiations with the The relationship between State and Commerce has host country government; the agriculture officer is always been clear on paper, even if it has not been con- responsible for policy issues and promotions related to sistently implemented. A memorandum of under- agricultural products; and the FCSO takes lead respon- standing carefully crafted by the two agencies in 1982 sibility for trade promotion and outreach to the busi- guarantees FCS personnel a respected position on the ness community (e.g., the American Chamber of country team and specifies that the senior commercial Commerce, importers’ associations). officer at post is supposed to be the ambassador’s It is a classic interagency group with the same prob- prime confidant regarding commercial issues. At least lems found in its larger “cousins” within the Beltway. that is the message Commerce gives new SCOs. Yet a Since the team has no official charter or MOU, it works few years ago, the Secretary of Commerce sought to only if the three agency representatives agree on explain the agreement to the ambassador at a large responsibilities and lead/back-up roles. But when it embassy and request more careful concurrence with works, it works well: there has been a consensus among the precepts in regard to the role of the SCO. To para- those with whom I have served that trade promotion phrase the secretary’s response after meeting with the events organized by FCS are much more enjoyable ambassador, the ambassador was well aware of the than treaty negotiations, summit meetings or VIP visits. MOU and equally aware that she could manage the For example, the FCSO may get credit for assisting post as she wanted regardless of that guidance. an American-invested company with its first major sale, The fact that the agreement has not been formally though that may not have been possible without the modified in the last 20 years could be because: 1) It’s dif- economics officer having successfully negotiated a mar- ficult, if not impossible, to negotiate any documents with ket opening agreement with the host country. And although there are specific agreements between Peter Frederick is AFSA’s Vice-President for FCS. An Commerce and Agriculture covering the market pro- FSO since 1982, he has served in Canada, Australia, motion of beer, wine, freshwater fish and saltwater fish, Korea, France, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, I have been accredited to nine embassies and have yet Lithuania and Washington, D.C. He was also the first to learn officially which agency is designated to do career FSO to serve as deputy assistant secretary of what. We just always did what needed to be done, Commerce. Prior to joining FCS, he was a country often without official guidance. manager for E.I. Dupont in Argentina. Even when the agreement is faithfully observed,

30 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

there can be certain disconnects. Our State colleagues results, sometimes literally. It may take years of nego- at times are puzzled by why we spend so much time at tiations to win a major power project, but when the trade shows working the crowds and why we have the concrete is poured, there can be no doubt that the deal authority to manage our own finances distinct from the was closed! embassy’s administrative section. And chiefs of mis- Yet while we share the same objectives and provide sion, especially non-career appointees, sometimes find the same service as do our domestic offices (now called it difficult to relate to an SCO who has as much (if not Export Assistance Centers), there are obviously some more) visibility in the host country as they do. I once differences in perspective between the 240 Foreign had the honor of serving with an ambassador who was Commercial Service officers assigned to over 140 approximately my height and also had white hair and embassies and consulates and the approximately 37,000 wore glasses. After he appeared on a national TV show, civil servants in Commerce who work throughout the I received numerous congratulatory messages and United States. For example, our GS friends wonder thumbs-up from passers-by. I mentioned to the ambas- why we in the Foreign Service are willing to move sador that I did not want him to think I was trying to every three or four years to a different country, learn a steal his “glory” by impersonating him. He assured me different language and perhaps even a different way of that his only concern was how to respond to the ques- doing our job. And when I tell friends within the tions he had suddenly started getting about customs Beltway that my children did not live in the same place clearance procedures! for as long as four years until they went to college, they FCSOs are truly unique within the foreign affairs respond with the look normally reserved for mean-spir- community. ited parents. Every director general of the US&FCS tries to bring the two groups closer, but it is a difficult Back Home at DOC task. We have different personnel systems and a dif- FCSOs work closely with their Civil Service col- ferent award and promotion structure. leagues in the Commerce Department to form the only Another factor is our management, which often has federal government agency that has the same objec- neither Civil nor Foreign Service experience. There is tives domestically and internationally and offers the an unwritten rule in Washington that equates the num- same service to their clients anywhere in the world. ber of political appointees in a department with the Our primary objectives are to help American-invested total number of employees; thus, the larger the depart- companies find fiscal success internationally, increase ment, the more political appointees. This practice has employment by increasing U.S. exports, and defend a particularly harmful twist within DOC, due to the and protect U.S. business interests. Our clients — “rat- scarcity of divisions where political appointees can be ing officials” — are numerous, including American assigned without seriously impeding the agency’s work. providers of goods and services, distributors of For example, approximately half of all DOC employees American products and services worldwide; and host- are part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric country importers and consumers of American prod- Administration. Because it is necessary to know some- ucts. (To be politically correct, I should also include thing about science to understand what those organiza- the country team and DOC, and Congress on the list, tions do, let alone to manage them effectively, there as keeping them happy is at times even more impor- aren’t many political appointees in NOAA. The same is tant.) true of the Census Bureau and many other divisions Yet while we serve many masters, and the list of ser- within Commerce. vices we provide is long and impressive, all of our Consequently, disproportionate numbers of political “bosses” are looking for the same result: did we close appointees end up in senior positions in organizations the deal? In that respect, our job is easier than that of like the International Trade Administration even our State colleagues, who also have several masters but though they may never have met a payroll, sold a prod- with different (and sometimes conflicting) priorities. uct, met a budget or managed more than a few employ- Some might even suggest our job is more fulfilling than ees. Similarly, the FCS Director General position has others in the Foreign Service since we seek concrete been a “training slot” for the past 20 years. Several

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 31 F OCUS

DGs were quick studies, but oth- It may take years of the country manager for a multi- ers weren’t. We have had DGs national corporation. In fact, with two or three years of negotiations to win a major many of the commercial officers Foreign Service experience and that joined the FCS in the 1980s others who literally didn’t even power project, but when were former country managers have a passport when they were for Fortune 500 companies, appointed. Yet virtually every the concrete is poured, where they had been responsible DG has instituted new programs, for the profitable use of fiscal very few of which survive his or there can be no doubt and human resources. Adjunct her departure. (At one point we to that responsibility is the were changing logos and names that the deal was closed. authority to manage available on an annual basis.) So perhaps resources to position the compa- this is yet another reason FCSOs ny and its products in the local are unique within the foreign affairs community market. FCSOs do all that, not just for one company but for all that ask for assistance. Private vs. Public But there are several significant differences. While Then there is the private sector. When the private-sector managers have some ability to select and Department of Commerce first advertised in the Wall reward their workforce, in most cases, an FCSO must Street Journal over 20 years ago for FCSOs, it work with FSNs hired by his or her predecessor and described the duties as similar to those performed by depend on embassy awards panels or selection boards

32 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

to reward the staff. In addition, if Every director general I get a call from one of my pri- the private-sector manager is suc- vate-sector friends, asking if we cessful, the results are obvious and of the US&FCS tries are hiring! FCSOs are unique the rewards significant. If unsuc- within the business community, cessful, the reverse is also true. to bring the Foreign too. But successful FCSOs will get a Perhaps the one attribute we good employee evaluation report, Service and Civil Service share with the rest of our col- letters of commendation from the leagues (Foreign Service per- businesses they have helped and components closer, sonnel, GS employees and the perhaps recognition from the pro- private sector) is pride of ser- motion panel. If unsuccessful, but it is a difficult task. vice. The collection of success they may still get a good EER but stories distributed by FCS probably nothing from the selec- includes numerous examples of tion board. FCSOs who have been instrumental in closing a partic- As close as our professions are, our private-sector ular deal, or making a company’s international opera- colleagues sometimes question why we would accept a tions viable. We have done some good for our clients job that requires knowledge of so many markets in dif- around the world and the American economy (as have ferent regions of the world, having little control over many FSOs, of course). So we are proud to be part of where we will live, all for, relatively speaking, so little the Foreign Service Marching Band, even if at times money. I hasten to point out that every several months we would consider trading in our piano for a piccolo. I

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 33 F OCUS ON FCS

GOING GLOBAL WITH THE U.S. COMMERCIAL SERVICE Jeff Moores

THE U.S. COMMERCIAL SERVICE HELPS U.S. BUSINESSES, PARTICULARLY SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZE ONES, SELL THEIR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES GLOBALLY. HERE’S HOW.

BY MARIA CINO

here are some 23 million small businesses in the United States, but only about 1 per- cent of them sell their goods outside the country. Fortunately, the number of businesses that export is increas- ing, more thanT tripling in the past seven years. This is good news for the U.S. economy. Exports are key to economic growth. U.S. exports accounted for near- ly 25 percent of economic growth experienced in the past decade. One out of 10 American jobs and one in five manufacturing jobs are supported by exports. Altogether, about 12 million U.S. jobs depend upon exports. And

34 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

exports mean not only jobs, but bet- The number of U.S. his export business. Mariscal sus- ter-paying jobs. Workers in jobs sup- pected there were good markets for ported by exports receive wages 13 businesses that export Hirsch’s plumbing fixtures. “People to 18 percent higher than the nation- will pay a premium for ‘made in the al average. High-tech industry jobs has tripled in the past USA,’” he notes. But he had little supported by exports pay even more. practical knowledge of the export That’s why increasing U.S. exports seven years. process. He began by calling his is so important. The U.S. Com- contacts in the industry for advice. mercial Service helps U.S. business- Almost immediately, he was directed es, particularly small and medium-size companies, sell to the Los Angeles U.S. Export Assistance Center. “I their products and services globally. We do this asked them a lot of questions,” Mariscal recalls. “I was through our worldwide network, which includes 108 starting from scratch.” U.S. Export Assistance Centers and more than 150 Since the key aspects of any transaction are identi- international offices. Last year, the U.S. Commercial fying a market and a buyer, this is the general focus of Service helped U.S businesses generate export sales much of what we do. Our officers and Foreign Service worth more than $23 billion. During the same period, National specialists in-country — we have offices in our international staff met one-on-one with 78,400 160 cities located in 82 countries — identify distribu- companies. tion channels, promotion practices, key competitors, pricing, market trends, and more. How the U.S. Commercial Service Works Exporting is by no means as easy as selling to cus- New Directions tomers in your own backyard, however. U.S. busi- One of my primary goals for the U.S. Commercial ness owners need to carefully target the best markets Service has been to raise the agency’s profile so that we for their products and then be prepared to deal with can reach even more U.S. businesses. In the last year, cultural differences, unfamiliar labeling standards, we’ve ramped up our marketing efforts and dramati- customs issues and a host of other challenges. Help cally increased our outreach to the media, both in the navigating the process of making their first interna- U.S. and overseas. We’ve also worked extensively with tional sale can make a world of difference to a small elected officials — mayors, congressional representa- company. That’s where our worldwide network tives, governors, etc. — to help them reach out to their comes in. constituencies about the benefits of exporting. I tell businesspeople who are interested in export- I’ve also started a new program, the Export ing to make their first stop their local U.S. Export Achievement Certificate, to recognize the accomplish- Assistance Center. There, an international trade spe- ments of individual exporters. The certificate recog- cialist will assess the company’s export readiness, pin- nizes companies that have used our services to make point the assistance needed, and help the company their first export sale or make a sale to a new interna- develop a plan for reaching their export goals. These tional market. specialists have access to a vast amount of market Another top priority is using technology to make research; if more information is needed to answer exporting faster and easier for small U.S. businesses. highly specific questions about particular markets and Business is all about relationships — but for small products, they can request customized research from businesses with limited travel budgets, relationship- one of the 1,800 U.S. Commercial Service specialists building isn’t just important, it’s expensive. around the world. Technology can help. Of course, neither DSL lines That’s how our client Greg Mariscal of Van Nuys, nor videoconferencing equipment, no matter how Calif.-based Hirsch Pipe & Supply Company started advanced, can replace face-to-face conversation. Small businesses that want to be successful overseas Assistant Secretary Maria Cino is the Director General will always be frequent flyers. But Web- and video- of the U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service. based services can make for a low-cost, high-return

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 35 F OCUS

way for our clients to explore international markets ANCIENT FORMULAS’ SPECIAL BLEND and find new customers. Traditional Persian Remedies and 21st-Century Business Our e-marketplace, BuyUSA.com, is one such tool. We collaborated with IBM to create this virtual market- radition is important to Mark Aghakhani. He is the president and founder of Ancient Formulas, Inc. a Wichita, Kan. compa- place, which was launched in October 2001. The site Tny that does good business doing things the old-fashioned allows U.S.-based companies to promote their products way — in this case, manufacturing food supplements based on online and locate new foreign buyers and distributors. ancient Persian formulas. Explains Aghakhani, “Modern medicine International businesses can view product catalogs and can’t answer everything, and these remedies have been time-tested background information on U.S. companies that have for 2,000 years.” But he’s used 21st-century e-commerce to take been pre-qualified by Commercial Service trade experts. his traditional products to the world marketplace: BuyUSA.com, the Small exporters are already reporting large contracts Commerce Department’s online marketplace. with international buyers and distributors as a result of He founded the company in 1984 with one product: a natural remedy for high blood pressure. Since then, the product line has their BuyUSA.com subscription. grown to 98 remedies and the company now sells to doctors and health food stores across the U.S. and overseas. Ancient Formulas Finding the Right Guy has always been a family affair, and is still a small business with New Jersey exporter Rocky Hadzovic found a new only five employees. distributor for his line of “Hollywood USA” body How did traditional Persian remedies travel to the American sprays, creams, baby products, deodorants, and sham- heartland? Actually, Aghakhani says, it was his mother’s idea. In the poos using BuyUSA.com. And his success came in a early 1980s, when Aghakhani purchased a home health care com- pany, his mother suggested that he try natural remedies from the market that many small companies find challenging — family’s native Iran for the patients’ most common ailments. Nigeria. Hadzovic says the only way to succeed in dif- Aghakhani went to Wichita’s Center for Human Functioning, a ficult markets is “to find the right guy.” clinic for alternative medicine. There he met Dr. Oscar Rasmussen, “Having the American embassy check out a buyer is who agreed to do a clinical study of his blood pressure remedy. the best way,” he says. With support from our staff in When it proved effective and doctors expressed interest, Ancient Nigeria, Newark, and on BuyUSA.com, Hadzovic sold Formulas was born. $28,600 worth of products with a $60,000 follow-on Aghakhani occasionally got international inquiries, but a last order. He’s signed a contract with the distributor and year he decided to take a more proactive approach to ratchet up his international sales. “We have a market niche,” he says. In many expects more sales to follow. parts of the world, consumers are more receptive to alternative One of our most popular products is our Gold Key medicines than in the U.S. International Trade Specialist George Service, in which Commercial Service officers screen Lavid of the Wichita U.S. Export Assistance Center introduced him and investigate potential agents or distributors for a to BuyUSA.com. Aghakhani soon signed up. U.S. company, then schedule appointments for the vis- “BuyUSA is a good service,” he says. “If you stay at it and iting American businessperson with the best respond to requests quickly, you can achieve more, faster.” He has prospects. A videoconference version of this service made sales to Japan, Malaysia and Australia, and thinks that the is available for those who do not have the time to trav- entire region may hold promise for his company. “I’ve gotten tons of requests,” he says. el. While the Video Gold Key is not a substitute for a His advice to other U.S. entrepreneurs? “Definitely go interna- country visit, the service is a good solution for compa- tional.” Especially with a niche product like his, Aghakhani notes, nies unable to visit a promising market immediately. “there is more competition domestically.” Plus, he adds, “‘Made in It’s also a good way for a new-to-market company to the USA’ is an advantage overseas.” get its feet wet in an untried market without investing Ancient Formulas has long since outgrown the Aghakhani fami- lots of time and money. ly kitchen, and Aghakhani says his next steps are to continue to Just as in the “live” Gold Key Service, U.S. compa- build his company’s capacity. “I have so much back order you wouldn’t believe it,” he says. But the company will remain a family nies have access to the expertise of commercial offi- business. Ancient Formulas’ success proves that with e-com- cers who hand-pick promising potential distributors, merce, you don’t have to be big to be global — and that it pays to partners, and agents. However, meetings are conduct- listen to your mother. ed via videoconference, with the Commercial Service offices in the U.S. and the foreign market handling all

36 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

Excel Holdings: Distilling Export Success Out of Thin Air isham Fawzi sells a machine that produces water out of thin right distributor. If they fail, I fail,” he says. Fawzi’s insistence on air. It sounds like science fiction, but the Water Finder is real, the most qualified and reliable distributors led him to the U.S. Haffordable, and quenching the thirst of customers around the Commercial Service and its Northern Virginia U.S. Export world. For Fawzi’s company, Excel Holdings of Leesburg, Va., Assistance Center. There he learned that trade experts both at the 2001 has been a very good year. In the past six months, Fawzi has Center and in the international markets he was considering could made sales of $35 million and $50 million, and now has distribu- help him make the contacts his business needed. tors covering 13 international markets. Trade specialist April Redmon suggested that Fawzi use a Gold And right now, he’s dealing with a problem that most business- Key Service to enter the Asian market. Commercial Service officers es would love to have. “My product is easy to sell, but it can be dif- in Singapore identified promising potential distributors and set up ficult to meet the demand,” explains Fawzi. He maintains rigorous meetings for Fawzi with the best prospects. “The Gold Key makes customer service standards, and recent sales are keeping his dis- things much easier,” says Fawzi. “I feel stronger when I’m selling, tributors busy. “Korea is begging” for the Water Finder, he says. and the buyer senses that legitimacy.” The result? A distributor- But Fawzi is trying to build his international business slowly — if ship agreement that covers the entire region and includes sales of $85 million in recent sales can be called slow. $50 million. Fawzi went on to do a Commercial Service-supported Fawzi acquired the original patent from a Florida inventor who trade mission and show in Mexico — “our booth was really crowd- came up with the machine’s basic design. He then worked with the ed,” he remembers of his first trade show. Again, big sales result- University of Maryland’s environmental engineering department to ed. improve and refine the Water Finder; he now has six pending Fawzi’s advice to other U.S. businesses is to set a goal and then patents and has developed a larger version, the Aquasphere, that get out and sell. “Respect for U.S. products is strong, regardless can produce 5,000 gallons of pure drinking water a day. of politics,” he says. Yet too many U.S. companies, according to Because Fawzi relies on his distributors not only to make sales Fawzi, are apprehensive about selling globally. Instead, he urges but also to provide ongoing customer care, “it’s crucial to find the them to “get out there.”

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 37 F OCUS

To China & Beyond Building Export Dreams with the Commercial Service

aureen Russell got into the building materials business in 1975, when she went to work for a local materials distributor. But her greatest challenge came 10 years ago when she bought the R. M. Waite Company, a small roofing and building materials dis- Mtributor based in Oakland, Calif. Most of the company’s international sales went to Asia, and the financial crisis saw export mar- kets deflate and overseas sales slow. That’s when Russell turned to the government for help diversifying and strengthening her export markets. Her first stop was the Center for International Trade Development, an initiative of ED>Net, the California Community College Economic Development Network. There, Director Richard Soyombo introduced her to the U.S. Commercial Service, a Department of Commerce unit that provides global business solutions to U.S. companies. With offices in more than 100 locations across the country, CS works closely with other local, state and federal trade assistance agencies. Russell entered an international business training program led by International Trade Specialist Stephen Johnson of CS San Francisco and assisted by Soyombo of CITD. Part of CS’s Global Diversity Initiative, the six-month training program is held in business centers throughout the U.S. and covers the logistics of international trade: distribution channels, finance, transportation, e-commerce, and documentation. As an experienced exporter, Russell didn’t know what she’d get out of the program. But she was surprised by how much there was to learn. Soon she was experimenting with new methods and sources of financing, like those of CS partner Export- Import Bank. With these new tools in hand, Russell turned to new markets. Working with International Trade Specialist George Tastard, also of CS San Francisco, Russell began to explore a market many small-business owners find daunting: China. One of the first things Russell learned about doing business there was the importance of relationships. She built contacts with Chinese buyers, and continued to work closely with her network of CS export specialists. George Tastard introduced Russell to commercial officers in Beijing, who provided their unique brand of on-the-ground know-how to speed the company into the market. And when Russell’s Chinese customers had dif- ficulty getting visas to visit the U.S., Tastard put Russell in touch with Congresswoman Barbara Lee, D-Calif., to sort out the issue. Now, 80 percent of R. M. Waite’s exports go to Asia, generating approximately $2 million this year.

the set-up and tech support. All the Neither DSL lines nor franchisees in Mumbai. The U.S. businessperson has to do is U.S. and Indian companies show up and present the product. videoconferencing equipment could display products, ask We also give U.S. companies the questions, and get to know each option of participating in virtual can replace face-to-face other; deals were closed later, trade missions, which for some either offline or in person. companies are an easier and less conversation. But technology The vast majority of U.S. expensive way to investigate an exporters are small or medium- interesting market than a tradition- can help make exporting faster size businesses. Exporting al trade mission. And, as with tradi- makes good business sense for tional missions, there are advan- and easier for small U.S. these companies — having cus- tages to working in a group. U.S. tomers around the world can companies can network with and businesses. insulate a company against mar- learn from other delegates, who ket turbulence and seasonal generally are not competitors. fluctuation. These advantages often translate to higher One virtual trade mission introduced seven U.S. fran- rates of growth, increased profitability, and overall health- chisers to more than 40 companies in India that were ier businesses. interested in purchasing master franchises. Commercial This is an excellent time for U.S. businesses to Service offices in Atlanta, New York, Louisville, Dallas, find new customers overseas. We at the U.S. San Francisco and Little Rock hosted the U.S. companies Commercial Service are working harder than ever to and linked via videoconference to the audience of Indian help them do it. I

38 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS ON FCS

TWO DECADES ON THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED Jeff Moores

THE CREATION OF FCS WAS FAR FROM PAINLESS, BUT OVER THE PAST 22 YEARS IT HAS MADE SUBSTANTIAL PROGRESS. NOW IT MUST CONTINUE ON THAT PATH, USING NEW TOOLS.

BY STEPHAN HELGESEN

ack in 1980, as part of the Foreign Service Act, Congress voted to move the function of pro- moting the United States’ commercial interests from the State Department to the Department of Commerce. This changeB led to the creation of the U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service. This transformation was far from painless, but over the ensuing 22 years, our agency has made substantial progress. It has done so with the help of a cadre of career officers who care deeply about their profession and their agency. FCS (as it was then popularly called) recognized that it needed mature officers to carry out an orderly transition and

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 39 F OCUS

make the new agency work. It helped that the State trans- apron strings. Several of us have likened our situation to ferees shared their Commerce colleagues’ belief that “being employed by Ford Motor Company, but seconded commercial work was challenging, rewarding and, I dare- to work in General Motors’ headquarters” (i.e., taking our say, fun. They also brought with them something very daily direction from State’s post management, but ever important that most DOC employees did not have: an mindful that Commerce pays our wages). This divided understanding of the workings of the State Department. loyalty created (and is still creating) significant operating To find experienced businesspeople to round out the challenges for many of our officers the world over. ranks, FCS launched a major recruitment drive. (For Not long afterward, it became clear that State regret- example, I found my way into the agency by answering an ted its decision to give up the commercial function, and it ad in the Wall Street Journal in 1982.) Hundreds of appli- made periodic attempts to wrest more of our work from cants from private industry, academia and the Civil us. Deputy Secretary of State Larry Eagleburger’s 1989 Service took an entrance exam and underwent the year- “Bill of Rights for American Business” speech (given at an long assessment process, including background checks, AFSA-sponsored conference celebrating the State medical exams and training. Department’s 200th anniversary) — later sent to all chiefs That was the easy part. The real challenge of organi- of mission as a policy telegram — seemed to sum up zation-building began as we ‘outsiders’ from America’s State’s desire to take back the lead role in promoting U.S. private sector strove to retain our exuberance, enthusiasm business overseas. [See sidebar, p. 41.] and creativity, while assimilating into the mainstream of None of us at FCS could really blame State for this the bureaucracy — to ‘morph’ into a new kind of public power grab; after all, they were scrambling to find a solid sector/private entrepreneur life-form. FCS’s goal was to constituency that would help them fight for more funding show America’s small businesses that we were program- on the Hill. And what better group for that purpose than oriented commercial activists; that we talked the talk and American business — who could be relied upon to argue walked the walk of business. Sure, we were expected to that whoever provided them with commercial assistance know about trade policy, but more importantly, we were was indispensable? Those were truly times that tried tasked with making the cash register ring, overseas. commercial officers’ souls. Our own management was demanding that we spend every waking hour helping U.S. Learning to Live with State businesses succeed overseas, while we in the field were FCS patterned itself after State’s organization. For busy being diplomats in our own backyards, trying to example, we copied the ‘desk officer’ concept and estab- please our post management and, I regret to say, spending lished our own personnel division (now called the Office considerable time and energy protecting our congression- of Foreign Service Human Resources), separate from the ally-mandated turf. Commerce Department’s office. Because of costs, we But we made it through those years, and we learned (like many other agencies with a significant overseas pres- some important lessons in the process. We learned that ence) asked State to handle our administrative needs. Commerce and State really did need each other and that This step brought us into its orbit and ultimately, under its if we spent more time working together, it would benefit control. us both. We also learned to engage our ambassadors (and During the first few years of FCS’s existence, both some engaged themselves) in our programs and to push State and Commerce got along fairly well. Through work- them out front to do advocacy work. We found that many ing together, we learned more about each other and, I non-career ambassadors were our natural allies in this would say, learned to respect each other, too. Yet there effort since they often came from successful private sector were some drawbacks to being tied too tightly to State’s careers. Unfortunately, more than a few post managements see Stephan Helgesen is a 19-year veteran of the U.S. & commercial work as a kind of movable feast that can be Foreign Commercial Service. He is currently the senior passed around to other mission elements as they see fit. commercial officer at U.S. Embassy Copenhagen. He So, instead of leading the charge, we have become the “B- has also served in Singapore, Munich, Port of Spain, team” in some posts, supporting those with lesser experi- Rotterdam and The Hague. ence or competence. Whether this is done by choice or

40 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

from fear of being accused of Our job as commercial apprise our State colleagues in being poor team players, it has Washington of them. resulted in a lowering of FCS’s sta- officers occasionally demands tus at some posts. But we should The Role of the FCS remember that there is a natural the acuity and dexterity of a Director General ebb and flow to life in the foreign We have been lucky to have had affairs agency community. To suc- circus juggler, spinning plates a few good directors-general lead- ceed, we must realize that our job ing our organization during the occasionally demands the acuity at the end of a stick. past two decades. While some had and dexterity of a circus juggler, very pointed, single-issue agendas, spinning plates at the end of a others have positively influenced stick. We must put several in motion and constantly run our lives and work. They have fought for us — and, yes, up and down the line to make sure none of them falls. We occasionally fought with us. They have allowed us to cannot afford to let even one drop, for we are constantly explain our visions even if they did not always share them. being judged by somebody. And that brings me to Some have understood what makes commercial officers employee evaluation reports. tick even if they didn’t take the time to check our “main- spring” and ask for our opinions. Too Many Cooks The average senior commercial officer has four raters/reviewers: the DCM (rater) and the ambassador A Bill of Rights for American Business (reviewer) at post, and the regional manager (rater) and eputy Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger, from a speech the deputy assistant secretary for international operations Don the subject of “American Business and Government in a (reviewer) back at FCS. With so many people to please Turbulent World” given in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the State Department on Nov. 30, 1989: (not to mention the hundreds of businesspeople who “My message to you today is that we are going to do everything write letters about our performance) it’s a wonder we can in our power to see to it that the State Department is your friend and choose a productive course of action and then dare to take ally. In this spirit, I would like to leave you this afternoon with what it! As ‘Honest Abe’ said, “you can please some of the peo- might be called a ‘Bill of Rights for American Business.’ It tells you ple all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, what you can expect from the Department of State. You have a right: but not all of the people all of the time.” First, to have your views heard and considered on foreign policy Here are a few possible solutions: issues that affect your interests; Second, to be assured that the ground rules for the conduct of • We should eliminate the DCM as our rater and make international trade are fair and non-discriminatory; the ambassador’s review of our performance the sole Third, to receive assistance from well-trained and knowledgeable statement coming from the mission. (This is realistic since trade specialists in each overseas mission; the COM has the last word from post management’s side Fourth, to receive sound professional advice and analysis on the anyway.) local political and business environment; • We should do more of our own administrative work Fifth, to receive assistance in contacts with key public and pri- and lessen our dependency on other agencies. (We’re vate-sector decision-makers; Sixth, to the ‘active promotion’ of U.S. firms in international bids, already heading that way as we opt out of more and more and where more than one U.S. firm is involved, even-handed sup- admin services, so we might as well make a clean break and port for all interested firms; and tailor the system to meet our specific needs.) Seventh, to receive assistance in achieving amicable settlement • We should encourage more frequent visits from our of investment and trade disputes, and in the case of expropriation or regional managers to post so that they have a clear picture similar action, to obtain prompt, adequate, and effective compensa- of the challenges we face. (This is important because sit- tion. uations can change rapidly.) If you are not getting this type of assistance now, let us know. As long as I am in this job, I intend personally to see that you get the • We should continue to support our officers in the response you need when calling on this department and your over- field with clear statements of policy and purpose for each seas embassies for support.” individual post, and we must make a concerted effort to

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 41 F OCUS

In general, they have streamlined our operations, believe that we can be replaced by a high-speed modem applying modern management techniques to make us and a subscription to an Internet service provider — that more productive. They have introduced such concepts as most international business can be done electronically Total Quality Management, Centers of Excellence, and and that anyone can do it. While that may be the case for Best Practices as well as created mathematical models for major financial institutions moving billions of dollars, it’s post resource allocation. just not true for the hundreds of thousands of America’s They have held our feet to the fire and demanded we small businesses whose needs are more modest but every document our successes through the submission of “suc- bit as important to the U.S. economy. The same “infor- cess stories.” To their credit, they’ve used them on the mation revolution” that made the Internet indispensable Hill to get us more money. That’s the good news. also gave us “information overload,” and is also making The less good news is that (as this magazine goes to the job of sorting through that information essential. And print) we still don’t have a signature on our assignments who is capable of doing it efficiently in world markets at policy/procedures proposal — a critical document devel- a reasonable price? We are. oped 18 months ago to make our personnel system more While we still need to concentrate on the tool (the equitable and professional. Without it, we will continue computer), we must keep focused on the craftsman (our to live under a highly subjective system that allows unrea- professional organization). Both are vital to our success. sonable latitude in the assignments process and can Fortunately for us, our productivity has soared, and our encourage abuse. Friends have told me that negotiating ability to deliver valuable services to the business com- with Commerce is not “Mission Impossible,” but it is munity has increased manyfold. We must continue on extremely difficult to reach a consensus because of the this path, not because it’s the prudent thing to do, but “stakeholder problem” (non-career DGs are only with us because it is the only thing to do. U.S. companies two to three years). To be fair, however, this attitude demand it of us and they demand that FCS remain a peo- seems to exist irrespective of the political stripe of the ple-oriented business, one committed to finding solutions occupants in the office. Many believe it’s a natural atti- that are tailored to their needs. That said, we will need tude for people who aren’t long-term stakeholders in our to train the next generation of already computer-savvy service (as the directors general of other agencies’ foreign college graduates in the art of becoming effective, special services are). So what to do? generalists, people whose skill-sets cover a wide range of For starters, we need to sell our message better to our disciplines. To do that, we must provide adequate train- higher-ranking officers and encourage them to risk a trip ing slots in larger embassies for these men and women to up to Commerce’s front office on our behalf — to grow and hone their skills under the tutelage of experi- become visible advocates for change. While recognizing enced officers. that dialogue is always better than diatribe, we must pre- We must fill vacant positions but not move inexperi- pare cogent arguments that can persuade the reluctant to enced, first-tour officers into senior commercial officer become even temporary stakeholders. As such, we will jobs until they are ready. (It’s better to have multiple- ensure a sense of mutual ownership of the issues and country coverage than coverage that is too “experience- some real responsibility for their solution. This is a tall challenged.”) We must have a long-range vision and an order, but I’m convinced we can make it happen, togeth- equally long-range plan that encompasses personnel, er. In short, if we are to succeed in our own department, programs and services. For the shorter term, it must we must be able to count on the DG as “one of our own,” cover at least a five-year period, not just the traditional, who will fight for the support we need to run a profes- four-year “administration period.” We must think and sional corps of officers. plan beyond the election, beyond the next director gen- eral appointment. The Next 20 Years To reach our goal of getting more companies to export With the advent of computerization, e-mail, Web we must engage more companies where they live. This sites, videoconferences and the like, we are well on our means creating Stateside positions (for FS-1 and senior way to becoming a true 21st-century organization. So is officers), as was once advocated but then forgotten. For everyone else, it seems. Our detractors would have you example, we should appoint special commercial advisors

42 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

to state governors, bringing the If we are to succeed in our If anyone thinks that we can experience of seasoned officers make these changes alone, they are back to America’s home turf. We own department, we must sorely mistaken. After all, no team must also create a few roving com- can win if it feels it doesn’t have the mercial-ambassador jobs that give be able to count on the proper equipment or the support us entrée into university business of the owners. So it will take a extension programs, where we can DG as “one of our own,” renewed effort on the part of man- motivate young executives agement and labor to meet and dis- enrolled in night-school and MBA who will fight for the support cuss issues openly and honestly. programs to encourage their com- And we will need the help of essen- panies to export overseas. we need to run a professional tial third parties like AFSA to pro- We must convince our most vide their guidance and counsel to senior minister-counselors to corps of officers. help keep the ball in play and the come back to Washington and playing field level. serve at headquarters to improve Finally, we must be proud of the system with their knowledge and wisdom. Above who and what we are, where we’ve been, and we should all, we must remember that we are a service business, look forward to where we’re going and what we can and as such, we will always be held to today’s standards become as an agency. To quote Robert Browning: “Ah, of performance and be compared to private sector but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, or what’s a companies. heaven for?” I

Visit Spend your time Staybridge Suites the way you want. Do the same with your per diem. • Free Breakfast Buffet • Fitness Center • Laundry • Sundowner socials

Your per diem goes much farther. So the next time you travel, spend some time here at Staybridge Suites. And Make It Your Place.

Tysons-McLean 6845 Old Dominion Drive McLean, VA 22101 Phone: 703.448.5400 Fax: 703.506.0001 Owned by McLean Hotel LLC and Operated by Grand Duke Hotel, LLC

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 43 F OCUS ON FCS

FCS RECOLLECTIONS Jeff Moores

A RETIRED FS OFFICER WHO “JUMPED THE SHIP OF STATE” REVIEWS HIS FCS EXPERIENCE. THE CONCLUSION? IFHE HAD TO DO IT AGAIN, HE WOULD.

BY JACK BLIGH

couple of years after the Foreign Commercial Service was formed, three or four of us who had moved over from State were discussing, perhaps wondering about, the future of our fledgling organization and why weA had made the move. Someone opined, “Because we thought that we were going to run it!” If that was the pri- mary motivation, we were quickly disabused of it. However, another motivation was surely that some Foreign Service officers found commercial work rewarding in its own right and chafed at the likelihood that, if they pursued it as a spe- cialty at State, they were condemning themselves to subordinate positions in economic sections abroad and to who-

44 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

knows-what in the way of Washington The big issues were Assessment Centers employed by assignments. State. Unlike State, however, there As I recall, when the establishment the “reporting to” was no Foreign Service Written of the FCS was proposed, it was envi- Examination and the writing sample sioned as a line and staff organization practice and employee portion of the assessment was not reporting directly to the secretary of heavily weighted. In fact, I always felt Commerce. At the onset of the first evaluation writing. that our headquarters downplayed the Reagan administration, however, it was importance of good drafting skills in made a subordinate element of the the recruiting process. Perhaps International Trade Administration, itself merely a blip of because I had been in the first group of officers from 1,700 employees on the Commerce Department’s State’s Board of Examiners to use the Assessment Center 30,000-strong screen. Consequently, the FCS, headed procedure, I served on or chaired a number of assess- initially by a director general of deputy assistant secretary ments, in Paris, London (twice) and Washington (twice). rank, had little bureaucratic clout within Commerce, and The quality of people we assessed was often astonishing- not all that much more within ITA, whose other units ly high and, as I had experienced at BEX, I regretted how were headed by assistant secretaries. many we had to turn away.

Appointing and Recruiting Relations with State From the outset, I sensed that many divisions of DOC One of the most personalized aspects of the creation viewed the FCS as the overseas arm of ITA rather than of of the FCS was how officers of Commerce and State Commerce as a whole. And it did not make much sense would and should relate to one another in overseas mis- that a unit designated “Trade Development” functioned sions as one-time subordinates became equals. I suspect separately from the FCS within ITA — except that keep- that, where both the senior commercial officer and the ing these entities distinct provided more opportunities economic counselor were State, little changed. for high-level political appointments. Otherwise, the big issues were the “reporting to” practice The number of transferees from State, though more and employee evaluation writing. Although the legisla- than either department expected, was far below the total tion creating the FCS called for the SCO to report to the required to fill all the officer slots Commerce had inher- ambassador through the DCM, some posts tried to main- ited. For the most part, it was decided to keep State tain the status quo ante, with the FCS officer reporting FSOs then filling DOC positions in place until their tours through the economic section and, effectively, to the were up. Of more concern to career FCS officers was DCM. management’s decision to make direct appointments of Commerce could, of course, have simply returned persons of its choosing to the Senior Foreign Service. evaluations not written as the legislation required to bring These appointments were to the minister-counselor level the issue to the fore. FCS’s attitude, however, was one of and nearly all to embassies in Western Europe. sympathy but little action, at least where it would do any The FCS embarked early on a recruiting and exami- good. Maybe that was just facing reality. Persons nation program, utilizing a format modeled after the assigned to headquarters often complained that the mod- est grade levels given their positions when the organiza- John (Jack) Bligh is a retired Foreign Service Officer. tion was created meant that they were always bumping He joined the Foreign Service in 1966, and moved from heads with persons of much higher rank when negotiat- State to the Department of Commerce with the transfer ing with other agencies. For their part, senior appointees of the commercial function. Mr. Bligh served in Seoul, were said to aspire to ambassadorial appointments and San Jose, Monrovia, Duesseldorf, Washington, were therefore reluctant to rock the boat at State. Barcelona, Madrid, Ottawa, Bonn, Brussels (EU) and It was left to an officer in the field to file a grievance, Sydney. He wishes to thank the many colleagues — too ultimately successful, to remedy the situation. Despite its numerous to name in this short piece — who deserve obvious implications, some FCS colleagues seemed more credit for things mentioned in the text. shocked than pleased at the action. The grievance pro-

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 45 F OCUS

cedure was new and that sort of thing “simply wasn’t specific background was necessary to qualify as a pro- done” in the minds of traditionalists. The issue, as I gram manager. Overseas experience was not a widely- understood it, was whether a chief of mission was bound held strength. by legislation and by interagency agreement in As a consequence, programs and procedures were Washington to institute the “through the DCM to the often mandated without reference to local market condi- ambassador” regime. A sub-issue was whether FCS tions and practices. For example, SCOs were required to members could use the State grievance procedure. The clear their annual commercial plan with the in-country Grievance Board not only accepted jurisdiction, confirm- American Chamber of Commerce. There may be posts ing the Foreign Service status of FCS personnel but, to where the local Amcham’s primary interest is in promot- the surprise of everyone I know save one, held for the ing U.S. exports, but I never served at one. They were grievant. That should have been a landmark that more likely interested in exporting to the U.S., lobbying resolved the problem worldwide. However, I am aware for in-country advantages, or maybe, as in Canada, didn’t that the reporting problem existed at two large embassies even exist. It was also automatically assumed that a trade in the mid-1990s, and maybe still does. I should add that promotion vehicle effective in one market could be lock- I, personally, never had to confront the issue. step implemented worldwide with equal effectiveness. People outside of government may feel that civil ser- It is difficult to believe now, but one of the issues vants are preoccupied with ranks and titles, but my expe- which dogged early SCO conferences was that of charg- rience in the private sector suggests that things are no dif- ing businesses for services. For some ex-State officers, ferent there. In the Foreign Service, especially abroad, including me, the thought did not sit well. Our private an officer’s standing can determine access to information sector colleagues had no such qualms, however, and once and decision-makers as well as the ability to obtain and we saw the opportunities for innovation and flexibility employ resources; in short, it can determine the officer’s opened up by a locally-controlled revenue stream, almost effectiveness. From the beginning, the SCO should have all SCOs followed suit. Of course, we had an earlier enjoyed the same diplomatic title as the senior economic precedent at hand if we had thought about how our con- officer, but State management fiercely resisted requests sular sections operated. to accord minister-counselor titles to commercial officers. A Strong Desk Political Appointees An operational feature that I missed most from State In this case, having political leadership rather than was the “strong” country desk. As I recall, no tasking careerists at the head of FCS paid off. The DG, by then message ever left Main State without a desk clearance enjoying assistant secretary status, used his contacts in his and only a seventh-floor override could overcome the party and the Congress to get the requirement to desk’s refusal to clear. In the FCS, I always benefited upgrade SCO status at a few large embassies attached to from having able and dedicated domestic colleagues in a DOS funding bill in the late 1980s. I was in Bonn at the ITA handling issues and policy matters, but a totally sep- time and was one of those grudgingly tabbed; I can well arate office handled personnel, administrative and fund- remember a few weeks later receiving thanks for the ing issues. Even then, if a question involved a core DOC effort from the political counselor who may have Commerce promotion vehicle, one or two other offices, been champing at the same bit, and who, along with sev- reporting in turn to other assistant secretaries, might be eral other section chiefs, had just been accorded the involved. Tasking messages could arrive from a variety of same status by State. sources and all originators clamored for, and most got, a Despite its small size within the Washington land- piece of the SCO’s annual performance evaluation. scape, ITA, especially in the early years, attracted an In this management-by-committee arena, work plans unusually high number of Commerce’s allotted political might nominally be cleared in advance, but the various appointees. Few were interested in or qualified for posi- DOC offices didn’t necessarily agree at evaluation time. tions in the Census Bureau or the National Oceanic and The potential to be pointed in more than one direction was Atmospheric Administration, for example, but ITA dealt ever-present. If one of the mid-level political appointees, with the glamorous subject of international trade and no who seemed to crop up unnecessarily in working-level

46 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

positions, felt that his or her con- Despite its small size In practical terms, this meant that cerns had received short shrift — SCOs spent an inordinate amount of however irrelevant or impractical it within the Washington time explaining to Washington how might be in the SCO’s market — in-country conditions might require then it could be woe unto the latter. landscape, ITA attracted the nuancing of a core promotion Shared experience almost cer- program to make it effective, and tainly played a role in dealings an unusually high number sometimes why implementation between overseas posts and their wasn’t even a good idea. A case in desks at State. Most desk officers of Commerce’s allotted point was the low-budget trade mis- had field experience, many of them sion program much in vogue at FCS in the same country they were political appointees. headquarters in Washington in 1988- tracking. In that sense, I regarded 1989. It was without question a good State as dominated by the Foreign Service. This was cer- way to get small companies into markets that did not get a tainly not the case at Commerce where, as I mentioned lot of focus, but in a country like Germany, where I was at the outset, FCS was not even the major player in ITA posted at the time, it made little sense. Germany boasted in terms of numbers. At DOC, overseas experience was an annual array of trade fairs that touched practically every a rarity, embodied primarily in those specialists who had field of business endeavor. Some of these events drew as worked at U.S. trade centers or in other overseas exhibi- many as 6,000 exhibitors, with 2,500 the norm, and atten- tion activities, few of whom were assigned to FCS head- dance reached as high as 700,000. Attempts to line up quarters. meetings in the FRG for trade mission participants were

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 47 F OCUS

Germany: Excon and Reunification

he most compelling event during my career was the crum- made it all the more difficult to understand why East Germany’s bling of the Berlin Wall, which marked a sharp change in collapse had not been widely foreseen. Tthe thrust of FCS interests during my tour in Germany. Pre- After reunification, the Bush (George H.W.) administration fall Germany, with a technologically advanced economy, had a gave strong support to an American private-sector role in the legitimate interest in being able to import the latest in American modernization and integration of the economy in the New States, know-how and products. But the country also bordered the as the Laender of the former East Germany were known. This Warsaw Pact, and diversion was a major worry. No one wanted emphasis brought FCS Germany into what was to be the most to sign off on a recommendation for approval of an export exciting activity in my career. Western German business tended license without visiting the end-user, but the funds for inspection to view the region as a preserve, which they could cartelize into tours were just not there. The end-users, at least the legitimate uncontested opportunities for profit. They were sometimes ones, didn’t want to make a mistake that would render them inel- encouraged along those lines by former Western politicians, igible to buy U.S. technology. This convergence of interests who had moved in carpetbagger fashion into executive slots in actually carried FCS Germany through a very bleak budgetary the governments of the New States. Washington’s aims and period. those of strong forces in German industry were obviously at In cooperation with Amerika Houses, business associations, odds. and some large German companies, we embarked on a series of Electric power generation became a key battleground in the seminars for which we charged admission to cover staff travel competition. Tipped off to the opportunity by Commercial and lodging. Three senior FSNs became widely-recognized in- Attaché Steve Craven and FSN Volker Wirsdorf, a Midwestern country experts on the export control regime. Our bureaucratic U.S. firm went head-to-head with one of the FRG’s strongest and justification for staging these events (somehow the reality of the wealthiest industrial powers. It was a competition lasting most of situation was not persuasive!) was that they actually constituted a year that included, inter alia, a secret strategy session in a vine- an export promotion activity because we were helping firms to yard restaurant; a ton of cables; phone calls beyond count; media legally import American products. The revenues enabled us to interviews to counter false press releases about the financial sta- combine objectives and visit companies at a time when our offi- bility and labor relations record of the American contender; foot- cial budget would have kept us office-bound. dragging in honoring requests for bid documents; and lots of In 1987, for budgetary reasons, State closed Consulate reminding various officials of the benefits of competition. General Duesseldorf and moved activities to Embassy Bonn. Ambassador Robert Kimmitt beat the drum at the cabinet FCS faced the loss of our largest operation, along with some level, and USIS helped get the true picture of the U.S. firm before positions, and the prospect of abandoning one of Germany’s the public. Secretary of State Baker was also said to have done most commercial regions. My proposal to keep most of the FCS some “reminding.” An acquaintance of mine and no fan of staff in Duesseldorf, under a senior FSN, in a rented facility was monopoly was, as president of a major German trade associa- accepted and worked fairly well for six years. But I doubt that tion, a member of Chancellor Helmut Kohl’s group of private sec- anyone was more pleased than I when, in 1993, Commerce tor economic advisors. (We had been told that the chancellor Secretary Ron Brown and Ambassador Richard Holbrooke tended to support in principle international participation in the reopened Consulate General Duesseldorf with an FCSO, then as economic development of the New States but was under con- now, as principal officer. The embassy was going to move even- siderable domestic counterpressure.) tually to Berlin and Commerce wanted its own post, but I tell My contact made available to other members of the advisory myself that this would not have happened if the FSN cadre had group accurate information about our candidate’s plans for the not already been in place. area and work force should they win the bidding. In Berlin, FCS It is easy to forget that German reunification did not immedi- officers Lee Boam and, later, Jim Joy, monitored thinking at the ately follow the fall of the Wall. Between the two events, a sort German institution responsible for disposing of once state- of never-never-land existed in the East. Factories continued to owned enterprises. Shortly before my tour in Bonn ended, the produce for a while, though the influx of Western goods soon American company’s bid was allowed, and it was successful. eliminated customers for their products and Eastern Europe The sum in question was well into the billions, and the activity could no longer pay in currency of value. Producers who did represented a trade promotion experience only a few commer- have a market in the West had no idea how to price their output cial officers get to enjoy. I doubt that any area of FS work could (with the exception of bratwurst, a delicacy whose price reached have provided more personal and professional satisfaction. the Western level overnight). What was readily visible to the eye — Jack Bligh

48 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

generally met with: “Why should I drive An operational feature mercial function to State. This is not many miles to talk to 12 companies as heretical as it may seem. (My ego from only one country when I can go to that I missed most allows me to believe that I carried a fair where there are thousands of enough DOC water to permit consid- exhibitors from all over the world with from State was the eration of such a prospect.) The the same products, and I can actually responsibilities of FCS have been see them in operation?” “strong” country desk. gone from State for only 22 years, less Devoting staff and other resources to time than they resided there. And promote such missions under those cir- certainly nothing in my State experi- cumstances was so obviously of marginal value that one ence suggested any lack of concern in promoting would assume it to have been a non-issue. Not so, for there American business abroad. Moreover, State has always was bureaucratic turf at stake! Ultimately a compromise held responsibility for commercial work in those coun- was found: the mission visited the fair. FCS Germany was tries where there is no FCS, and continues to handle already doing this on its own; we called it our Corporate retirement and other personnel matters as well as admin- Executive Office Program, but bringing Washington into istrative issues abroad. But State would, of course, have the act kept bureaucratic feathers there unruffled. to want it and be willing to take on the campaign in Washington hallways that it would involve. If I Had It to Do Over Again… A recombination could benefit users of U.S. govern- In a recent column AFSA FCS Vice President Peter ment commercial services by bringing a broader per- Frederick broached the subject of a return of the com- spective to counseling sessions and trade program devel-

Gilmore 4-c ad to come from ED SERVING THOSE WHO SERVE AMERICA SINCE 1971 2001 represents our 31st year helping to maintain America’s fleet of vehicles throughout the world. All of us at D & M consider it an honor to have worked with all of you through these years.

We are aware of the importance of your official and private vehicles, forklifts, generators, tools and equipment. We look forward to continuing this service in a professional manner. We are here to help, just ask! Gary Vlahov www.dmauto.com (516) 822-6662; FAX: (516) 822-5020; E-mail: [email protected]

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 49 F OCUS

opment. This would also require The FCS has gained favor by supporting them in devel- action by State to break down oped markets with better “conal” walls in assignments and considerable maturity and prospects of early rewards. reinstate the generalist to a stand- FCS has frequently com- ing equivalent to that of the spe- there are opportunities — plained of a lack of resources but cialist. (The importance of com- has, with only one exception of bining the talents of generalists e.g., chief of mission — which which I am aware, strenuously and specialists in developing avoided tapping an inexpensive strategies in today’s world of rapid did not exist in my time. one already on hand: namely, globalization is usefully discussed retirees. In contrast to State, in The Lexus and the Olive Tree by FCS’s attitude toward its retirees Thomas L. Friedman.) A Department of International seems to be one of good riddance. There may have been Trade proposal would certainly find adherents, but even cases, perhaps mine, where that was a conscious policy, an apple-pie issue like homeland security had tough con- but surely they could have used the help of others with gressional sledding. recruitment efforts or to serve on promotion and assess- Commerce, for its part, has not done as much with the ment panels with good conscience and less expensively overseas commercial function as it could have. The orga- than by bringing officers from abroad to do the job. nizational set-up within DOC has enabled appointees Would I move from State to the FCS if I had it to do with strong personal beliefs to place emphases on areas over again? If the circumstances were the same, I would. or agendas that may not be universally appropriate. For Some FSO colleagues held that those who joined example, supporting small and medium-size exporters is Commerce did so in hope of rescuing faltering careers. the stated raison d’ etre of the FCS. Yet, at Washington’s There may have been some who did so for that reason, insistence and despite cautions from the field, we steered but I know of several who, like me, had just been pro- precisely those kinds of companies toward countries that moted by State. Still, it would be interesting to see the were not, for their capabilities and experience, always pre- and post-move career paths of those who jumped appropriate. Lots of resources went into new export the ship of State. development efforts in markets that required staying My experience has shown me that FCSOs, FSNs, power and deep pockets, things small exporters simply do Civil Service staff, private sector recruits and political not have. I felt then and now that we do them a greater appointees combined to help a lot of Americans do busi- ness and do it more profitably than they could have oth- The Logic of Business erwise. The FCS has gained considerable maturity and there are opportunities — e.g., chief of mission — which he FCS experience is not without its hilariously did not exist in my time. There are now positions of suf- instructive moments. In Liberia, I had occasion to ficient responsibility in Washington to make them attrac- Tvisit mines, lumbering operations, and rubber plan- tive to Foreign Service personnel, enabling them to bring tations throughout the country. their experience to bear at the level of policy and pro- gram formulation. Those kinds of assignments should One day I was visited in the embassy by a resident also moderate any temptation to use today’s speed of Lebanese importer (most of them were) who was seeking communications to micromanage overseas operations. suppliers of miners’ helmets, the kind with lamps. I dug up That speed, by the way, represents the biggest change some addresses but could not refrain from asking why, in a between the FCS of 1981 and that of today. Maybe work is not supposed to be fun, but I almost country where all of the mines were of the open pit variety, always thought that I was having a good time while doing he thought that there was a market for helmets with lamps. some good. When I look at what some of the people with “Sure,” he said. “Poachers will love them.” whom I was associated continue to accomplish in their — Jack Bligh careers, I prize even more having worked with them and hope that they had some fun, too. I

50 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS ON FCS

LEE BOAM: THE FOREIGN COMMERCIAL SERVICE IN ACTION

he U.S.-China relationship is in China one of the most unique and difficult, but one of the most critical and potentially rewarding, challenges for U.S. business in complex in the world. the world. Numerous groups — from A key part of the commercial officer’s job in China members of Congress to and elsewhere is to help shepherd U.S. companies — human rights and non-govern- which are the “clients” of the Foreign Commercial mental organizations, to politi- Service — through the maze of difficulties faced when cal appointees in the adminis- trying to do business in the host country, and to help tration — all have strong and sometimes contentious these companies strengthen their market position. Tviews on issues affecting the U.S.- Each company has different goals, China relationship. The commer- and the commercial officer tailors cial connection with China is often THE COMMERCIAL OFFICE assistance to the individual needs the adhesive that sees the relation- of each company. Commercial AT EMBASSY BEIJING IS ship through difficult periods, says assistance in China ranges from Embassy Beijing’s senior commer- THE LARGEST IN THE conducting market research and cial officer, Thomas L. “Lee” WORLD. MEET THE FSO identifying potential partners to Boam. WHO RUNS IT. advocating on a company’s behalf The job of the senior commer- with a government ministry and cial officer in China is highly visi- introducing company representa- ble, and Lee must often deliver BY SHAWN DORMAN tives to the right Chinese govern- highly political messages through ment officials. commercial channels. China’s Aside from helping U.S. com- economy is booming and countless U.S. firms are panies, the commercial officer in China must work to seeking opportunities there. U.S. business represen- further U.S. trade policies and ensure compliance with tatives often come to China excited about the poten- existing trade commitments; monitor World Trade tial market of 1.3 billion people, but without a basic Organization compliance; identify and report on understanding of the realities of working there. industry trends; and conduct negotiations on such Issues of language, distance from the U.S., cultural issues as intellectual property protection, antidump- differences, lack of transparency, and the peculiari- ing, and export controls. The Foreign Commercial ties of local provincial markets make doing business Service also represents the Export-Import Bank of the United States as well as the Trade Development Shawn Dorman, a former FSO and current Foreign Agency, two independent government agencies that Service Journal staff member, is the editor of the 2003 edi- offer financing and trade assistance to U.S. companies. tion of Inside a U.S. Embassy: How the Foreign Service The Department of Commerce has been the home Works for America, published by AFSA. The Lee Boam base for commercial officers since 1980, when they were profile, 22 other Foreign Service profiles, and Foreign moved from the State Department. The work did not Service tales from around the world can be found in the change, and commercial officers still make up a small book. but key element of the Foreign Service team at

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 51 F OCUS

embassies around the world. Due to the importance of the economic and trade relationship with China, Embassy Beijing is home to the largest Foreign Commercial Service office in the world. About 100 peo- ple, including Americans and Foreign Service Nationals, work for the Foreign Commercial Service in Beijing and in the consulates in Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang, and Chengdu. The Foreign Commercial Service accounts for almost 20 percent of the total staff of the embassy and the consulates in China. As the senior com- mercial officer in the country, Lee oversees the entire

Lee Boam and Foreign Service National Bai Ying at the opening ceremony for the Longzeyuan China-U.S. Housing Demonstration Project (top left) and at the housing initiative plaque (right). Far left: Boam with Embassy Beijing FCS staff.

MCG FINANCIAL PLANNING Former State Department Employee Stationed Overseas Understands Unique Financial Situation of Foreign Service Services Include: Retirement Planning Tax Preparation and Strategies Analysis: Insurance and Investments Lump Sum Retirement Options MARY CORNELIA GINN 4630 Montgomery Avenue, Suite 220 Bethesda, Maryland 20814 Phone: (301) 951-9160 Fax: (703) 938-2278 E-mail: [email protected]

SECURITIES OFFERED THROUGH NATHAN & LEWIS SECURITIES, INC., MEMBER NASD & SIPC. MCG FINANCIAL PLANNING AND NATHAN & LEWIS ARE NOT AFFILIATED ENTITIES.

52 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

Foreign Commercial Service operation, both at the companies on business opportunities and on avoiding pit- embassy and at all the consulates. falls. At any given time, Lee is advocating on behalf of Before joining the Foreign Commercial Service in American companies bidding on major projects worth bil- 1982, Lee worked for a large American company that lions of dollars, and also has several billion dollars worth of provided archival microfilming to governments, where trade disputes on his desk. More trade disputes are he was responsible for international operations. In this brought to the Commercial Service in China than any- capacity, he spent time in 87 countries. He joined the where else in the world. “This is the dilemma of China,” Foreign Commercial Service because he saw it as an he says, “huge successes and huge failures. The potential opportunity not to just help one company succeed, but to for tremendous contracts — like the $1.3 billion contract help many companies, in all industry sectors. Lee served for the sale of Boeing aircraft or the $1 billion contract to in Stuttgart and Frankfurt, Germany, and was later sent outfit the Shenzhen subway system — keeps businesses back to Germany as consul general to reopen the con- coming.” U.S. business reps often tell Beijing’s commer- sulate in Duesseldorf. He was the first and last commer- cial office staff that successful sales and contracts would cial officer assigned to then-East Germany, just prior to not have been possible without their help. reunification, and has also served in Hong Kong. Lee has initiated an extensive program to brief Lee was born in Fort Collins, Colo., but calls American business representatives before they set out for Wyoming home. He has a B.A. and MBA from the China. Over the past year, Lee (during trips to the U.S.) University of Utah and a Ph.D. in organizational lead- and his colleagues have talked to over 3,000 participants ership from the University of Oklahoma. He and his at various seminars in the U.S., providing guidance to wife Myrna have four children. I

Executive Lodging Alternatives Interim Accommodations for Corporate and Government Markets Apartments, Townhouses & Single Family Homes “FOR THE EXECUTIVE ON THE MOVE” ❈ [email protected] Locations throughout Northern Virginia and D.C. Units fully furnished, equipped and accessorized Many “Walk to Metro” locations Pet Friendly 5105-L Backlick Road, Annandale, Virginia Tel: (703) 354-4070 Fax: (703) 642-3619

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 53 F OCUS ON FCS

U.S.-CHINA TRADE: AN ECONOMIC SECTION VIEW

he growth of trade and invest- Such cooperation is all the more essential precisely ment between China and the because the debate over the many trade and investment United States since the nor- issues facing our two countries has frequently been acri- malization of our bilateral rela- monious. Following China’s recent accession to the tionship in 1979 has been World Trade Organization, for example, critics of U.S. quite remarkable. According trade policy have voiced doubts about the extent to which to U.S. statistics, bilateral Beijing will fully implement its new market access com- trade amounted to $120 bil- mitments. Reflecting this distrust, Congress has created lion in 2001, making China our fourth largest trading two separate commissions to monitor China’s implemen- Tpartner in the world, behind only Canada, Mexico and tation of its WTO commitments and performance in Japan. China’s exports to the other areas related to human United States have soared from rights. The United States Trade negligible levels in the 1970s to THE SINO-AMERICAN ECONOMIC Representative, the General over $100 billion annually today. RELATIONSHIP REQUIRES CLOSE Accounting Office and other gov- In the other direction, U.S. exports COOPERATION BETWEEN THE ernment agencies have also been have risen to nearly $20 billion. COMMERCIAL SECTION AND tasked to submit reports on Meanwhile, American companies China’s performance in this THE REST OF EMBASSY EIJING have invested a cumulative total of B . regard. nearly $40 billion in China, mak- HERE IS THE ECONOMIC In this article, I will discuss ing up around 10 percent of total SECTION’S PERSPECTIVE. some of the major issues that have foreign direct investment there. affected our bilateral trade and Overseeing this rapid growth in investment relationship with BY ROBERT WANG our bilateral economic relationship China. I will focus in particular on requires close cooperation those issues that have arisen since between the commercial and economic sections. To facil- China acceded to the WTO and on how China and the iate that effort, the economic section is divided into three United States have addressed them. Finally, I will look at separate units. The trade and investment unit helps to the prospects for further growth in bilateral trade and manage our broad economic relationship with China, investment and its broader implications for our overall with the primary aim of expanding U.S. access to the relationship. Chinese markets for goods and services. It is currently focused on ensuring that the Chinese government imple- The “Deficit Problem” ments its commitments to the World Trade Organization. Some in Congress and elsewhere have been particu- The macroeconomic and financial policy unit monitors larly critical of the perceived “imbalance” in our trade economic developments in China, especially with respect relationship as reflected in the sizeable and growing U.S. to their implications for domestic stability. The labor unit trade deficit vis-à-vis China. According to U.S. statistics, reports on issues in connection with China’s labor laws the trade deficit now exceeds $80 billion, surpassing that and policies, work and occupational safety standards, and with Japan. Critics of the U.S. government’s policies social security and welfare issues. toward China have long pointed to this trend as evidence

54 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

of the lack of a “level playing field” The debate over the East Asia to China to take advantage there and urge retaliatory measures of its relatively lower labor and pro- against protectionism. many trade and duction costs. Yet even as the U.S. While our bilateral trade deficit bilateral trade deficit with China with China is indeed high, the fig- investment issues facing rose, our overall deficit with East ures exaggerate the size of the deficit Asia as a whole has remained rela- and the seriousness of the problem our two countries has tively constant. significantly. U.S. statistics for our After making the above adjust- imports from China, for example, frequently been ments in the calculation of our bilat- include the value-added or “markup” eral trade statistics, we estimate that in Hong Kong (estimated at $10-15 acrimonious. the true U.S. trade deficit with billion), which should more accu- China was somewhere between $20 rately be attributed to Hong Kong. U.S. statistics also billion and $30 billion in 2001, not $80 billion. exclude our indirect exports to China through Hong Kong (estimated at $5-10 billion), thus significantly The WTO and Market Access understating U.S. exports to China. Meanwhile, the United States has continued to Additionally, 50-60 percent of China’s exports to the engage China in World Trade Organization-related trade United States can be sourced to export processing or negotiations over the past 15 years, culminating in assembly plants which basically process or assemble raw China’s accession to the WTO on Dec. 11, 2001. material and/or parts imported from other economies To do so, China had to make far-ranging commitments around the region, such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan to open up its markets in virtually all sectors, but particu- and Korea. China’s value-added contribution to these larly in the agricultural and services sectors where the finished exports normally constitutes about one third of United States expects to obtain substantial benefits. their final export value. Taking this into consideration, Over the past 20 years, China essentially followed the our “true” total value-added imports from China would earlier Japanese model — i.e., promoting exports in the have been nearly $30 billion lower last year. manufacturing sector where it had (and still has) com- It should also be noted that U.S. import statistics are parative advantage in terms of low labor costs, while pro- calculated to include miscellaneous cost, insurance and tecting the domestic market in such areas as agriculture freight charges, and these usually make up about 10 per- and services where it is not yet competitive. The end cent of the final import value. Export statistics, however, result of this policy — as we now witness in Japan — is are calculated on a “free on board” basis and do not the existence of a strong export economy on one hand include these same charges. Thus, the value of our and a weak and inefficient domestic economic and finan- imports from China would be reduced by around $10 bil- cial market on the other. Chinese leaders thus see lion if calculated on the same basis as U.S. exports to China’s entry into the WTO as a way of encouraging, and China. even forcing, the country’s less competitive industries to Finally, the apparent “imbalance” in our bilateral trade restructure, modernize or downsize. relationship actually represents a major restructuring of In the agricultural sector, for example, China agreed broader trade and investment relations within East Asia to replace all import quotas with tariff rate quotas for and between the United States and that region over the bulk commodities while at the same time expanding past 20 years. China’s rapid export growth has been to a these quotas by 15 percent each year and reducing tariff very large extent the result of the shifting of export pro- rates by about half over the next five years. It also com- duction facilities from other more developed areas in mitted to eliminating all agriculture export subsidies and establishing a cap on trade-distorting domestic subsidies. Robert Wang is the Economic Minister-Counselor in The government is thus encouraging farmers to move Embassy Beijing. An FSO since 1984, he has served in away from grain production, where China clearly does Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore and not have comparative advantage, to planting cash crops Washington, D.C. and animal husbandry.

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 55 F OCUS

In the services sector, the PRC made far-reaching Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. commitments to allow foreign financial institutions, dis- Finally, China committed to adopting a rules-based trad- tributors, telecommunications operators and professional ing system incorporating core WTO principles such as service providers to enter the domestic market and most-favored-nation treatment, national treatment, remove all geographic restrictions over the next five transparency and the independent judicial review of years. It agreed not to impose restrictions on previously administrative decisions. acquired rights of all foreign service providers that exist- WTO Implementation ed at the date of China’s accession. It also agreed to In general, I believe that China has made substantial streamline and make more transparent its licensing pro- progress in implementing its WTO commitments since cedures. its accession last December. According to China’s Beyond these specific obligations, China agreed to Foreign Trade Minister, China has reviewed, amended reduce tariffs for more than 5,300 different product cat- and/or abolished over 2,300 trade-related laws and regu- egories. It agreed to reduce tariffs for industrial products lations to comply with its new WTO commitments. The of concern to the United States from a base average of 25 embassy’s own table of major new WTO-related legisla- percent in 1997 to 7 percent by 2005, and to eliminate tion issued by different Chinese government agencies tariffs on computers, semiconductors and other informa- since last December lists over 200 laws in the areas of tion technology products under the Information general economic policies, trade in goods and services, Technology Agreement. In acceding to the WTO, China trade remedies, standards, trade-related investment mea- also accepted the minimum standards for intellectual sures, and intellectual property rights. All of these new property rights protection under the Agreement on laws and regulations are accessible in relevant ministry

2000 N. 14th Street I Suite 500 Arlington, VA 22201 Telephone (703) 797-3259 Fax (703) 524-7559 Tollfree (800) 424-9500

56 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

newspapers and/or online Web sites. Statistics exaggerate the upon accession for the remaining As required by the WTO, Beijing three weeks of the year 2001, it has established offices to provide size of the deficit and the reduced 2002 tariffs for over 5,300 information to the public regarding product lines from an average of 15 trade regulations and standards in a seriousness of the percent to 12 percent. This partly timely and usually helpful manner. accounts for a significant drop in tar- Increasingly (though still in a small problem significantly. iff revenues in the first half of the proportion of cases), the government year. As required under its WTO has begun to provide opportunities agreement, China has expanded, or for the public and other WTO members to comment on replaced quotas with, tariff rate quotas on most agricul- draft measures before they take effect. It has even con- tural commodities and fertilizers, although the issuance ducted public hearings in connection with steel safeguard of TRQ regulations and the allocation of the quotas and anti-dumping investigations. In August 2002, the themselves were delayed for several months and were Supreme Court promulgated “The Rule Regarding marred by lack of transparency. China has issued regula- Supreme People’s Court Hearings on Judicial Review of tions on the administration of the import and the export Administrative Decisions with Respect to International of goods for products covered by quotas and licenses, Trade Disputes.” This rule emphasized compliance with such as oil, tires and auto/auto parts. The government WTO commitments in civil cases involving foreign inter- has also expanded the number of companies granted ests. trading rights to include additional foreign-funded and Although China failed to reduce tariffs immediately private manufacturing and trading enterprises while

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 57 F OCUS

reducing their capital requirements. China has already software and integrated circuit layout designs. It has kept revised its foreign investment laws to remove local con- up enforcement measures by increasing the number of tent, export performance, technology transfer and for- raids and recently established a national anti-piracy com- eign exchange balancing requirements. And the Ministry mittee under the National Copyright Administration. of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation is current- The State Administration of Industry and Commerce, ly drafting a trading rights law that will completely liber- Ministry for Public Security and State Intellectual alize the system by 2005. Property Office have also set up a formal mechanism to In the services sector, China has issued new regula- share information and coordinate enforcement efforts on tions governing foreign-invested financial institutions, intellectual property rights infringement. In July, SIPO including banks, insurance firms, and securities and fund issued regulations that would allow administrative review management companies. A growing number of foreign of patent office decisions. In August, the Tianjin banks (including Citibank) have obtained permission to Intermediate Court issued the first preliminary injunc- do domestic individual and enterprise foreign exchange tion in an IPR dispute over registered design patents. business while several have also been issued licenses to do local currency business in the newly-opened cities of Problems in Implementation Tianjin and Dalian. In May 2002, the China Insurance The above-noted progress notwithstanding, China’s Regulatory Commission issued a license to permit implementation of its WTO commitments has fallen American insurer AIG to open up the first foreign-invest- short in a number of areas with important consequences ed life insurance operation in Beijing, one-and-a-half for U.S. economic interests. Not surprisingly, many local years before China had committed to do so. The CIRC protectionist forces have surfaced in China to criticize the has also issued several new insurance operating licenses “concessions” made by the Chinese negotiators in to foreign insurers, including CIGNA and Liberty Geneva. They point out that other countries, including Mutual. the United States, have recently adopted certain protec- Shortly before China’s accession, AT&T became the tionist measures, thus justifying new protectionist mea- first foreign telecommunications company to receive sures by China. They emphasize the need to ensure sta- approval of its joint venture to provide value-added ser- bility and urge caution in implementing market open- vices in Pudong (Shanghai). In January 2002, American ing.measures. Some of these critics in government min- Express announced the first joint venture business travel istries and agencies have thus sought to protect certain service company in China. More generally, China’s domestic industries by enacting rules that clearly, or often National Administration of Tourism has approved over a not so clearly, impose new restrictions on foreign exports dozen joint venture travel agencies since accession. In and on foreign companies seeking to enter the China June 2002, ExxonMobil reported that it had obtained market. permission to open 500 filling stations in Fujian province, China’s WTO implementation has been particularly while BP and Shell also received approval to open an problematic in the areas of agriculture and financial ser- additional 500 filling stations in China’s southeast. In July vices. Prior to its accession in December 2001, China 2002, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic issued new biotech regulations that threatened to block Cooperation issued a notice announcing a pilot program the annual import of $1 billion worth of U.S.-produced that would allow foreign-funded logistics joint ventures in transgenic soybeans into China. The U.S. considered a number of coastal provinces and cities. China has now such regulations to be contrary to WTO principles of opened up all five Special Economic Zones and eight sound science and transparency. Although Chinese lead- major cities to limited foreign joint venture retailers, a ers assured President Bush that China would not use the small but significant step in liberalizing the distribution regulations as trade barriers, an extraordinary amount of sector. time and resources, including interventions by the presi- China amended its copyright, trademark and patent dent and Cabinet-level officials, was required to ensure laws just prior to its WTO accession and has subsequent- imports would continue. Nevertheless, the regulations ly issued companion implementing regulations. It pro- blocked imports for several months; as a result, Chinese mulgated new regulations on the protection of computer imports of U.S. soybeans for the 2001/2002 market year

58 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 F OCUS

were 28 percent lower than the pre- In general, China has border areas at half duty and value- vious market year. Moreover, how added tax rates. It requires end-use these regulations are implemented made substantial certificates for the import of 15 could still put next year’s imports at information technology products, risk. progress in implementing contrary to the principles of the Administration of tariff rate quo- Information Technology Agreement. tas was not only sluggish, but, in the its WTO commitments. Some local authorities reportedly case of agricultural commodities, also continue to impose local con- also marked by lack of transparency But it has fallen short in tent requirements in the automobile and poor cooperation by Chinese sector despite China’s commitment officials. China was very late in issu- a number of areas. to eliminate such trade-related ing new TRQ administrative regula- investment measures. tions and the actual TRQ allocations While having enacted regulations themselves. For example, although agricultural TRQ permitting increased foreign access to China’s financial allocations were mandated for Jan. 1, 2002, they were not services market, the People’s Bank of China has estab- made until April for private enterprises and July for state lished capital and net asset requirements that may be trading enterprises. Additionally, the State Development considered non-tariff barriers to entry by all but the Planning Commission has repeatedly refused to provide largest foreign banks and financial institutions. Beyond the embassy (or other foreign trade partners, to the best this, the PBOC has yet to issue implementing regulations of our knowledge) with a list of the allocations made. for non-bank automobile financing companies. The Commodity traders complained that some allocations China Insurance Regulatory Commission has also estab- had not been made in economically viable lots, as lished similarly high capital requirements for new required. Most egregious was the creation of a sub-quota entrants. At the same time, the CIRC has refused to that requires re-export of processed goods. The State permit foreign insurance branches to establish additional Economic and Trade Commission was also late in issu- branches within China. ing fertilizer TRQ allocations, although it did provide the In other services sectors, China issued new regula- embassy with a list of recipients and quantities. tions requiring that express delivery companies file for Nonetheless, some industry traders have complained of a entrustment with the State Postal Bureau, thus establish- lack of transparency as well as quotas having been held ing the Postal Bureau as both a regulator and competitor back by the SETC and Chinese industry associations. (in the form of China Post’s express mail service) in the In a number of cases, the Chinese Administration for market. Subsequently, the Postal Bureau issued new reg- Quality Supervision and Inspection and Quarantine has ulations limiting the scope of business of other express applied questionable sanitary and phytosanitary stan- delivery firms that would have violated its WTO commit- dards to block meat and other agricultural imports from ment not to roll back previously licensed services. After the United States and other countries. It has also used repeated interventions by the U.S. government, China questionable technical standards for fertilizers, cell eventually agreed to repeal the restrictions. Nonetheless, phones, automobiles and other industrial imports. it continues to require that entrustment be filed with the AQSIQ is also requiring importers of agricultural com- Postal Bureau which, although not necessarily a violation modities to apply for “quarantine certificates” that appear of a WTO commitment, could create potential difficul- to be a form of import quota in violation of China’s WTO ties that would impose new restrictions. Similarly, the accession commitment. Contrary to the WTO principle Ministry of Justice has issued new regulations that could of national treatment, the State Administration of further restrict the services and expansion of foreign law Taxation has used preferential tax policies to favor cate- firms in China. gories of fertilizers that are produced domestically as At an Embassy Beijing-organized conference in opposed to imports. China’s Customs office continues to October 2002, U.S. industry representatives acknowl- permit large volumes of bulk commodity items to be edged that the Chinese government has amended its imported for use throughout China through the Russian intellectual property rights laws to comply with TRIPS,

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 59 F OCUS

the intellectual property portion of the WTO agree- for senior provincial and municipality leaders on ment. But the U.S. side noted serious shortcomings, China’s WTO commitments and implementation such as high financial and evidentiary thresholds for issues. President Jiang and Premier Zhu Rongji (and criminal prosecution of IPR violations and low admin- virtually all senior officials) participated in this semi- istrative fines that generally did not deter violators. It nar. The National People’s Congress has also directed also pointed out the omission of well-known foreign the General Office of its Standing Committee to trademarks from China’s list, stressed the need to pro- ensure that provincial and local legislation conforms to tect pharmaceutical clinical test data during the patent national laws and China’s WTO commitments. application period, and cited the stringent limits on Beijing, Shanghai and other major cities and all of the market access for legitimate audio-visual products. provinces have set up WTO centers to study and train More generally, the U.S. expressed concerns about regional and local officials in support of China’s imple- rampant IPR piracy due to weak and uncoordinated mentation efforts. An embassy-funded WTO distance enforcement, the lack of institutional IPR expertise and learning course has become part of a curriculum for all local protectionism. officials engaged in WTO work at the national as well as local levels. Official government media publicize Looking Ahead WTO issues and China’s commitment to implementa- However mixed China’s record of WTO implementa- tion on a daily basis across the country. tion has been, the commitment of senior leaders to Chinese leaders have undertaken this tremendous meet China’s WTO obligations is unmistakable. This is effort because they believe that China’s WTO acces- evident in the massive effort put into overhauling sion and the implementation of the resulting commit- China’s entire trade-related legal and administrative ments is key to furthering the country’s economic systems. Apart from enacting and revising several reforms. In turn, they believe that continued eco- thousand laws and regulations to comply with its WTO nomic reform is key to China’s top priority goal of eco- commitments, China has established new structures nomic growth and development over the long term. within its various trade-related ministries and agencies To be sure, as noted above, there have been serious to focus specifically on WTO implementation. At the problems of implementation, but persistent U.S. inter- State Council level, a senior leader now heads an vention with senior Chinese government officials has informal group that directs interagency coordination been successful in resolving many of these issues. on WTO affairs. China also created a new WTO Hence, while our trade deficit with China is not likely Affairs Department following its accession, and has to disappear in the short term, I expect U.S. exports to sent a top trade official to head its WTO Office in continue growing rapidly, especially in the services Geneva. sectors where we have already begun building up a The PRC also created a new Import and Export sizeable trade surplus. U.S. investments will also con- Fair Trade Department that, along with the new tinue to spur growth in our service-sector exports. Bureau for the Investigation of Industry Injury, that The impact of WTO accession on Chinese society at addresses trade remedy issues. To comply with WTO, large will also be significant and long-lasting. The core China has also merged its agencies dealing with sani- principles of transparency, non-discrimination and tary and phytosanitary and technical standards to cre- national treatment are not likely to be confined to the ate the Administration for Quality Supervision and area of foreign trade and investment. Already, China’s Inspection and Quarantine. expanding small and medium-size private enterprises Beyond this, China’s senior leaders have under- are demanding to be treated no less well than their scored the government’s commitment to WTO nation- state-owned competitors. Private citizens are wide by mobilizing the country’s provinces and munic- demanding more transparency in government regula- ipalities in this effort. Shortly after the country’s acces- tions and more say in policies that affect their lives. sion, Vice President Hu Jintao (who replaced China’s transition to a society based on the rule of law President Jiang Zemin as China’s top party leader in will not be easy or instant, but the foundation has been November) convened a weeklong seminar in Beijing laid. I

60 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 APPRECIATION Laurence M. Foley 1942-2002

n Oct. 28, 2002, USAID Supervisory ists and criminals cannot destroy the message of public ser- Executive Officer Laurence M. Foley vice embodied in a person like Larry Foley: “Our mission to — a loving husband, a father, a proud improve the lives of people in the developing world will con- grandfather, an inspiring manager and tinue, and the message of the life of Larry Foley will contin- good friend, a man who dedicated his ue to be heard. This is the ultimate tribute that we can pay.” life to improving the lives of others — made the ultimate sacrifice: He was gunned down by an A Life of Service Ounknown assailant in front of his home in Amman, Jordan, as Born into an Irish Catholic family in Boston in 1942 and he prepared to leave for work at the mission. raised in Oakland, Calif., Laurence Foley joined the Peace “Larry was a highly decorated Foreign Service officer, but Corps in 1965, following graduation from the University of will be remembered even more vividly by all those who knew Massachusetts with an education degree. For two years he him for his charm, wit and friendship,” said USAID worked in India, building and running large model poultry Administrator Andrew Natsios. “No one in USAID embod- farms in the state of Andhra Pradesh as part of the Indian ied the spirit of compassion and brotherhood that underpins government’s expanded nutrition program for the rural popu- our efforts more than Larry Foley.” lation. He returned to the U.S. and entered San Francisco In a memorial ceremony at Embassy Amman, colleagues State University, where he graduated in 1969 with a master’s and friends sought to come to grips with this latest terrorist degree in rehabilitation counseling, and thereafter served as a outrage with a moving celebration of Larry Foley’s life. supervising probation officer for Contra Costa County, work- “Only yesterday, I stood in this very same spot to present ing to counsel and rehabilitate juvenile offenders. to him a superior honor award for all of his efforts and sup- In 1980 Laurence Foley returned to the Peace Corps as an port for the programs of humanitarian and developmental associate director, responsible for all aspects of Peace Corps assistance here in Jordan,” said Ambassador Edward W. involvement in the Southern Region of the Philippines, Gnehm. “Larry was working in Jordan to help deliver clean including the preparation, placement and supervision of more drinking water to Jordanian families. He was working in than 200 volunteers. In 1985, he returned again to California Jordan to help rehabilitate primary health care centers to direct administrative services for Rehabilitation Services of throughout the Kingdom. He was helping to administer Northern California, a large non-profit rehab facility for vic- micro-lending programs which have provided loans to many, tims of head injury, Alzheimer’s disease and stroke. many Jordanians so they might start new businesses and gain Laurence Foley joined USAID in 1988, and in 1990 was independence in their own lives. Larry represents the very appointed to his first supervisory executive officer position in best in America — a man dedicated to this country and to La Paz, Bolivia. In 1992 he was posted to Lima, Peru, where helping other people.” as chief of the executive office he managed a staff of eighty. Laurence Foley was “a larger-than-life type of guy — an From 1996 to 2000, he served as chief of the executive office Irish Bostonian with a twinkle in his eye,” one colleague and chief contract officer assigned to post in Harare, recalled. “He had a great sense of humor and was a joy to Zimbabwe. Mr. Foley supervised 26 FSNs and coordinated everyone around him,” an FSN employee at Embassy the activities of 20 security officers. In August 2000 he was Amman recalled. “He was a great boss — always positive, posted to Amman, where he was responsible for the man- always cheerful, giving room for growth. But the most impor- agement of all aspects of USAID Jordan’s administrative sup- tant thing I remember about Larry is that he was always full port services, including personnel, property management, of life. I guess that is why it is so hard for us to believe that he information resources, communications, transportation, is no longer with us.” commodity/service procurement and security. But, as USAID Administrator Natsios emphasized, terror- Virginia Foley, Larry’s wife of 34 years, took comfort in

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 61 SEVEN MINUTES TO STATE DEPARTMENT the fact that he was happy with his life and work. In a family statement she told how the day before his death he had received an award at work, talked with friends about columbia plaza Thanksgiving plans, and told his apartments wife how much he loved her, their family and their life in the Foreign Capital Living Service. With Comfort and Convenience “We probably are a typical Foreign Beautiful, Spacious Efficiencies, 1 and 2 Bedrooms Service family,” Virginia Foley said. “Larry and I have loved serving on SHORT TERM FURNISHED APARTMENTS AVAILABLE four continents, learning about cul- Utilities Included 24 Hour Front Desk ture, making friends, representing the Complimentary Voice Mail Garage Parking Available United States the best way we could, Courtyard Style Plaza Shopping on Site and feeling like what we did was per- Polished Hardwood Floors Cardkey Entry/Access Private Balconies River Views forming a service. … My comfort Huge Walk-In Closets Minutes to Fine Dining comes from the expressions of love from so many people all over the Walk to the Kennedy Center and Georgetown world whose lives Larry has touched, Minutes to Foggy Bottom Metro and having shared 34 years with some- (202) 293-2000 one I love and respected — doing 2400 Virginia Ave., N.W. what we do best.” Washington, D.C., 20037 Managed by Polinger, Shannon & Luchs Co. Spread the Message Laurence Foley is survived by his wife, Virginia; two daughters, Megan and Jeremie; a son, Michael; and two grandsons. Expressions of sympathy and support were extended personally to the family by His Majesty King Abdullah II and Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah, and Queen Noor of Jordan, President Bush, Secretary of State Colin Powell, Ambassador to NATO R. Nicholas Burns and other government leaders. Consistent with Larry Foley’s career-long commitment to helping others, his family has asked that in lieu of flowers donations be made to the Missionaries of Charity, Home of Love, in Ruseifeh, Jordan. Contact Sister Felecia at (962) (5) 374-4583; she can accept checks made out to the organization. Donations to the Missionaries of Charity, Home of Love can also be sent to The Laurence Foley Fund, USAID/Amman, Unit #70206 Box 6, APO AE 09892-0206; the Fund will forward the checks to the charity.

62 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 ATTENTION ALL WRITERS

AN INVITATION FOR SUMMER FICTION nce again the Foreign Service Journal is seeking works of fiction of up to 3,000 words for its annual summer fiction issue. Story lines or characters involving the Foreign Service are preferred, but not required. The top stories, selected by the Journal’s Editorial Board, Owill be published in the July/August issue and on the Journal’s Web site. The writer of each story will receive an honorarium of $250.

All stories must be previously unpublished. Submissions should be unsigned and accompanied by a cover sheet with author’s name, address, telephone numbers and e-mail address.

Deadline is April 1. No fooling.

Please send submissions to the attention of Mikkela Thompson, Business Manager, preferably by e-mail at [email protected]. Stories will also be accepted by fax at (202) 338-8244, or by mail: Foreign Service Journal, 2101 E St., NW, Washington, D.C., 20037

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 63 BOOKS

Pointing Out the According to Zunes, U.S. Middle East policy generally and U.S. military aid Contradictions Zunes contends to regional states, specifically, have that America’s subsidized the American arms indus- Tinderbox: U.S. Middle East try. And this behavior has, in effect, Policy and the Roots of Terrorism Middle East policy shot the United States in the foot, Stephen Zunes, Common Courage does not match its since, “The more weapons and the Press, 2003, $39.95 hardcover/$18.95 more sophisticated weaponry the softcover, 264 pages. rhetoric. United States has sent to the region, the more threatened the United States REVIEWED BY LAURA E. DEKOCK and its interests have become.” Regrettably, Tinderbox does have Tinderbox: U.S. Middle East Policy some failings. One of these is its intem- and the Roots of Terrorism is a “must- perate criticism of the Mitchell read” for everyone who is tired of the the Israeli-Palestinian crisis; U.S. poli- Commission Report and the actions clichéd responses to the post-Sept. 11, cies in Afghanistan, Lebanon and and statements of U.S. Secretary of 2001 query, “Why do they hate us?” Palestine; and U.S. efforts to combat State Colin L. Powell and other tradi- Author Stephen Zunes, an associate terrorism. The book concludes with tional conservatives within the current professor of politics and chair of the recommendations for how its administration. The book also includes Peace and Justice Studies Program at American readers might act to an obvious error in logic. Zunes occa- the University of San Francisco, has improve their government’s Middle sionally cites polling data in the United woven this set of his essays (most pre- East policy. States, Israel, and among Muslims or viously published) on U.S. Middle Two points made in Tinderbox Arabs in support of his views. But at East policy into a seamless and coher- stand out as particularly significant and the very close of the volume, he claims ent volume. bold. One is Zunes’ suggestion that that, “Public opinion polling indicating Zunes’ central thesis is that U.S. policy “actually endangers Israel’s popular support for President Bush’s America’s Middle East policy stands in legitimate security needs because it Middle East policy does not mean that direct contradiction to its own gives the Israeli government little out- most Americans actually support the rhetoric, and that this disconnect has side incentive to make peace.” In his policy. It merely means that they sup- helped to foster Islamic extremism view, the large, no-strings flows of U.S. port what the policy is presented as and anti-Americanism in the Middle aid to Israel have created a cushion being.” Yet he takes great pains East. Among his supporting argu- that prevents Israel’s own policies, throughout the book to convince read- ments, Zunes contends that the including the occupation of the West ers that Arabs and Muslims do not United States has “discouraged the Bank and Gaza, from becoming politi- accept what the U.S. government tells development of greater political plu- cally intolerable to its citizens. them at face value. It is regrettable that ralism and civil society in the Middle The other provocative insight is an author would go to such lengths to East through its support of autocratic Zunes’ claim that (contrary to conven- break down one stereotype, only to fos- regimes and occupying armies.” He tional wisdom) U.S. policy on the ter a similar one about his own people. also argues that the United States has Middle East has been influenced But these minor flaws should not militarized the region, through both more deeply by the United States’ deter anyone from reading Tinderbox. arms sales and direct military inter- domestic arms industry than it has Zunes’ fresh perspective truly breaks vention. Individual chapters discuss been by the Jewish lobby, by Israel’s up the tired discourse on America’s U.S. involvement in the Persian Gulf; needs, or even by the oil industry. Middle East policy and provides keen

64 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 B OOKS insights into the origins of Islamist extremism and terrorism.

Laura E. DeKock is a junior associate with AALC, Limited Company (previ- ously Armitage Associates), an interna- tional consulting company located in Arlington, Va.

Afghanistan: Horseplay & Politics

Buzkashi: Game and Power in Afghanistan, 2nd edition G. Whitney Azoy, Waveland Press, 2003, $12.95, paperback, 160 pages.

REVIEWED BY ARNOLD SCHIFFERDECKER

This book takes the reader inside the small world of buzkashi, or “goat-grab- bing,” as a framework for insights into the larger world of Afghanistan’s politics. On the whole, the effort succeeds. Year-End Roundup of Originally the product of doctoral research by an ex-USIA officer, FOREIGN SERVICE AUTHORS Buzkashi: Game and Power in Afghanistan was hailed in 1982 as a As we have done each year since 2000, the November 2003 particularly useful reflection of Afghan Foreign Service Journal will include a list of recently published society at a time when real knowledge books by Foreign Service-affiliated authors in an special of that country was confined to a few specialists. Twenty years later, in this section: “In Their Own Write.” FS authors who have had a expanded second edition, anthropolo- book published either by a commercial or academic publisher gist Whitney Azoy updates his view of last year or this year (2002-2003) that has not previously been the underlying significance of Afghan- featured in the roundup, should send a copy of the book, along istan’s national game. with a press release or backgrounder with information on the What seems at first glance a stretch — discerning larger strategic meaning author, to: in an unruly sport (a forerunner of Susan Maitra today’s polo) — becomes a revelation Associate Editor under Azoy’s careful analysis. If you Foreign Service Journal think of politics as a competitive game, 2101 E Street, NW says the former U.S. cultural affairs officer, then you can find antecedents Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 embedded in the culture. While care- ful not to carry the metaphor too far (after all “a game is a game,” as the Deadline for submissions is Sept. 1. author acknowledges), he carefully

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 65 B OOKS New Position The Executive Director, Foreign Alliance for Service International Conflict Journal marshals compelling evidence show- Resolution Brings you education ing how buzkashi has played out on (AICR) Afghanistan’s larger stage and how its information! leaders—even including the unfun- loving Taliban — have tried to coopt AICR (www.aicr.us.) is a new the game for political purposes. Given network of US-based conflict WEBSITES this background, interim Afghan resolution organizations President Karzai is likely to be presid- working internationally, with Education-world.com ing soon over a buzkashi match in its office in Washington, www.educationworld.com Kabul —if he has not already done so. DC. It is seeking a senior Azoy’s book, a combination of professional with experience in scholarly study and personal memoir, ¥ It provides all information on gives the reader a ground-level close- conflict resolution and/or educational issues, such as up of the colorful lives and personali- related fields to serve as its teacher/parent-student relationship, ties of the Afghan horsemen against chief administrative and updated school news, lesson the backdrop of complex social inter- operating officer. actions among the game’s sponsors, planning, teaching tips, learning the landowning Khans, and the latter’s Responsibilities: methods, etc. relations with their supposed masters in Kabul. Until Azoy uncovered those • Spokesperson ¥ Useful links like Curriculum, aspects of the game after more than a • Direct outreach efforts to Lesson Planning, Foreign year of research, little of the relation- government officials, Languages, Counseling, ships and larger social and political meaning of the game was known out- funders, and other School Directory, etc. constituencies, to build side the country. This is the major contribution of his book. bridges between CR and Strugglingteens.com Unfortunately, as Azoy notes in his related fields www.strugglingteens.com revised edition, much of the social • Architect of fundraising structure that held the country togeth- strategy ¥ Educational Consultants helping er for so long has been badly damaged • Oversight of website strategy parents and professionals since over the past 23 years. But the sur- and operations 1989. Online since 1995. vival of the game during the interreg- • Outreach to potential funders num of Soviet invasion and civil war for AICR member projects (1979-2001) may mean that the coun- ¥ Helpful articles on parents- • Coalition building try’s social fabric has not completely • Track policy changes at children relationship, family ties, fallen into tatters. At least for some foundations, government teen problems and comments on old Afghan hands, including this agencies and other related choosing boarding schools given reviewer, that represents a ray of hope for a country long maligned and often fields. by experts and parents. neglected but now — thanks to the power of terrorism to focus the mind ¥ Competitive salary and Evaluations and reviews on — a priority for U.S. policy. benefits, with opportunities some schools given by education for increases. consultants. Retired FSO Arnold Schifferdecker is the chairman of the Journal’s Editorial Submit cover letter and CV to ¥ Hyperlinks to boarding school Board. He served in Kabul (among many other posts) as a political officer [email protected] by websites and individual education January 13, 2003. and again in 1997-98 as an adviser to consultants’ websites. the United Nations Special Mission in Afghanistan.

66 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/APRIL 2002 REAL ESTATE

When Experience Counts …

Since 1950, thousands of Foreign Service families in Virginia, Maryland, and the Nation’s Capital have placed their trust in us to lease and manage their homes.

■ More than $100 million managed and leased annually William “Kip” ■ Comprehensive client references and Steve Leskowitz Laughlin CRP, Director of Property CRB, GRI a menu of services available Management Laughlin Management Corporation P.O. Drawer 550, 1319 Vincent Place, McLean, VA 22101-0550 Tel: 703-356-6598 Fax: 703-448-0657 E-mail: [email protected]

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 67 REAL ESTATE Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Management Division Formerly Stevens Property Management Coldwell Banker, formerly Stevens Property Management, offers a full service company dedicated to providing you with uncompromising service. • Are you thinking of renting out a residential property you own? • Moving out of the area and need someone to manage your property while you are away? • A first time landlord and need help? • An investor looking for a company to manage your residential properties? This Coldwell Banker affiliate is an established company with many years of residential property management experience. For a free management information package, call or e-mail: (703) 476-8451 [email protected] 11890 Sunrise Valley Dr. Reston, VA 20191-3394

u REGULAR INSPECTIONS u ENJOY PEACE OF MIND u u u AFSA Online RENTAL SERVICES SERVICES RENTAL Messagesfromyourhometown Who’s taking care of your home while you’re away? Extended Stay Housing REGULAR REPORTS REPORTS REGULAR u

u No one takes care of your home like we do! 24 HOUR ON-CALL SUPPORT SUPPORT ON-CALL HOUR 24

While you’re overseas, we’ll help you Real Estate manage your home without the hassles. Property Management No panicky messages, just regular reports. No unexpected surprises, just peace of mind. BoardingAmerican Foreign Schools Service Association son Property management is 2101 E Street NW er Gro our full time business. OVER 24 YEARS EXPERIENCE EXPERIENCE YEARS 24 OVER y e up, Washington DC 20037 M Let us take care Taxes & Financial Planning u e In of the details. h c. u ______T EXCELLENT REFERENCES REFERENCES EXCELLENT ______Legal Services & Insurance

Telecommunications Call us today! (301) 657-3210 Cars and Appliances 6923 Fairfax Road u Bethesda, MD 20814 COORDINATE MAINTENANCE MAINTENANCE COORDINATE email: [email protected] u u u PROPERTY MANAGEMENT FOR FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS u www.afsa.org/ads

68 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 REAL ESTATE Coming Home or Going Overseas? Specializing in Arlington Office Vienna Office 3900 N. Fairfax Dr. #300 301 Maple Ave. W PROPERTY Arlington, VA 22203 Dogwood Bldg. Ste.C (Near Ballston Metro) Vienna, VA 22180 MANAGEMENT PH: 703-522-5900 PH: 703-938-0909 Fax: 703-525-4713 Fax: 703-281-9782 E-mail: Arlington@ E-mail: Vienna@ prudentialcarruthers.com prudentialcarruthers.com (Formerly (Formerly Diplomat Properties) J.P. Properties)

JoAnn Piekney GREETINGS ! Property Specialists, Inc. As a Foreign Service Spouse and a licensed real A professional and personal service tailored estate broker, I know what moving is all about! My staff to meet your needs in: and I have been dedicated to taking care of the real estate • Property Management • Sales and Rentals needs of the Foreign Service Community since 1979. • Tax-deferred Exchange • Residential Sales • Real Estate Investment Counseling • Outstanding Property Management • Professional staff with Foreign Service background Our staff includes: • Recipient of the top real estate awards for sales Ginny Basak Sally Duerbeck Patt Seely and property management Joan Bready Les Glad Judy Smoot • 22 years of real estate experience Donna Courtney Seraphin Lease Paul Timpane John Logtens Let us assist you with all your housing needs. CALL, FAX or E-MAIL US TODAY!!! 4600-D Lee Highway Arlington, Virginia 22207 (703) 525-7010 (703) 525-0006 e-mail: [email protected] Web address: propertyspecialistsinc.com Serving Virginia, Maryland and D.C.

The Simunek Team Zorita & Richard Simunek, Jerry Pritchett, Tachiea Roland-Morris and Tyiesha Taylor

www.HOMESDATABASE.COM/SIMUNEK CLICK on Homes Prospector SPECIFY your criteria RECEIVE daily email updates of all new homes listed for sale with realtors directly from their computerized Multiple Listing Service [email protected]

4600 Lee Highway 5101 Wisconsin Ave., N.W. Arlington VA 22207 Washington, D.C. 20016 703-284-9365 202-296-4304

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 69 REAL ESTATE

E-mail: [email protected]

ADVERTISING INDEX When contacting one of our advertisers, kindly mention you saw their advertisement in the Foreign Service Journal. Automobiles Corporate Apartment The Hirshorn Laughlin Management / 67 4X4 Connection / 52 Specialists, Inc./ 47 Company / C-3 Long & Foster Bukkehave / C-4 Executive Club Suites / 25 UNIRISC / 56 –Simunek / 69 Diplomatic Automobile / 4 Executive Lodging McEnearney Associates / 71 D&M Auto / 49 Alternatives / 53 Miscellaneous Meyerson Group / 68 Martens Volvo / 11 FARA / 11 AICR / 66 Property Specialists / 69 State-Side Auto Supply / 53 Gardens at Kentlands / 14 Fairfax Retirement / 2 Prudential Carruthers / 69 Gilmore Group / 49 John Cabot University / 57 ReMax / 67 Financial and Oakwood / C-2 John Harter / 17 Stuart & Maury / 70 Tax Services Potomac Hospitality / 33 Marketplace / 9 WJD Property Legg Mason / 47 Remington / 4 NPCA Microenterprise Management / 71 MCG Financial State Plaza / 6 Program / 20 Washington Management Planning / 52 Stay Bridge Suites / 43 Services / 67 State Department Federal The Virginian Suites / 62 Real Estate and Credit Union / 32 Property Management US Pension Funding / 43 Insurance Avery Hess / 68 AFSPA / 65 Coldwell Banker / 68 Housing Clements & Co. / 1 Executive Housing Charles E. Smith Corp. Harry Jannette Consultants / 71 Living / 37 International / 6 Hagner, Ridgeway and Columbia Plaza / 62 Jackson / 70

70 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 REAL ESTATE

Leasing and Management of Exceptional properties in upper Northwest DC, Chevy Chase, Bethesda, Potomac, McLean and Great Falls

JANUARY 2003/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 71 REFLECTIONS Walking Through History

BY PHILIP BREEDEN

ou can learn a lot from staring Gammarth, another chic beach sub- at the dirt in Tunisia. The Tunisians cast a urb of the capital, one can visit the Ybones of empire stick out of French military cemetery, with its the ground, leading you into the jaundiced eye on severe lines of tombs surrounded by past. empire builders, white gravel paths. White on white. A short walk from my house lies Close to my house, nestled in a Byrsa Hill, the heart of ancient having themselves grove of trees, is the green oasis of Carthage, near modern Tunis. been bricks in the American military cemetery. Standing at the top, you can take in The Wall of the Missing, carved with all that once was a great capital, the countless imperial their names, faces rows of white only city that gave Rome a serious edifices. marble headstones that march run for its money. Your eye is par- across an immaculate lawn. The list ticularly drawn to the Punic ports, of the missing is longer than the which once held hundreds of war number of graves, mute testimony to galleys, anxious to row to battle. the chaos of war. What happened to Now the dark-blue waters hold the missing? How did their stories nothing but rushes and the occasion- names out of history. end? Occasionally, the earth reveals al swimming party. Carthage today is home to some a trace. Recently a dredging boat in Having destroyed the Punic city splendid ruins, surrounded by mod- the salt lake of Tunis struck the perched on high, the ever-practical ern villas and boutiques. They are remains of a World War II bomber. Romans soon rebuilt it on a grander just the latest installment in an When it was raised, the American scale. Contrary to popular belief, unbroken pageant of humanity. crew was discovered inside. Rome did not salt the earth of After the Romans came a long list of In this part of the world the Carthage after finally besting invaders, each leaving their trace. It sounds of war are both near and far. Hannibal. The Romans did cut off is no surprise that Tunisians cast a CNN and Al-Jazeera pour the blood the top of the hill to make room for jaundiced eye on empire builders, and thunder into our living rooms, their rectangular vision of mortar having themselves been bricks in while the ancient battles echo and stone. The straight lines of the countless imperial edifices. They around us, or drift up from the dust Roman roads ran down from the hill, know the transitory nature of power, we raise as we walk across a field. heading toward Utica, Dougga, and have a patience that outlasts the We are seized with this, our moment Thurbobo Majus, Oudna and other great. in the vast frieze of human history. In modern times the armies of It is easy to be overwhelmed by it all. Foreign Service officer Philip Breeden World War II swept over Tunisia, But as I sift the dirt near my home, joined the former United States leaving their own traces. The gaze down at ancient mosaic faces, Information Agency in 1986. Germans left a rusting bunker on and step over ancient columns and Previous postings include Ankara, the heights of Sidi Bou Said, the waterworks, I know we are but a Antananarivo, Istanbul, Washington, cliff-top village better known for its transitory scene in this pageant. We D.C. and London. He currently famous blue-shuttered, white- will, as my great-grandmother used serves in Tunis. The stamp is courtesy washed houses, and home to the to say, “live over it,” and pass of the AAFSW Bookfair “Stamp best doughnuts in the country. On beyond. The past is a stony bed, but Corner.” the windswept heights of it gives comfort nonetheless. ■

72 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2003 AFSAAmerican Foreign ServiceNEWS Association • January 2003

Last Call for AFSA Awards Nominations This Issue in Brief: e urge you to nominate a col- league for one of AFSA’s con- NEWS BRIEFS: STUDENT LOANS...... 2, 4, 10 Wstructive dissent awards or for VOTING MATTERS...... 5 one of AFSA’s three exemplary perfor- mance awards by the Feb. 12 deadline. DUTY AND DANGER...... 5 Winners will receive $2,500 and are hon- Q&A: TRANSPORTATION...... 6 ored at a ceremony in June in the Benjamin OUTREACH WRAP-UP ...... 8 Franklin Room at the State Department (attended by Secretary Powell in 2002). AFSA AND EDUCATION For 35 years, AFSA has supported this program to recognize Foreign Service AFSA Scholarship members who have challenged the con- ventional wisdom on an issue related to Fund Receives their work. Our awards program honors Largest excellence, dedication, and adherence to the best principles of service to the nation. Bequest Ever Today’s Foreign Service employees, at all BY LORI DEC, SCHOLARSHIP grades and in all agencies, put their lives and JOSH ADMINISTRATOR the lives of their families at risk to advance Continued on page 3 rs. Naomi M. Mathews, the sur- viving spouse of Ambassador AFSA PUBLIC OUTREACH MElbert G. Mathews, bequeathed over $800,000 to the AFSA Scholarship AFSA President Visits Florida Fund. Mrs. Mathews passed away in 1999 at the age of 88. Her estate was recently BY JOHN NALAND, AFSA PRESIDENT settled, and the AFSA Scholarship Fund was named as the largest beneficiary. The ne of AFSA’s key objectives is to help to strengthen diplomatic readiness. money will be added to the scholarship develop a domestic constituency for During my trip, I also continued the fund’s $3.4 million endowment. Beginning Othe foreign affairs agencies. During long tradition of AFSA officers meeting with the 2003-04 school year, a financial a Nov. 9 - 10 trip to central Florida, I worked with Foreign Service retirees. The Florida aid scholarship will be bestowed in the to advance that objective by meeting with an group (the Foreign Service Retirees name of Ambassador and Mrs. Mathews. editorial writer and Pulitzer Prize winning Association of Florida - FSRA) is the largest The AFSA Scholarship Fund provides foreign affairs reporter of the Orlando in the nation, with 770 dues-paying scholarships to Foreign Service children Sentinel (central Florida’s top daily newspa- members. As FSRA Chair Irwin under the renewable, need-based financial per serving readers in five U.S. congressional Rubenstein reported in the October issue aid scholarship program for under- districts). Hopefully, our discussion will serve of the Foreign Service Journal, his group has graduate college study and through one- as a catalyst for future editorials and other an extremely active speakers bureau time-only academic and art merit awards articles supporting Secretary Powell’s effort (coordinated by Al Perlman) and other ini- for graduating high school seniors. to secure a sustained infusion of resources Continued on page 9 Continued on page 9 AFSANEWSBRIEFS Honoring George Shultz AFSA is pleased to announce that former Secretary of State George P. Shultz has agreed to accept AFSA’s Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy Award for 2003. Previous recipients have been U. Alexis Johnson, Frank Carlucci, George H.W. Bush, Lawrence Eagleburger, Cyrus Vance, David Newsom, Lee Hamilton, and Tom Pickering. The award will be presented next June at AFSA’s annual awards ceremony held in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the Department of State. Details will be announced once the date is set.

Life in the Foreign Service Legislative Action BY BRIAN AGGELER, FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICER & CARTOONIST Supports You AFSA advocacy on Capitol Hill is vital to your interests. AFSA legislative action is funded primarily by the Legislative Action Fund. There is no fat in this fund: it pays the salary of Director of Legislative Affairs Ken Nakamura, and directly supports our Hill efforts. The fund helps AFSA to be highly effective in influencing legis- lation that directly affects the lives of Foreign Service personnel and retirees. Please mail your contributions to the AFSA Legislative Action Fund, P.O. Box 98026, Washington, DC 20077- 7093, or go to the AFSA Web site: www.afsa.org/lafform.html. Make checks payable to “Legislative Action Fund.” Every contribution makes a “BOYD, I NEED YOU TO COME UP WITH A PLAN TO TIGHTEN UP ON OUR VISAS — JUST AS SOON AS difference and is appreciated. YOU ANSWER THAT STACK OF CONGRESSIONAL INQUIRIES ASKING US TO RECONSIDER VISA APPLICANTS WE TURNED DOWN ...” Briefs • Continued on page 4

AFSA HEADQUARTERS: Staff: Governing Board: Executive Director Susan Reardon: [email protected] (202) 338-4045; Fax: (202) 338-6820 PRESIDENT: John K. Naland Business Department STATE DEPARTMENT AFSA OFFICE: STATE VICE PRESIDENT: Louise K. Crane (202) 647-8160; Fax: (202) 647-0265 Controller Kalpna Srimal: [email protected] Accounting Assistant Christa Nyamekye: [email protected] USAID VICE PRESIDENT: Joe Pastic USAID AFSA OFFICE: FCS VICE PRESIDENT: Peter G. Frederick (202) 712-1941; Fax: (202) 216-3710 Labor Management General Counsel Sharon Papp: [email protected] FAS VICE PRESIDENT: Edwin Porter Labor Management Attorney Zlatana Badrich: [email protected] AFSA Internet and E-mail addresses: Labor Management Specialist James Yorke: [email protected] RETIREE VICE PRESIDENT: Robert W. Farrand AFSA WEB SITE: www.afsa.org USAID Labor Management Specialist Douglas Broome: [email protected] SECRETARY: F.A. “Tex” Harris AFSA E-MAIL: [email protected] USAID Office Manager Suzan Reager: [email protected] AFSA NEWS: [email protected] Grievance Attorneys Harry Sizer: [email protected], and Neera Parikh: [email protected] TREASURER: Thomas D. Boyatt FSJ: [email protected] Office Manager Christine Warren: [email protected] STATE REPRESENTATIVES: John P. Boulanger, PRESIDENT: [email protected] STATE VP: [email protected] Member Services George W. Colvin, Roy Perrin, Lynn G. Sever RETIREE VP: [email protected] Director Janet Hedrick: [email protected] Representative Lindsay Peyton: [email protected] USAID REPRESENTATIVE: Woody Navin USAID VP: [email protected] Administrative Assistant Ana Lopez: [email protected] FAS VP: [email protected] FCS REPRESENTATIVE: James Joy FCS VP: [email protected] Outreach Programs RETIREE REPRESENTATIVES: Retiree Liaison Ward Thompson: [email protected] William C. Harrop, David E. Reuther, AFSA News Director of Communications Thomas Switzer: [email protected] Editor Shawn Dorman: [email protected] Congressional Affairs Director Ken Nakamura: [email protected] Richard C. Scissors, Theodore S. Wilkinson, III

How to Contact Us: to Contact How (202) 338-4045 x 503; Fax: (202) 338-8244 Corporate Relations/Executive Assistant Marc Goldberg: [email protected] Scholarship Director Lori Dec: [email protected] IBB REPRESENTATIVE: Vacant On the Web: www.afsa.org/news Professional Issues Coordinator Barbara Berger: [email protected] FAS REPRESENTATIVE: Eric Wenberg

2 AFSA NEWS • JANUARY 2003 Awards • Continued from page 1 Service office management specialist, a com- AFSA Awards Committee, to the attention America’s interests. AFSA’s constructive munity liaison officer, and a Foreign of Barbara Berger, by mail: 2101 E Street dissent awards offer an opportunity to rec- Service family member. N.W., Washington, DC 20037; by fax to ognize the critical contributions of our col- Information on submitting a nomina- (202) 338-6820; by AFSA Channel cable; leagues and to honor their courage. tion was detailed in the December 2002 or by e-mail to [email protected]. The dead- AFSA also offers three awards for extra- AFSA News, and is on the AFSA Web site line for nominations is Feb. 12. ordinary contributions to effectiveness, pro- at www.afsa.org/nominations.html. We need your involvement in order to fessionalism and morale: to a Foreign Nominations should be sent to the continue this valuable program. ▫

AFSA’s Executive Director and General Counsel Reach 10-Year Mark BY SHAWN DORMAN FSA Governing Boards come and cause” and she values the chance to sup- labor management office in the Truman go, but the AFSA staff stays on to port the Foreign Service. Having worked Building. A graduate of Vanderbilt Asupport each new board and keep with six consecutive AFSA presidents, Susan University and The George Washington AFSA functioning smoothly. AFSA’s explains that every AFSA Governing Board University Law School, Sharon came to Executive Director Susan Reardon and brings new ideas and a new perspective. She AFSA from an employment-side civil General Counsel Sharon Papp both came enjoys the chance to re-evaluate the direc- rights and employment law firm in to work at AFSA 10 years ago. Although tion of the organization with each incom- Washington, where she had worked for five many AFSA members have never met ing board, and sees herself as the bridge years. She spent 18 years in Saudi Arabia, them, both have made significant contri- between the staff and the governing board. where her parents worked for the Arabian butions to AFSA. American Oil Company. That experience Susan and Sharon joined Susan Reardon has given her an affinity toward people who AFSA within one month of (left) and live overseas and helped her understand the each other. Susan tells us, “It’s Sharon Papp unique challenges and rewards of the been a great partnership: Foreign Service lifestyle. Sharon looks after the mem- Sharon says the work at bers’ rights while I look after AFSA is “extremely inter- the organization’s operational esting and challenging,” stability.” Their long tenure and new issues are always with AFSA also adds stabili- arising. “There’s never a ty to the organization, which, dull moment,” she says. by the way, tends to keep staff The Foreign Service mem- for many years. Most AFSA bers she works with are staff members do not stay “very bright and very appre- with AFSA because of the pay, ciative of the help we give but because of their dedica- them,” Sharon says, and it tion and the positive work is a pleasure working with environment. Susan deserves them. “I feel like I am able much credit for the high morale at AFSA. to help people,” she adds, Susan came to AFSA from the League noting that this is one key of Women Voters of the U.S., where she reason the job is meaning- was the director of finance and adminis- She is there to help the board learn about ful for her. Sharon tells AFSA News her tration for seven years. She and her hus- AFSA operations and to help the staff han- high job satisfaction also relates to the peo- band, Kevin Reardon, have two sons, ages dle change and remain flexible and respon- ple she works with at AFSA and in State 14 and 18. Susan finds the work at AFSA sive. Department management, as well as the to be interesting and challenging, and says While Susan manages AFSA operations good working environment. Sharon and she especially appreciates the “fantastic from the AFSA headquarters on 21st St., her husband, Rick Philbin, have two staff.” She believes AFSA “serves a good Sharon’s “legal practice” is based in AFSA’s daughters, ages 6 and 8. ▫

JANUARY 2003 • AFSA NEWS 3 Help Give Them a Clue About What You Do AFSANEWSBRIEFS AFSA has completely re-done the 1995

Continued from page 2 book Inside a U.S. Embassy: How the Foreign Service Works for America. It Messaging the SMART Way offers an inside look at the people who By the end of 2004, the State Department expects to have a new user- work in U.S. missions around the globe, driven communication system that is smart, simple and secure. When it is fully operational, SMART (State Messaging and Archive Retrieval Toolset) will integrate what we now know as cables (classified and unclassified), e-mails, and memos into a single system. This will simpli- fy the way you produce and receive messages, ensure that you can access the information you need, and permit searching of archived mes- sages. You will be able to log in to SMART much as you do already with MS Outlook. A prototype of the new system has been designed based on input from users in Washington and the field, but more feedback is needed to CONNIE MCLENNAN ensure that the new system meets your needs. Check out the SMART and is written for the layperson. Entries Intranet Web site at http://messaging.irm.state.gov and send in your are short and highly readable. The new version contains profiles of outstanding comments. Use this chance to help build a system that gives you the colleagues serving in every kind of tools you need. Foreign Service job in an embassy. The book also includes a series of “day in the life” entries — hour-by-hour accounts of a “typical” day on the job. And then Dreyfus Scholarship Program from DACOR there are the stories of the extraordinary Children of active and retired FSOs are eligible to apply for several scholarships and — how our Foreign Service colleagues fellowships sponsored by the DACOR Bacon House Foundation for study at the handle the coups, the riots, the natural disasters and the evacuations. We’ve got Hotchkiss School and Yale University for the 2003-2004 academic year. entries from every region of the globe, The Hotchkiss School seeks to select one qualified enrolled student for a $5,000 and from people serving in every kind of Foreign Service position. scholarship. Applicants should contact the Director of Financial Aid, The Hotchkiss Look for Inside a U.S. Embassy in late School, Lakeville, CT 06039-0800. January. You will be able to order copies through a link on the AFSA Web site at Awards to Yale students, based on merit, will be made by the DACOR Bacon House www.afsa.org. Foundation in consultation with Yale University. At Yale, the fellowships are coordinat- ed by the Yale Center for International and Area Studies, Henry R. Luce Hall, 34 Scholarships from AFSA Hillhouse Ave., New Haven, CT 06520. Awards for undergraduates may be up to Each year, AFSA provides over $150,000 in $5,000 and up to $10,000 for graduate students. Application materials must be sent college aid to almost 100 Foreign Service chil- dren. High school seniors and college under- to William Hamilton at the DACOR Bacon House Foundation, 1801 F St., NW, graduates of Foreign Service employees can Washington, D.C. 20006. For further information, contact Taushia Walker at DACOR apply for AFSA one-time-only academic and art merit awards and renewable need-based by phone: financial aid awards. Awards range from (202) 682-0500, ext. 17 or $1,000 to $3,000. Applications are now avail- 1 (800) 344-9127, or by e-mail: able and the submission deadline is Feb. 6, 2003. Visit AFSA’s Web page at [email protected]. www.afsa.org/scholar/index.html for complete The application deadline details or contact Lori Dec at [email protected] or 1 (800) 704-2372, ext. 504.

is March 15, 2003. JOSH Briefs • Continued on page 10

4 AFSA NEWS • JANUARY 2003 DUTY AND DANGER IN THE V.P. VOICE: FCS BY PETER FREDERICK FOREIGN SERVICE Loss of FS Voting Matters everal years ago, our son, then a senior in college, called Member Sparks to ask where we lived. One would think a college-edu- Call for More Scated 21-year-old would know the answer to that ques- tion, unless of course he was a Foreign Service brat. His gov- Protections ernment professor had offered “special consideration” for FSA was deeply saddened by the those that voted, and our son needed to register to vote. heinous murder of USAID officer Although I cannot offer any “special incentive” from the ALaurence Foley in Amman, selection boards for voting in the AFSA elections, there are Jordon on Oct. 28, 2002. (Please see the important reasons to vote. We have excellent candidates for “Appreciation” dedicated to him in this both FCS positions. Of equal importance is the impact your vote will have on AFSA issue of the Foreign Service Journal.) As and US&FCS. everyone is aware, the risks to Foreign AFSA believes in pride in our Over the past seven months, AFSA has Service employees and family members been negotiating with management to imple- worldwide have increased in recent Service, pride in our work ment agreements that management signed in years due to the increased threat of and the importance of good June and August 2001, respectively. After sign- terrorism. ing, management refused to implement the AFSA sent out two press releases, on leadership. agreements for various “technical” reasons. Oct. 28 and Oct. 30, which were quoted and Other actions taken by the Office of the General paraphrased in a number of newspapers Counsel and International Trade Administration labor management personnel have around the country, including the New York not reflected well on our Service, either. Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Los The agreements on which management reneged will probably soon be implemented, Angeles Times. because AFSA negotiators were able to convince management that failure to imple- The following is from the Oct. 28 press ment them had a negative impact on our members and our Service. release: A few of us still remember the good old days when the director general did pretty “This brutal terrorist attack underlines much whatever he or she wanted concerning assignments and evaluations and pro- the vulnerability of the men and women motions. This changed when AFSA was elected to represent FCS. Now, when a DG of the U.S. Foreign Service who advance our tries to return to these old practices, AFSA makes sure it does not happen. nation’s vital interests around the globe…. US&FCS has been blessed with political-appointee directors general since incep- The U.S. government must protect these tion, most joining us fresh from an election victory. If there is one common denom- dedicated public servants as well as possi- inator among our DGs, it is that they know how to count votes and they respect ble, beginning with dedicating sufficient those that turn out the vote. Approximately 80 percent of our career officers are resources to the effort.” members of AFSA. If every member votes, even the secretary of Commerce would AFSA highlighted two unresolved realize that AFSA is an organization with which he and his staff must deal. Your problems, that of protecting soft targets vote makes it easier for your elected representatives to do more for you and get man- and protecting USAID missions: “With agement’s attention. the hardening of the security of our Some of you may be thinking, “There goes that union guy trying to make the DG embassies and consulates, terrorists are look like the owner of a large trucking company and FCSOs like Teamsters.” Why do targeting U.S. government representatives we need the DG and secretary to pay attention to AFSA? I remind you that before in ‘softer’ locations… AFSA believes that AFSA became a labor representative for FCS, it was a professional association. AFSA’s additional resources must be devoted to role as our professional organization may be more important in the long run than its expanding the concept of embassy secu- labor role. AFSA believes in pride in our Service, pride in our work and the impor- rity to encompass the entire embassy tance of good leadership. In addition to negotiating improved working conditions, community. While security upgrades are your AFSA representatives need to convince management that this is our organiza- under way at State Department-managed tion and we take pride in it. We need to encourage our leadership to share our objec- facilities, a turf battle on Capitol Hill has tives and respect our professionalism. blocked security improvements at numer- Your vote matters. In addition to impressing management, you will let our col- ous USAID missions around the globe…. leagues in the other foreign affairs agencies know we are, in fact, “players.” Our objec- AFSA calls on the congressional leader- tive should be to have the highest percentage of voters among all the agencies. Only ship to resolve this turf battle.” ▫ you can make that happen. ▫

JANUARY 2003 • AFSA NEWS 5 Q: After many years in Washington, D.C., choices for employees traveling with a pet. we are again being posted overseas. The key is to start early to make plans based Where do I begin? both on travel options and on any possi- Many bureaus at the ble restrictions at the post of assignment. A:Department of State have their The Overseas Briefing Center Q&A own checkout lists for employees who are (http://www.state.gov/www/obc) at the being posted overseas. However, both the Foreign Service Institute has excellent Personnel personnel technicians (Room 2808, Main information on airline policy and on pro- State) and the Employee Services Center fessional pet shippers. It also has available BY METTE BEECROFT, (Room 1252, Main State) have “generic” a standard “TMTWO” from each post. STATE DEPARTMENT TRAVEL AND checkout lists that apply to everyone. The The TMTWO is the welcome message to TRANSPORTATION DIVISION Overseas Briefing Center, located on the the employee from post that outlines host NFATC campus, also publishes a useful country restrictions on importing pets. Travel and booklet titled “Foreign Service Assignment Reimbursement for pet shipping Transportation: Notebook.” charges (transportation only) is available When you move, there are basically under the “Miscellaneous” portion of the Frequently Asked three major divisions in the State Foreign Transfer Allowance (Standardized Department that play a role: (1) the Medical Regulations 240) and under the same por- Questions Division; (2) the personnel technicians; and tion of the Home Transfer Allowance Responding to questions about Foreign (3) the transportation counselors. The (Standardized Regulations 250). Service travel and transportation is a chal- transportation counselor cannot permit an lenge, because often there is no easy answer. actual pack-out until travel orders are avail- Q: How do I arrange to ship a car? People’s requirements vary widely and the able. Travel orders cannot be prepared (or The first step is to investigate “cookie cutter” approach does not work. “cut”) until the employee has medical clear- A:what type of car would be Nevertheless, there is a certain body of infor- ance. Thus these three functions are inter- acceptable at post. Host countries have var- mation that applies to everyone. Some of related and take place sequentially. ious restrictions on the make, age and even this information is highlighted below. The employee and family obtain medical color of the cars allowed in country. Some clearance from the Medical Division. It is features (such as tinted glass or white head- Q: A big international move is so com- important to schedule the physical exami- lights) are not acceptable. Parts must be plicated. Where can I get the best guid- nations as early as possible to obtain clearance available (unless you ship them with your ance and assistance? in a timely fashion. It is often useful to hand- household effects, known as the HHE). Though “It’s Your Move” does carry a copy of the medical clearance to the Repair facilities must also be available. A:not answer every question, it is appropriate personnel technician (Room Sometimes, a gearshift car is preferable to the best general source of information on 2808). The personnel technicians are a car with an automatic transmission. moving. Several people have referred to it assigned according to the first letters of the The employee obtains a copy of the JF- as their “bible.” It is published by the employee’s last name. Similarly, once the 49 from Transportation (Room 1248) or Division of Travel and Transportation with orders have been prepared, it is useful to hand- from the Intranet, which he or she then fills frequent updates, the latest of which is carry the travel orders from the personnel tech- out and sends to the Baltimore Despatch November 2002. You can obtain a copy nicians to the transportation counselors Agency along with a copy of the title or cer- from Transportation (Room 1248, Main (Room 1248). The transportation counselors tificate of origin. The address and other State) or look on the Intranet divide up their work by bureaus. For exam- contact information are provided on the (http://lm.a.state.gov). ple, one team handles everyone who is being JF-49. The Despatch Agency then arranges WebMove may also simplify your posted to Africa and another team handles for a “drive-away” company to drive the move. The employee can initiate his/her everyone posted to Europe. car from your residence to the move request to the transportation office There are many other items on the check- port — unless you opt to drive it yourself. via the department’s Intranet for lists, but they can be handled more flexibly. Sometimes, items not attached to the Washington-to-post moves. Shortly, The three steps mentioned above need to be vehicle disappear in transit, so be sure to WebMove will also be available for post-to- taken sequentially. remove spare tires and tools from the vehi- post moves. WebMove is designed to help cle for inclusion in your HHE. It is also reduce problems associated with a move by Q: We are going to post with a pet. What prudent to obtain door-to-door marine introducing a one-stop resource for start- do I need to know? insurance. The OBC has extensive infor- ing the moving process. Find it at “Fly America” regulations and mation on insurance. If it is necessary to http://webmove.a.state.gov. A:airline embargo policies all limit remove the catalytic converter because lead-

6 AFSA NEWS • JANUARY 2003 ed gas is used at your new post, the employ- There is no per diem for family members idence can be limited. Furthermore, if air ee needs to obtain an Environmental while the employee is in training. conditioning is used to cool the storeroom Protection Agency waiver from On the other hand, if the employee elects and the source of electricity is unreliable, Transportation to permit removal of the to be transferred on a regular permanent the resultant heat reduces the shelf life of converter. The catalytic converter may be change of station, then he or she does not foodstuffs. removed no earlier than seven days before receive per diem, but will receive Washington To purchase the goods, the employee the car is driven away. locality pay. The department will ship the can use a catalog (available at Sometimes, for a variety of possible rea- employee’s car from the current post of Transportation) from stores such as Giant sons, an employee’s car is unacceptable at assignment to the training location. The (also available online) or Ho-Ho (not avail- post. If the post provides a formal state- employee is expected to take everything out able online) to select goods. It is prudent ment saying that the car cannot be brought of storage for use in his/her residence, which to first establish what is and is not available to post, then the Department of State will is either owned or rented. at post. Through the Transportation provide emergency storage for that car, free Q: What is a consumables shipment? Counselor (Room 1248), an employee can of charge. Some cars are arrange for the goods to be picked stored locally in the up at the vendor and packed for Washington, D.C. area; others export to the new post. Be sure are stored at ELSO — the that the vendor allows our pack- European Logistics Support ers to inventory the goods to be Office in Antwerp. Please packed, thus establishing that they note that the Transportation are packing what the employee entitlement is for one car only actually ordered. per employee. The stored car must be removed from emer- Q: I am at a partially-furnished gency storage as soon as the post (sometimes known as a posting is concluded. “limited-shipment” post) and I JOSH am about to be posted to anoth- Q: When I am posted to er partially-furnished post. Under Washington for long-term what circumstances may I either training of a year or more, put items into storage or retrieve what are my entitlements? If you are entitled to a consum- them from storage? If you are assigned to A:ables shipment, it will be stated An employee serving at a post A:Washington for a year or more in your travel orders (authorization). This A:considered “partially-fur- of training, you are entitled to choose shipment is used to provide you with food- nished” is allowed to bring the maximum whether you want to be assigned on a “tem- stuffs and goods that are simply not avail- of 7,200 pounds with him or her. Before porary” or “permanent” basis. If you are able at your new post. Consumables are moving to the next partially-furnished assigned on a temporary basis, you receive only goods that are used up or consumed post, he or she may send goods back to per diem, which as of November 2002 was by people or pets. Items that get worn out, storage. Let us say that 2,200 pounds are $196 per day — that includes $150 for lodg- such as tires or batteries, are not considered sent back to storage. This means that the ing, and $46 for meals and incidentals consumables and should be sent with employee has only 5,000 pounds at post (called M&IE). Per diem is intended to household effects. If goods are available but that is to be sent on to the next partial- cover the cost of renting living quarters, expensive, you may also receive a Cost ly-furnished post. The employee may renting furniture and purchasing meals. of Living Allowance but no consumables then take 2,200 pounds out of storage for Under these circumstances, the Department shipment. sending to the new post, once more bring- of State does not ship your car and you do For a two-year posting, the employee ing the weight of HHE at post up to the not have free access to your goods in stor- is entitled to send a maximum of 2,500 maximum 7,200 pounds. age. The per diem also decreases over time. pounds. For a three-year posting, 3,750 It starts at 100 percent of the applicable per pounds may be sent. For a two-year post- If you have questions, you are welcome diem rate for the first 60 days. For the next ing, the employee may order consumables to contact Mette Beecroft by e-mail: 60 days, it is 50 percent of the applicable through the first year. For a three-year post- [email protected], or by phone: (202) per diem rate. And after the first 120 days, ing, it is possible to order through the end 647-4028. Another good resource is the employee receives 25 percent of the of the second year. Often it is best not to Travel Regulations Chief Peggy Zabriskie, applicable per diem rate up to a year. Per order everything at once. Availability of reachable by e-mail: [email protected] diem is only authorized for up to one year. goods changes and storage space at your res- or phone: (202) 647-2987. ▫

JANUARY 2003 • AFSA NEWS 7 GAINING SUPPORT FOR DIPLOMATIC READINESS FUNDING 300,000 households via a regional cable network. Video conferenc- ing is an inexpensive, convenient outreach tool, which we plan to AFSA Expands Outreach increasingly utilize to reach wider audiences nationwide, especially in smaller communities not easily accessible to our retired Foreign Efforts in 2002 Service speakers. BY TOM SWITZER, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AFSA provided substantial advice and facilitative support to the producers of National Geographic’s superb documentary FSA greatly expanded its national outreach efforts in 2002 “Ambassador: Under Fire Overseas,” which aired nationally on Sept. aimed at broadening and deepening public support for fund- 4, and presented some of the most positive images of American diplo- Aing for diplomatic readiness. One of our most effective out- mats seen on U.S. television in recent years. We are screening this reach elements is our Speakers Program, which deployed 252 excellent program before our speaker audiences nationwide. Foreign Service speakers in 2002 (more than double the AFSA’s media outreach efforts were also intensive 110 participants in 2000) to explain the importance of in 2002. We placed, either directly or through AFSA U.S. diplomacy for American national interests to diverse retirees, 31 op-eds, letters-to-the-editor, and articles advo- audiences in 33 states and Washington, D.C. cating increased public and congressional support for U.S. Audiences ranged from major world affairs councils diplomacy in leading media entities including the Los and universities to local community-service organizations, Angeles Times, Houston Chronicle, Washington Post, Wall “Town Meetings,” churches, and high schools. Former Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Portland ambassador to Pakistan Wendy Chamberlin enthralled Oregonian, Federal Times, Associated Press, the BBC and faculty and students at universities in Boston and CNN, and others. Washington, D.C. with her description of the demand- Among our better efforts was the heaviest media cov- ing process our diplomats underwent to successfully con- erage ever arranged for AFSA’s annual Awards vince the Pakistan government to collaborate with the “After September 11, Ceremony held at the State Department, which includ- U.S.-led coalition confronting the Taliban and ed five network TV cameras and some 20 journalists from al-Qaida. She also impressively described the attractions we deployed more major media. The highlight was a half-page photo story and challenges of careers in the Foreign Service, includ- in the Washington Post entitled “At State, Giving Dissent ing insightful considerations of family issues. Another than 100 AFSA Its Due.” Additionally, AFSA was the subject of a outstanding speaker was Ambassador Vernon Penner, retiree experts for Washington Post editorial for the first time ever on Dec. who elicited glowing reviews from some 200 business lead- 4 in an editorial entitled “A Foreign Service PAC,” which ers meeting in Colorado Springs for his presentations on outreach programs cited AFSA’s formation of a PAC this year in order to U.S. counterterrorism and foreign trade policies. nationwide.” gain a hearing from key congressional lawmakers con- AFSA speakers addressed other topics including: cerning essential funding for diplomatic readiness. democratization and free markets in the former Soviet All AFSA outreach efforts were intensified in the after- Union and Eastern Europe; U.S. initiatives in Latin America, Europe, math of September 11, during which period we deployed more than Africa, the Middle East, and Asia; United Nations peacekeeping; pub- 100 AFSA retiree experts on Middle East and South Asian issues for lic diplomacy; international environmental concerns; population and speaker and media programs nationwide, all of whom were able to migration issues; and human rights. emphasize the vital role played by U.S. diplomacy in the ongoing strug- All speakers were provided with talking points and issue updates gle against terrorism. The director of the State Department’s Office from AFSA. Speakers stressed the critical role of diplomacy in advanc- of Public Liaison thanked AFSA for its efforts, since many U.S. gov- ing America’s vital security and economic interests around the globe. ernment officials were constrained by policy sensitivities from speak- They also encouraged audience members to contact their congres- ing publicly. We also held frequent discussions concerning AFSA issues sional representatives to request increased funding for U.S. diplomatic with the more than 35 diplomatic correspondents attached to the State readiness. Moreover, speakers reached out to talented youth — espe- Department’s press office, as well as with senior editors and bureau cially minority-group members — to encourage them to consider chiefs of national media based in Washington. Foreign Service careers. These outreach programs have promoted three important AFSA AFSA also significantly expanded video conferencing to certain goals: broadening the Foreign Service constituency through outreach regions of the country that lack retiree speakers by developing two to the public, enhancing public awareness of global affairs and of the major regional town meetings in northern Indiana. The first pro- key role of the Foreign Service and diplomacy, and activating the AFSA gram, featuring Ambassador Phil Wilcox, positively influenced region- retiree constituency by involving it in significant programs which draw al educators, students, civic leaders and media as to the crucial role on their backgrounds and on their skills to tell our story to audi- played by U.S. diplomacy in waging the war against terrorism. ences nationwide. The second dialogue featured senior State Department trade nego- If you want to be involved with AFSA outreach, contact me tiator Robert Cekuta, who explained U.S. global trade policies to some at [email protected] or call toll-free (800) 704-2372, ext. 501. ▫

8 AFSA NEWS • JANUARY 2003 Naland • Continued from page 1 tiatives to tell the Foreign Service story to Orlando Sentinel on the Foreign Service: our fellow citizens. I spoke to 110 of the Naland Visit Leads to Good Publicity group’s members at their annual banquet. isits like the one AFSA President John Naland made to Florida help get the word After updating them on the health of the out about the importance of the Foreign Service and diplomacy. The op ed by Foreign Service that they helped to build Veditorial writer John Bersia in the Orlando Sentinel that appeared soon after John over their careers, I briefed them on Naland’s meeting there includes rarely-reported information like this: “Few Americans AFSA’s advocacy on issues of specific know that more than 200 diplomats have died in the line of duty. Nor that Foreign Service interest to our 3,700 retired members. I officers spend an average of two-thirds of their careers overseas, which multiplies risks, also urged them to continue to promote especially in today’s turbulent world.” funding for international engagement by Bersia goes on to say that “Americans tend to have scant details about what a Foreign speaking to friends and civic groups, writ- Service officer does…. They are the people who know a country, have studied its histo- ing letters to the editor of their local news- ry, speak its language and understand its culture…. Foreign Service officers have the paper, and communicating with their global skills that are so essential and yet in short supply.” ▫ members of Congress.

Scholarship • Continued from page 1 that “My aunt was independent, cultured and a very Approximately $150,000 is awarded each year to 100 proper woman. She introduced me to the arts by tak- students. In addition to support from the AFSA ing me to plays, art exhibits, and concerts when back Scholarship endowment, DACOR (Diplomats and in the United States from overseas assignments. Even Consular Officers, Retired) Bacon House Foundation through her later years in life, she regularly invited and AAFSW (Associates of the American Foreign women over for formal tea, still using her silver tea Service Worldwide) provide funds for scholarships service.” Naomi Mathews served as the AAFSW administered by AFSA. president from 1970 to 1972 and participated in Elbert G. Mathews, accompanied and assisted by AAFSW’s oral history program. his wife Naomi M. Mathews, served for 37 years in the AFSA encourages active and retired members to Foreign Service in five countries on three continents. consider establishing an AFSA scholarship. For more He was ambassador to Liberia in 1959 and ambassador information on the AFSA Scholarship Program, call to Nigeria from 1964-69. Ambassador Lori Dec at (202) 944-5504, or 1(800) 704-2374, ext. Donald Norland says Mathews “was seri- 504; or e-mail Lori at [email protected]. ▫ Approximately ous-minded and dedicated. I am not $150,000 is awarded each surprised that he donated generously to the AFSA Scholarship Program to year to 100 students. promote education of Foreign Service children.” When Mathews was the director of the senior seminar from 1969 until his retire- ment in 1972, Ambassador Willard De Pree served as his deputy. “Although they had a small house in Georgetown, Ambassador Mathews and his wife enjoyed having the senior seminar class of 25 over to their house for an evening meal,” recalls De Pree. “They were the consummate Foreign Service couple; very old-school. The ambassador was widely respected by his colleagues,” adds De Pree. “Kabul, Afghanistan was my aunt’s favorite post, even though she was the only American woman there in 1943,” says Pamela Brody, niece of Naomi Mathews. “Calcutta was her least favorite because of the riots in 1945.” Brody notes Naomi and Elbert Mathews

JANUARY 2003 • AFSA NEWS 9 AFSA DUES INCREASE AFSANEWSBRIEFS New Dues Schedule for 2003 n accordance with the AFSA Bylaws, the AFSA Continued from page 4 Governing Board has adjusted member dues for infla- State’s Student Loan Repayment Program Ition by approving a dues increase of 1.4 percent. This he State Department’s Student Loan Repayment Program recently com- change reflects the increase in the Consumer Price Index pleted its first of two pilot years. The program, which can provide up to for 12 months ending Sept. 30, 2002. The new dues rates T$6,000 a year and $40,000 over a recipient’s career to pay off his or her will take effect on Jan. 1, loans, was designed by law as a recruitment and retention incentive. In the case 2003. Members paying 2003 AFSA Dues Schedule of the Foreign Service, the program is specifically designed to encourage bid- dues via payroll deduction ding on greater hardship and danger pay posts. Foreign Service personnel serv- will see a small, automatic ing (or soon to arrive) at such posts pre-qualified for the program if they had increase in the amount eligible student loans that were not in default. Other FS personnel were accept- deducted from their pay- ed for the first-year program on a case-by-case basis by showing a pattern of checks. Members who pay hardship assignments and a record of outstanding performance. annually will be billed the Altogether, 584 Foreign Service and Civil Service personnel applied for the new rate on their regularly Fiscal Year 2002 program and 407 were accepted. Of these, 270 were Foreign scheduled renewal date. Service. Successful applicants received incentive payments of up to $4,700 — Membership dues account for a department-wide total of $2 million. In terms of funding and number of for approximately 75 per- participants, State’s program is by far the largest of any federal department or cent of AFSA’s total income. agency. State expects Fiscal Year 2003 funding to at least equal Fiscal Year 2002 This revenue provides the funding. Some changes will be made to the program. After they are approved, association with a stable and an open season for applications will be announced early in 2003. Those inter- predictable income source, ested in the program should send messages to [email protected] for updates or check out the SLRP Intranet site at http://hrweb.hr.state.gov/er/employment/ which allows AFSA to con- SL/StudentLoan.html. tinue offering excellent The site also contains instructions on how to join the SLRP Listserv. (Thanks member services and ben- ▫ to the Human Resources Employee Programs Office for this information.) ▫ efits. CLASSIFIEDS LEGAL SERVICES GRIEVANCE ATTORNEY (specializing TAX & FINANCIAL SERVICES since 1983) Attorney assists FS officers cor- ATTORNEY WITH 22 years successful rect defective performance appraisals, reverse ROLAND S. HEARD, CPA experience SPECIALIZING FULL TIME IN FS improper tenuring and promotion board deci- 1091 Chaddwyck Dr. GRIEVANCES will more than double your sions, secure financial benefits, defend Athens, GA 30606 chance of winning. 30% of grievants win before against disciplinary actions and obtain relief Tel/Fax: (706) 769-8976 the Grievance Board; 85% of my clients win. from all forms of discrimination. Free Initial E-mail: [email protected] Only a private attorney can adequately devel- Consultation. Call William T. Irelan, Esq. • U.S. income tax services op and present your case, including neces- Tel: (202) 625-1800 Fax: (202) 625-1616. • Many FS & contractor clients sary regs, arcane legal doctrines, precedents E-mail: [email protected] • Practiced before the IRS and rules. Call Bridget R. Mugane at • Financial planning Tel: (202) 387-4383, Tel: (301) 596-0175. WILL/ESTATE PLANNING by attorney • American Institute of CPAs, Member who is a former FSO. Have your will reviewed E-mail: [email protected] FIRST CONSULTATION FREE Free initial consultation. and updated, or new one prepared: No charge for initial consultation. FREE TAX CONSULTATION: For over- , 307 M. Bruce Hirshorn, Boring & Pilger seas personnel. We process returns as Maple Ave. W, Suite D, Vienna, VA 22180 ATTORNEY received, without delay. Preparation and rep- Tel: (703) 281-2161, Fax: (703) 281-9464. ESTATE PLANNING, WILLS, POW- resentation by Enrolled Agents. Federal and E-mail: [email protected] ERS OF ATTORNEY. General practice; all states prepared. Includes “TAX TRAX” estate planning: wills, trusts, living wills, pow- PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD: $1.25/word unique mini-financial planning review with rec- ers of attorney; review and update of old wills (10 word min.) First 3 words bolded free, add’l ommendations. Full planning available. Get the or drafting of new one; probate administra- bold text $2/word, header, box, shading $10 most from your financial dollar! Financial tion. Charles S. Abell, Furey, Doolan & Abell, ea. Ad Deadline: 20th of the month for pub. Forecasts Inc., Barry B. De Marr, CFP, EA LLP; 8401 Conn. Ave., #1100, Chevy Chase, 5 wks. later. Contact: Ad Mgr: Tel: (202) 944- 3918 Prosperity Ave. #230 Fairfax, VA 22031 MD 20815, Tel: (301) 652-6880, 5507, Fax: (202) 338-6820 Tel: (703) 289-1167, Fax: (703) 289-1178, Fax: (301) 652-8972. E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]

10 AFSA NEWS • NOVEMBER 2002 CLASSIFIEDS TAX & FINANCIAL SERVICES PROPERTY MANAGEMENT TEMPORARY HOUSING TAX RETURN PREPARATION AND WASHINGTON, D.C. or NFATC TOUR? PLANNING by experienced tax professional EXECUTIVE HOUSING CONSULTANTS Federal and all State returns. Year round assis- REALTY GROUP, INC. offers Metropolitan Washington D.C.’s finest tance. JANE A. BRUNO Tel: (561) 470-7631. portfolio of short-term, fully-furnished and Fax: (561) 470-4790. DC PROPERTY MANAGEMENT equipped apartments, townhomes and sin- E-mail: [email protected] AND SALES gle family residences in Maryland, D.C. and Web site: www.americantaxhelp.com of single family homes, condos & small apartment bldgs. Virginia. In Virginia: “River Place’s Finest” is steps VIRGINIA M. TEST, CPA: Tax service We serve owners who appreciate personalized to Rosslyn Metro and Georgetown and 15 Specialize in Foreign Service/overseas con- service & quality maintenance. minutes on Metro bus or State Department tractors. CONTACT INFO: (804) 695-2939, shuttle to NFATC. For more info. please call FAX: (804) 695-2958. Amy Fisher, CRS: (202) 544-8762 (301) 951-4111, or visit our Web site: E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected], www.executivehousing.com Visit our Web site: ATTORNEY, FORMER FOREIGN SER- dcpropertymanagement.com MANOR SERVICES: Former federal law VICE OFFICER: Extensive experience w/ tax enforcement officer: offers best tenant screen- problems peculiar to the Foreign Service. PEAKE MANAGEMENT: Looking for a ing. Frequent inspections. Mortgages paid. Available for consultation, tax planning, and great property manager experienced with FS Repairs. Close personal attention. We’re preparation of returns: clients? Call me to set up an appointment, or small, but very effective. FS refs. Our rates are M. Bruce Hirshorn, Boring & Pilger to receive our free Landlord Manual. The lower than anyone else’s on this page. And our 307 West Maple Ave W., Suite D, Manual clearly explains the rental management service is better. Compare. We do “hands-on” Vienna, VA 22180 Tel: (703) 281-2161, process no matter which company you management only. MANOR SERVICES, Fax: (703) 281-9464 choose. We’re professional, experienced, PO Box 1097, Laurel, MD 20725 E-mail: [email protected] and friendly. In business since 1982. Lindsey Tel: (301) 776-4461, Fax: (301) 725-6267 Peake: 6842 Elm St. McLean, VA 22101. E-mail: [email protected] PROFESSIONAL TAX RETURN Tel: (703) 448-0212. Visit our website: www.manorservices.com PREPARATION: Thirty years in public tax E-mail: [email protected] practice. Arthur A Granberg, EA, ATA, ATP. ROSSLYN METRO IN ARLINGTON Our charges are $65 per hour. Most FSO HONOR MOST GOV’T PER DIEM returns take 3 to 4 hours. Our office is 100 feet 1 BLK TO METRO, NFATC SHUTTLE from Virginia Square Metro Station, Tax WJD MANAGEMENT IS competitively Efficiency, 1 and 2-bedroom apartments, Matters, Associates, PC 3601 North Fairfax priced, of course. However, if you are consid- Fully equipped kitchens, Dr. Arlington, VA 22201 Tel: (703) 522-3828 ering hiring a property management firm, don’t Cable, phone, linens, gym & pool Fax: (703) 522-5726 forget the old saying “You get what you pay GOVERNMENT FRIENDLY LEASE E-mail: [email protected] for.” All of us at WJD have worked for other Tel: (703) 553-8225 property management firms in the past, and E-mail: [email protected] JACOB FORBAI, CPA/MS: Affordable we have learned what to do and more impor- Web site: www.temporaryrentals.com expatriate tax solutions, compliance, planning, tantly what not to do from our experiences at preparation for US citizens & aliens world-wide. these companies. We invite you to explore our SHORT - TERM RENTALS Web site at www.wjdpm.com for more infor- 18+ years exp. Tel. (301) 608-2248. CORPORATE APARTMENT SPECIAL- mation, or call us at (703) 385-3600. E-mail: [email protected] ISTS, INC.: has abundant experience work- ing with Foreign Service professionals and the TAX-DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS: locations to best serve you: Foggy Bottom, Consider a non-profit organization for your Woodley Park, Cleveland Park, Chevy Chase, charitable/philanthropic donations for tax year PROPERTY MANAGEMENT Rosslyn, Ballston, Pentagon City. Our office 2002. The Irene T. Harter Memorial Fund is is a short walk from NFATC. One month min- sponsored by the Rush-Presbyterian-St. PRUDENTIAL CARRUTHERS REAL- imum. All furnishings, housewares, utilities, Luke's Medical Center. This organization is TORS: (FORMERLY J.P. PROPERTIES & telephone and cable included. approved by the IRS pursuant to Section DIPLOMAT PROPERTIES): Complete pro- Tel: (703) 979-2830 or (800) 914-2802 and 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code for fessional dedication to the management of res- Fax: (703) 979-2813. tax-deductible contributions. For more infor- idential property in Northern Virginia. Our pro- Web site: www.corporateapartments.com mation, contact Linda Testin at the fessionals will provide personal attention to your E-mail: [email protected] Medical Center. Tel: (312) 942-6112, home, careful tenant screening, and video inspections of your property. We are equipped PIED-A-TERRE PROPERTIES, LTD.: E-mail: [email protected] to handle all of your property management The Foreign Service professionals' first choice FOREIGN SERVICE ASSOCIATES: has needs. We work 7 days a week! Over 22 years in interim housing. Select from our unique fully furnished apartments at River Place just real estate experience and Foreign Service inventory of fully furnished & tastefully deco- 5 minutes from NFATC and one block from overseas living experience. JOANN PIEKNEY. rated apartments & townhouses all exclusively Rosslyn Metro. Efficiencies, and 1 bedrooms Vienna: located in DC's best in-town neighborhoods: are fully furnished with kitchens, cable TV, tele- Tel: (703) 938-0909 Fax: (703) 281-9782 Dupont, Georgetown, Foggy Bottom & The phone, linens, and all utilities included. Call: E-mail: [email protected] West End. Two month minimum term. All inclu- (703) 477-5955, or Arlington: sive rates. Mother-Daughter Owned & E-mail: [email protected]. Tel: (703) 522-5900 Fax: (703) 525-4173 Operated. Inquiries: (202) 338-3190. Fax: Web site: www.foreignservicehousing.com E-mail: [email protected] (202) 332-1406. E-mail: [email protected]

JANUARY 2003 • AFSA NEWS 11 CLASSIFIEDS

SHORT - TERM RENTALS FRANCE MISCELLANEOUS

RESIDENCES: SHORT & LONG TERM. SHIPPING Call Betsy at (202) 234-5789 RENT VILLA ON RIVIERA: Quiet E-mail: [email protected] medieval village, spectacular view of PLANNING TO MOVE OVERSEAS? www.roommatespreferred.com Mediterranean, 6 km from Vence - 3 bed- Need a rate to ship your car, household goods, rooms, office, large garden, olive tress, per- or other cargo going abroad? Contact fect for retired couple - 2200 Euros/month, REAL ESTATE SEFCO-Export Management Company for annual lease. Information, photos: rates and advice. Tel: (718) 268-6233, E-mail: [email protected] Fax: (718) 268-0505. Contact Joseph T. Quinn. HEADED TO D.C.? Start planning now Tel: (202) 966-9040 Visit our Web site at www.sefco-export.com for house hunting in Northern Virginia. Let my E-mail: [email protected] 16-plus years of experience providing FS per- sonnel with exclusive Buyer Representation MORTGAGE work for you. My effective strategy for home CAR STORAGE: Indoor Storage for buying will make the transition easier for you cars and furniture Northern Virginia. BUYING OR REFINANCING A HOME? and your family! Tel: (703) 771-1496. Contact MARILYN CANTRELL, Associate Save money with some of the lowest rates in Broker, ABR, CRS, GRI at McEnearney 40 years. Jeff Stoddard specializes in work- Associates, 1320 Old Chain Bridge Rd, ing with the Foreign Service community, along 110 - 220 VOLT STORE McLean, VA 22101. Tel: (703) 790-9090, ext. with Washington Mutual’s broad product line. MULTI-SYSTEM ELECTRONICS 246; Fax: (703) 734-9460, Jeff offers first-class customer service while E-mail: [email protected] structuring a loan to fit your specific needs, PAL-SECAM-NTSC TVs, www.marilyncantrell.com seeing it quickly through the process every VCRs, AUDIO, CAMCORDER, step of the way. Call today and experience ADAPTOR, TRANSFORMERS, the Power of Yes®! KITCHEN APPLIANCES FLORIDA Tel: (703) 299-8625 or e-mail: EPORT WORLD ELECTRONICS [email protected] 1719 Connecticut Ave. N.W. Washington, D.C. 20009, near Dupont BEAUTIFUL SOUTHWEST FLORIDA: Circle Metro. Between R & S Streets. SARASOTA – Sunshine, blue skies, excellent Tel: (202) 232-2244, Fax: (202) 265-2435, values in real estate. Call former FSO Tom BOOKS (800) 513-3907. Farley, AFSA member, licensed real estate E-mail: [email protected] broker. New homes and condos a speciali- URL:www.220AV.TV ty. Construction International Services, Inc. OLD ASIA/ORIENT BOOKS BOUGHT Government & Diplomat discounts Tel: (941) 926-8550, Fax: (941) 926-9546. Asian rare books. Fax: (212) 316-3408, E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] SHOPPING

NAVCO MALL Over 200 Shops and Stores! FLORIDA Save Time and Money Everything you're looking for, from A to Z AUCTION CATALOGS WANTED: LONGBOAT KEY, BRADENTON/ Primitive, tribal, African art, ethnographica, Sales and Bargains at Every Store! Area will exceed expectations. Owned and operated by a 16-year-veteran SARASOTA Antiquities.Specially Sotheby's, PB, Christie's. Don't miss owning in Florida. Resales, New of the military and the FS Tel: (703) 360-9572. homes, Rental Management and vacation Shop: www.navcosa.com rentals. Dynamic growing company offering personalized professional service. Sharon E. CONSUMABLES: Save storage space & Oper, Realtor (AFSA Member) Wagner EMPLOYMENT shipping weight with our concentrated prod- Realty. Tel: (941) 387-7199, (800) 352-0367; ucts. One stop shopping for all your house- E-mail: [email protected] hold needs. Fast delivery to your door. For PROPERTY SPECIALISTS, INC. personalized service to assemble and ship CAREER OPPORTUNITY your order call: Tel: (800) 384-0571. or Independent real estate firm primarily serv- E-mail: [email protected] FLORIDA ing the Foreign Service community & doing business in D.C., Maryland and Virginia is AMERICAN PRODUCTS OVERSEAS! NO STATE INCOME TAX enhances gra- offering positions in areas of property man- Convenient ONE STOP SHOPPING experi- cious living in Sarasota, the cultural capital of agement and/or sales. ence for all your household & personal needs. Florida's Gulf Coast. Contact former FSO Paul Personalized service for FS personnel by FS Byrnes, Coldwell Banker residential sales spe- Call: Donna Courtney retiree. For FREE CATALOG: cialist, through e-mail: [email protected] (703) 247-3357 E-mail: [email protected] or Toll-Free: (877) 924-9001. E-mail: [email protected] Tel: (800) 384-0571. Web: www.propertyspecialistsinc.com

12 AFSA NEWS • JANUARY 2003