The Foreign Service Journal, February 2011
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FS KNOW-HOW RETURNS! I AGUINEAN FUNERAL I THE 1946 FOREIGN SERVICE ACT 2010 TAX GUIDE INSIDE! $4.50 /FEBRUARY 2011 OREIGN ERVICE FJOURNAL STHE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS THINK GLOBALLY,ACT NATIONALLY The Economic/Commercial Function OREIGN ERVICE FJOURNAL S CONTENTS February 2011 Volume 88, No. 2 F OCUSON The Economic/Commercial Function U.S. ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY:THE NEXT 50 YEARS / 17 A distinguished practitioner explains why international economic issues are now central to U.S. foreign policy. By Alan Larson U.S. ECONOMIC &COMMERCIAL INTERESTS: AN FCS OFFICER’S VIEW / 25 Working with other sections of the mission, ECON and FCS can be more than the sum of their parts. Cover illustration by Curtis Parker By Michael A. Lally THE IMPORTANCE OF PROTECTING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS / 32 State cannot go after IP infringers one DVD at a time, but there PRESIDENT’S VIEWS / 5 are steps that all posts can take to raise awareness of the issue. WikiLeaks and Diplomacy By David Drinkard in the Digital Age By Susan R. Johnson DOING WELL BY DOING GOOD: FS KNOW-HOW / 14 STATE’S ECONOMIC POLICY EFFORTS / 37 For Better Fraud Interviews, EEB seeks to be a force multiplier for the integrated application Think Like a Lawyer of the diplomatic and economic instruments of American power. By Jeffrey E. Zinsmeister By Jose W. Fernandez REFLECTIONS / 88 The Russians Are Coming THE TOP 14 ECONOMIC WONKISMS / 41 By Ginny Young Who says economics is a dismal science? Here is a tongue-in-cheek guide to help you keep up with the current policy discussion. LETTERS / 7 By Stephan Thurman CYBERNOTES / 9 MARKETPLACE / 11 BOOKS / 75 IN MEMORY / 77 INDEX TO ADVERTISERS / 86 FEBRUARY 2011/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 3 OREIGN ERVICE CONTENTS FJOURNAL S FEATURE Editor STEVEN ALAN HONLEY THE GRAND SYLI’S FUNERAL / 45 Senior Editor SUSAN B. MAITRA A retired FSO recalls his part in the chaotic burial Associate Editor of an African president many years ago. SHAWN DORMAN By Mark Wentling AFSA News Editor AMY MCKEEVER FSHERITAGE Ad & Circulation Manager ED MILTENBERGER Art Director SELDEN CHAPIN:FATHER OF THE CARYN SUKO SMITH 1946 FOREIGN SERVICE ACT / 48 Editorial Intern The first director general of the Foreign Service had MOHAMMAD ALHINNAWI many other accomplishments to his credit, as well. Advertising Intern By Jack Binns LARISSA FALK EDITORIAL BOARD TED WILKINSON AFSAN EWS Chairman KELLY ADAMS-SMITH 2010 TAX GUIDE / 55 JOSEPH BRUNS STEPHEN W. BUCK BRIEFS,AGGELER / 56 JULIE GIANELLONI CONNOR SEEKING DIPLOMATIC MEMORABILIA / 71 MARY E. GLANTZ GEORGE JONES EVENT CALENDAR /CLASSIFIEDS / 72 KATE WIEHAGEN LEONARD LYNN ROCHE RACHEL SCHNELLER JAMES P. SEEVERS THE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS Foreign Service Journal (ISSN 0146-3543), 2101 E Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 is published monthly with a combined July-August issue by the American Foreign Service Associa- tion (AFSA), a private, nonprofit organization. Material appearing herein represents the opin- ions of the writers and does not necessarily rep- resent the views of the Journal, the Editorial Board or AFSA. Writer queries and submissions are invited, preferably by e-mail. Journal sub- scription: AFSA members – $13 included in an- nual dues; others – $40. For foreign surface mail, add $18 per year; foreign airmail, $36 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and at additional mailing offices. Indexed by Public Affairs Information Services (PAIS). The Journal is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos or illustrations. Advertising inquiries are invited. The appearance of advertisements herein does not imply the endorsement of the services or goods offered. TELEPHONE: (202) 338-4045 FAX: (202) 338-8244 or (202) 338-6820 E-MAIL: [email protected] WEB: www.afsa.org; www.fsjournal.org © American Foreign Service Association, 2011. Printed in the U.S.A. Send address changes to: AFSA Attn: Address Change 2101 E Street N.W. Washington DC 20037-2990 Printed on 50-percent recycled paper, of which 10 percent is post-consumer waste. 4 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/FEBRUARY 2011 PRESIDENT’S VIEWS WikiLeaks and Diplomacy in the Digital Age BY SUSAN R. JOHNSON The ongoing debate about across organizational lines, is the usual review process? the WikiLeaks release of to understand how the leak How were Foreign Service person- more than 250,000 State De- happened. A good place to nel briefed about Net-Centric Diplo- partment cables has mainly start is a Dec. 31 Washington macy and trained in the use of the focused on whether making Post article titled “WikiLeaks SIPDIS caption (automatically distrib- volumes of sensitive diplo- Reveals Flaws of Informa- uting secret cables into SIPRNet)? matic reporting public was tion-Sharing Tool,” which What about other agency users? If the justified. One side applauds tells the story of an obscure goal was to pre-empt terrorist threats, the documents’ release in the name of State Department database called Net- were the cables captioned SIPDIS rel- freedom of speech and transparency, Centric Diplomacy. Established in evant to this objective? Did we at State while the other cites the responsibility 2006 and connected to a giant Defense ask hard questions about SIPRNet and not to divulge stolen classified informa- Department system known as the Se- its protections against unauthorized tion, as well as privacy rights. cret Internet Protocol Router Network, downloading? Did reporting officers, A parallel debate continues on the Net-Centric Diplomacy became “the deputy chiefs of mission and ambassa- impact of the documents’ release. conduit for what was perhaps the dors understand that whenever they Some welcome it, arguing that the ben- biggest heist of sensitive U.S. govern- added the SIPDIS caption, their audi- efits of greater understanding of diplo- ment information in modern times.” ence became ridiculously large? macy and diplomats outweigh the costs As reporter Jory Warrick explains, Post-9/11 pressures to share infor- of inhibiting diplomatic dialogue with after 9/11 sharing information relevant mation about potential terrorist threats Foreign interlocutors. Many also em- to terrorist plots and other threats be- were understandable. But did we ever phasize the leak’spotential to endanger came a priority for all federal agencies, identify the risks involved and propose sources and make the work of diplo- including State. But because of design measures to manage and minimize mats that much harder. flaws and confusion among its users, them? If so, was the problem with im- Wherever each of us comes down the database became a repository for a plementation, and can it be fixed? on these questions, we can all agree vast array of reporting cables and other In the end, we at the Department of that the theft of this incredible volume materials that were never meant to be State are responsible for both sharing of diplomatic correspondence is a real shared outside the department. and protecting our sensitive informa- blow to the Department of State. And Thorough as the article is, here are tion effectively. Before the Internet, it raises serious questions about the just a few of the many questions it does accessing and spiriting away a quarter risks of compiling shared databases of not answer: How and at whose initia- of a million cables would have been un- sensitive information. tive did we decide to establish the Net- thinkable. Now it is not. The best way to minimize the dan- Centric Database? How was it fund- Clearly, we failed to grasp just how ger of future disclosures on this scale, ed? Which key stakeholders were in- dynamic cyberspace is. Our future de- while still sharing vital information volved? If some were not, why not? cisions must take into account the im- What criteria for including classified re- plications of digital information and Susan R. Johnson is the president of the porting were established and by cyberspace management for the con- American Foreign Service Association. whom? Did the concept go through duct of diplomacy. I FEBRUARY 2011/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 5 LETTERS Remembering the perfect PRT-man in her article. With Low in Rhodesia ... Counterinsurgency But I am not sure every PRT officer I was in the Foreign Service from In a perfect world, Patricia Thom- needs to be nearly as perfect as she de- 1970 to 1979. My last post was South son’s recommendations for recruiting scribes. That said, there should be a Africa, where I was a political officer, the “best and the brightest” for national campaign plan (as in Viet- but I also had the Rhodesia (now Zim- Provincial Reconstruction Teams nam), which those stationed in the babwe) portfolio. would be taken to heart (November provinces would implement as well as In 1976, when I arrived there, that Speaking Out, “Making Provincial Re- they could, given local conditions and job basically meant following develop- construction Teams More Effective”). the “canon of resources” available. ments through newspapers and meet- When I was a first-tour FSO, my The problem with recruiting too ing with the occasional Rhodesian recruitment for the Civil Operations many perfect PRT-men is that coun- passing through town — Bishop Abel and Rural Development Support pro- terinsurgency is not a reliable career Muzorewa, Ndabagini Sithole, etc. gram, where I served from 1969 to outside the military. I recall that after But once the “Anglo-American” ef- 1971, came in the form of a telegram Vietnam, everybody (even the mili- fort got under way, I began working in assigning me to the pacification effort. tary) wanted to forget about coun- support of talks — from Secretary of The cable also informed me that in terinsurgency. Indeed, many of the State Henry Kissinger’s trip to see order to make the next training cycle young Foreign Service officers who South African Prime Minister John at the Foreign Service Institute’s Viet- had served so ably with CORDS strug- Vorster and Rhodesian Prime Minis- nam Training Center, I would have to gled to gain career status in the U.S.