“H”ISFOR HILL I ABROKEN SYSTEM I SWAN SONG

$3.50 /JANUARY 2009 OREIGN ERVICE FJOURNAL STHE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS

SLOGAN OR SUBSTANCE? The Legacy of Transformational Diplomacy

OREIGN ERVICE FJOURNAL S CONTENTS January 2009 Volume 86, No. 1

F OCUSON T RANSFORMATIONAL D IPLOMACY

GLOBAL REPOSITIONING IN PERSPECTIVE / 18 Global repositioning is a key element of Secretary of State Rice’s signature initiative. Here is an in-depth look at the program. By Shawn Dorman

THE BRAVE NEW WORLD OF DEMOCRACY PROMOTION / 31 U.S. democracy promotion policy appears to be at a crossroads, with big divisions within both parties over how much of it we should be doing. Cover and inside illustrations By Robert McMahon by David Wink MEPI: ADDING TO THE DIPLOMATIC TOOLBOX / 40 Despite many obstacles, the Middle East Partnership Initiative has come a long way in the past five years. By Peter F. Mulrean PRESIDENT’S VIEWS / 5 Renewing American Diplomacy By John K. Naland F EATURES SPEAKING OUT / 13 Let’s Help “H” MENTAL HEALTH CARE AT STATE:ABROKEN SYSTEM / 46 Make the Case for State Foreign Service employees have incentives to hide their mental health By Stetson Sanders treatment or, worse, to let their problems go untreated. By Anonymous LETTER FROM THE EDITOR / 16 THE BLACK SWAN COMES HOME / 48 By Steven Alan Honley A letter discovered in the Embassy Paris mailroom in 2003 REFLECTIONS / 76 helped solve a 60-year-old mystery. Here is the rest of the story. Dean Rusk and Rolling Thunder By Douglas W. Wells By John J. St. John

LETTERS / 6 CYBERNOTES / 10 MARKETPLACE / 12 BOOKS / 67 INDEX TO ADVERTISERS / 74

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 3 OREIGN ERVICE CONTENTS FJOURNAL S

Editor AFSAN EWS STEVEN ALAN HONLEY Senior Editor SUSAN B. MAITRA Associate Editor AFSA WELCOMES NEW ADMINISTRATION / 55 SHAWN DORMAN AFSA News Editor DISSENT AWARDS NOMINATIONS –LAST CALL / 55 FRANCESCA KELLY SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS DEADLINE / 55 Ad & Circulation Manager ED MILTENBERGER NEWS BRIEFS / 56 Business Manager ALICIA J. CAMPI VP STATE:AMIXED REPORT CARD / 57 Art Director CARYN SUKO SMITH VP USAID: ADVICE FOR THE NEW USAID ADMINISTRATOR / 58 Advertising Intern HANS MULDER ISSUE BRIEF:FILLING NEW MID-LEVEL POSITIONS / 59

FINANCIAL AID SCHOLARS / 60 EDITORIAL BOARD TED WILKINSON 2009 MEMBERSHIP DUES / 65 Chairman JOSEPH BRUNS CLASSIFIEDS / 65 STEPHEN W. BUCK JULIE GIANELLONI CONNOR JIM DEHART JEFF GIAUQUE GEORGE JONES LAURIE KASSMAN YVETTE N. MALCIOLN DAVID MCFARLAND AL PESSIN

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 adver- tisements herein does not imply the endorse- ment 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, 2009. 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/JANUARY 2009 PRESIDENT’S VIEWS Renewing American Diplomacy

BY JOHN K. NALAND

Barack Obama won the pres- that Army officers end their ca- the Foreign Service not only needs to be idency pledging to renew Amer- reers better educated than offered more training but also needs to ican diplomacy. In so doing, he FSOs. be required to actually take it. not only called for changes in As a result of this underin- Toward that end, an October 2008 substantive foreign policy posi- vestment, today’sForeign Serv- report by the American Academy of tions, but also looked beneath ice does not have to a sufficient Diplomacy called for setting new career- the policy superstructure and degree the knowledge, skills long training requirements that Foreign identified the need to strengthen and abilities needed for 21st- Service members would have to fulfill as the platform upon which diplomacy is century diplomacy. There is an urgent a condition for promotion to the senior conducted. For example, he called for need to strengthen the skills that — ranks. Such requirements could include increasing Foreign Service staffing at taken together as a package — uniquely an academic year of knowledge-expand- State and USAID. equip career diplomats to conduct for- ing formal training (for example, at a AFSA, of course, completely agrees eign policy. Those include: foreign-lan- military war college, a private university, on the need to fix the staffing deficits that guage fluency, advanced area knowl- or a mid-level or senior seminar at the have hobbled our foreign affairs agen- edge, leadership and management abil- Foreign Service Institute) and a hori- cies. Toward that end, we look forward ity, negotiating skills, public diplomacy zons-broadening developmental detail to working with President-elect Obama, know-how, program management skills (for example, at another Cabinet agency, Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clin- and job-specific functional expertise. an NGO or in private industry). State ton and other incoming officials to obtain In AFSA’s November-December could re-establish its yearlong Senior the needed resources from Congress. 2008 survey of State Department For- Seminar and its mid-level course — But as candidate Obama and his eign Service members, 50 percent of re- both of which succumbed to budget cuts campaign policy papers made clear, the spondents said that training shortfalls years ago. mere application of more resources will made it more difficult for them to do I am confident that Foreign Service not be sufficient to strengthen America’s their jobs effectively and efficiently. I members would welcome a “grand bar- international engagement. Instead, our suspect that the true percentage is much gain” that coupled a significant expan- diplomats and development profession- higher and that many of those who could sion of staffing with a re-engineering of als also need increased capabilities. benefit the most from additional train- our personnel system to set new,career- As I have written (www.afsa.org/fsj/ ing do not realize it. You may know such long training requirements. But oct07/training.pdf), testified to Con- people. whether or not such a reform would be gress, and told every journalist who Just as the Goldwater-Nichols Act of universally welcomed, I am convinced would listen, chronic underinvestment 1986 began a period of reform that has that it is necessary. Unless the Foreign in training has long shortchanged For- produced today’sgeneration of well-ed- Service raises the level of its game by eign Service members on career-long ucated, interoperable military officers, sharpening knowledge, skills and abili- professional education. Colin Powell is the Foreign Service today needs reform. ties needed to meet the challenges of said to have remarked that Foreign The first step would be to significantly 21st-century diplomacy and develop- Service officers start their careers better increase our staffing, including creating ment assistance, the president and Con- educated than U.S. Army officers, but more positions for training and intera- gress may increasingly look elsewhere gency details. However, as was the case — including to our already over- John K. Naland is the president of the for the uniformed military after Gold- stretched military — to conduct our na- American Foreign Service Association. water-Nichols, many observers believe tion’s engagement with the world. I

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 5 LETTERS

Talking with Iran new path in our tortured relations with colleagues — the two in the ministry For the first time in decades, there Iran, which have set a record among with me and the 50 others held hostage is the possibility, indeed the probabil- diplomatic ruptures. In that regard, in the embassy compound on the other ity, of official dialogue between the some historical background may be side of the city. Surreptitiously handed United States and the Islamic Repub- useful. to guards and contacts within the for- lic of Iran. President-elect Barack There has been no formal diplo- eign ministry, the notes may never Obama is on record favoring talks matic contact between the U.S. and have reached their addressees. But the with Tehran, when they are in the Iran since President Jimmy Carter mere act of sending them boosted my American interest and at a time and broke relations in April 1980 over the morale. place of our choosing. That language hostage crisis that had begun on Nov. Today, nearly 30 years later, I re- leaves room for the essential prepara- 4, 1979. After five months of secret main the last senior American diplo- tory diplomatic maneuvering, includ- probes and public frustration, Pres. mat to have been accredited and ing the need for prior consultation Carter finally ordered the closure of resident in Tehran, in direct contact with friends at the United Nations Se- Iran’s embassy in Washington and its with the Islamic Republic. During my curity Council and the European consular presence elsewhere and the time, however, there was no opening Union — a channel where this past departure of all resident personnel for the kind of sustained dialogue es- summer, for the first time, there was within 36 hours. sential for any diplomatic relationship. participation by the U.S. under secre- But in Tehran, all American per- Indeed, the one opportunity that did tary of State for political affairs. sonnel had been taken hostage when arise proved seriously adverse. Still, the process will not be easy. the embassy was forcibly overrun, in- That was the meeting in Algiers on This channel has dealt only with the cluding myself as chargé d’affaires, my Nov. 1, 1979, between Iran’s secular nuclear issue, where Iran has contin- deputy chief of mission and a security Prime Minister Mehdi Bazargan and ued to reject the precondition that it officer. We were held by Iranian U.S. National Security Adviser Zbig- must first suspend its enrichment of Army guards within the foreign min- niew Brzezinski — each heading his uranium. Tehran has already ignored istry, while my Iranian counterpart in country’s delegation to the celebration four Security Council resolutions on Washington, also a chargé d’affaires, of the 25th anniversary of the Algerian the subject, reiterating there and else- remained free and in place inside his Revolution. where that its enrichment process is embassy on Massachusetts Avenue I had pressed Bazargan hard to go dedicated only to building the basis for until the formal break in relations in to Algiers because dialogue at that production of nuclear energy — a less April 1980. It was a most unusual level seemed essential for the still-un- than plausible claim, given Iran’s lack state of half-diplomatic relations be- certain relationship between the of full transparency in its obligations as tween two sovereign nations. Khomeini regime and the U.S. Three a member of the International Atomic Though I was a hostage, I was de- days after that meeting, radical Iran- Energy Agency. Meanwhile, the termined, until my later solitary con- ian students, concerned that Bazargan American and Iranian ambassadors in finement, to maintain a facade of diplo- was taking Iran back into a relation- Baghdad have had occasional contact, matic decency in my capacity as the ship with the Great Satan, overran our but those exchanges have been desul- American chargé d’affaires. Somehow embassy. The rest is history. tory at best, specifically limited to a I found enough paper to write a stream There have since been quiet probes focus on stability in Iraq. of formal protests to Iran’s officialdom and occasional policy initiatives, but all Nonetheless, we may soon be on a about my treatment and that of my were unsustained and lacked adequate

6 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2009 L ETTERS

focus on the not-inconsiderable range Volunteer. Depending on how much with admiration as true representatives of shared regional interests, not least time has passed between the two ex- of the United States in places where vis-à-vis Iraq. Meanwhile, poisonous periences, you gain a view through a diplomats rarely go. rhetoric has ruptured that essential el- telescope or a magnifying glass focused Diana Page ement of diplomacy, mutual trust, that on your special country. If there are FSO will require years of groundwork to be many years in between, your telescope Washington, D.C. restored. The path will be long and reveals how history changes people’s difficult, but as an old American ex- lives. If it’s been a short time, you may Senior Pay pression has it, we need to get off the have a close-up comparison of in-the- The list of performance-pay recipi- dime and start talking again. field versus halls-of-power viewpoints. ents (announced in 08 State 110778) Bruce Laingen But maybe we just feel that through- has swollen to over 270 members of the Ambassador, retired the-looking-glass amazement at find- Senior Foreign Service. These bonuses Bethesda, Md. ing ourselves in such different situa- total an estimated $3 million. Here are tions in the very same place! observations from one of the smallest More Peace Corps Volunteers I was sent to Brazil in 1968 as a tadpoles in State’s pond. The value of the Peace Corps has community organizer in Nazare das These people are the highest-paid been underscored in the October and Farinhas (population 20,000) in the employees in the Foreign Service. November editions of the FSJ, but for northeastern state of Bahia. In 2005, They receive senior-level salaries to do too long that value has been limited I became the principal officer at the senior-level jobs. State’spay scale is not by insufficient resources. The current only U.S. consulate in northeast Brazil, secret; people understand government number of volunteers is half of what Recife. From day one, I ran into for- salary limitations when they sign up. it was four decades ago, and more mer Peace Corps Volunteers and staff Yet seniors receive an additional than 20 countries have pending re- working in Brazil, now with USAID, 20.89 percent, once called locality pay, quests for Peace Corps programs. nongovernmental organizations or no matter where they work worldwide. President-elect Obama has promised universities, as well as retirees who This serious money is denied to the to double the size of the Peace Corps, had returned to live there. (The Peace majority of FS employees overseas as did President Bush, but without Corps left Brazil in the 1970s.) Peace who work side by side with seniors, funding this cannot be achieved. Corps alumni take an active role in who suffer the same hardships and In 2008, the National Peace Corps helping Brazil address the inequalities who go home to smaller houses. The Association launched a grassroots cam- and poverty that continue to trouble unfairness of this policy is so egregious paign called MorePeaceCorps to advo- the giant of Latin America. They that AFSA has vigorously battled it for cate for strengthening the Peace Corps, make me proud. years. Perhaps to calm ruffled feath- including doubling its size by 2011. A Having been a volunteer in Brazil ers, State eliminated the term “locality combination of concerned and promi- made me very comfortable with all pay” and the extra cash was folded into nent Americans including President segments of society and more knowl- seniors’ base pay. As if hiding it makes Jimmy Carter, Senator Chris Dodd, D- edgeable about the country’s political it more palatable. Conn., Wisconsin Governor James divisions. That experience had given Seniors point out that they don’t re- Doyle and several former ambassadors, me friends who lived exceptional lives ceive step increases. What they don’t myself included, have joined the Na- and inspired me. I stayed in touch with point out is that they instead compen- tional Advisory Council of More- several of them for more than 30 years. sate themselves with pay-for-perfor- PeaceCorps to advance the cause. You I applied what I learned in the mance increases that far exceed any can learn more about this effort at Peace Corps to my efforts as consul to step increase. The bar is set low www.morepeacecorps.org. enable Americans to work with Brazil- enough that a child could step over it: Thomas N. Hull ians for peace, prosperity and justice. their performance must merely be Ambassador, retired What struck me most was how, in the “satisfactory.” By the time someone Grantham, N.H. backlands of Brazil’s poorest region, becomes a senior, shouldn’t the expec- people would ask me if I knew “the tation be that their performance will be The Peace Corps and the FS American” who had lived there some far better than that? The ultimate experience is to serve 30 years ago. But I digress. Let’snot confuse pay- as a Foreign Service officer in the Here we see the value of the Peace for-performance increases with per- country where you were a Peace Corps Corps: Volunteers are remembered formance pay bonuses.

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 7 L ETTERS

There was probably a time when Nov. 14, 1983, in which then-Director tary for consular affairs. I am unaware performance pay meant something General Joan Clark wrote to then-Sec- of any proponent of mid-level hiring special, a time when the list was shorter retary George Shultz recommending whose qualifications to offer an opinion and could almost be justified. Today, that the mid-level program be shut come close to Amb. Clark’s. however, when embassies worldwide down: William E. Shea must identify painful cuts and freeze “Mid-level appointees usually re- FSO real jobs — threatening our ability to quire a prolonged adjustment period to Consulate General meet mission goals — ladling out mil- become familiar with Foreign Service Nuevo Laredo lions of dollars in bonuses to our high- procedures, such as administrative and est paid employees feels irresponsible consular regulations, and to develop ef- England in the Muslim World and, frankly, grotesque. fective reporting techniques. The lack Among many others over the de- In rewarding exceptional perform- of prior Foreign Service experience will cades, Foreign Service Journal contrib- ance by seniors, why not use the usually place mid-levels at a competi- utors have researched and commented Awards Program — the mechanism tive disadvantage vis-à-vis their col- upon U.S. relations with the Muslim used for the rest of us. Awards are leagues of the same grade, who have world. Especially significant are Amb. transparent, requiring nominations and generally been in the Service five to Chas W. Freeman Jr.’s “America in the committee decisions. Where is the eight years and have had the opportu- World” (November 2008) and Dr. transparency in performance pay bon- nity to develop basic FS skills. In the Frederic Grare’s“The Pakistan Piece of uses? The group deciding who gets consular and administrative fields, in the Puzzle” (July-August 2008). them is a subset of the group receiving particular, Class 3 officers are likely to In my view — as someone who lived them. Nice arrangement! have significant supervisory responsi- through the birth of our ally Israel, the Doling out bonuses is not part of a bilities which assume prior in-Service independence of India and the creation struggle to retain seniors leaving for lu- experience.” of Pakistan — most of the charges and crative private-industry jobs. Statistics The memo continues: “The appro- countercharges regarding U.S. involve- don’t back that argument. And when priateness and necessity of a mid-level ment and the seemingly perpetual the list becomes as bloated as it has, it entry program are often questioned by nightmarish problems fall well short of is clearly no longer an issue of identify- those officers who have entered at the the mark. Perhaps weak institutional ing the true standouts either. junior ranks through the highly com- memory is at fault. Real leadership comes from above, petitive examination process. Since the Although the U.S. has positioned it- and real leaders lead by example. We recruitment of officer candidates at the self at the center of this stage, everyone are all public servants, accountable to mid-level has resulted in a reduced seems to have forgotten that, without taxpayers. Is it really ethical to spend need for officers at the grades of FS-2 reference to Washington, Great Britain millions on bonuses for those who are and -3, we have been obliged to make created the contemporary Middle East already at the top of State’s pay scale? significant downward adjustments in as a result of her defeat of the Ot- Linda Ingalls promotion opportunities for junior offi- tomans in World War I. Unfortunately, Office Management cers.” the new nations could be said to have Specialist Ambassador Clark’scriticisms of the been stillborn, remaining under colo- Embassy Pretoria mid-level hiring program were not nial domination for some time. Much those of a management theoretician or of the stillborn quality continues. Voice of Experience on armchair diplomat. They were the crit- As Dr. Grare reminds us, the British Mid-Level Hiring icisms of the DG who worked with the merely drew a boundary in 1893, the Contrary to Kevin Stringer’s asser- program, an officer with 38 years of ex- Durand Line, in India’sNorthwest Ter- tions in his October 2008 Speaking Out perience. Her comments on the par- ritories that incorporated part of column, “Mid-Level Hiring and the ticular inappropriateness of mid-level Afghanistan into what 54 years later War for Talent,” bringing in all new hiring in consular and administrative would become Pakistan. Then, of FSOs at entry-level grades is good fields should not be brushed off. After course, Pakistan itself was created sim- human resource management. The all, she had spent most of her career in ilarly. Chaos, death and ill feeling en- circumstances surrounding the han- the administrative field, and her un- sued and continue. Britain should dling of a prior mid-level hiring pro- derstanding of consular work was so remain responsible for orienting these gram show why. deep that, after finishing up as DG, she regions, yet somehow the ball and most Allow me to quote a State memo of was selected to serve as assistant secre- of the bill have been passed to the

8 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2009 L ETTERS

American people. For the Middle East, I would rec- ommend an international conference chaired by Her Majesty’s Government and, assuming they’d want to be in- volved, co-chaired by the Turks, with all affected nations attending. The United Nations or the U.S. could be the host, and the purpose would be to address and resolve the many nagging difficul- ties created by Britain in the first place. (Should France be a co-chair or in- vited? I’d leave that to Britain and the other conferees.) As for India, Pakistan and Afghani- stan, I see a similar conference chaired by the United Kingdom, with the active participation of the three states. Host- ing could be similar. In both cases, if not the host, the U.S. should be an ob- server. I write on Veterans Day 2008, 90 years since Britain reorganized the Middle East; about 115 years since the Durand Line was drawn; and 61 since the independence of India and Pak- istan. Why the American people should be trapped by the results of British imperialism is a question that requires answers. As I recall, the U.S. itself opted out of that arrangement 232 years ago. Now that change is in the air, surely it’s time Washington returned the ball to ‘the lads’ for them to ‘give it a go.’ Louis V. Riggio FSO, retired Hollywood, Fla. I

CORRECTION Due to an editing error, the first sentence of John Dickson’s vignette in the article “From the Peace Corps to the Diplomatic Corps, Part II” (November) incorrectly identified his Peace Corps service. He was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Gabon from 1976 to 1979, not in Bulgaria from 2001 to 2003. We regret the error.

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 9 CYBERNOTES

A Question of Responsibility: sponses to a questionnaire on donor Humanitarian Response 2008 he Journal is as good, or as behavior. Complementing the field re- Though the world’s largest interna- Tmediocre, as its contributors search is quantitative data on donor tional aid donor, the U.S. only ranks throughout the world help it to funding, policies and practices from 13th in generosity when the nation’sas- be. ... Many of our readers have donor agencies and sources like the sistance dollars are viewed in relation U.N., World Bank and others. said they find the Journal to its size. And while it is number one Though the HRI is available online as far as sectoral distribution of funding brighter, more vital, more profes- in condensed form, Palgrave MacMil- through U.N. appeals is concerned, sional these days. We hope it is, lan is publishing a larger, more detailed second in terms of the capacity for in- and we should like to thank our version including full reports from the formed decisionmaking and fourth contributors herewith individually 11 crisis areas surveyed, and policy dis- when it comes to timely funding, for sending us clippings, articles, cussion on the HRI and needs and re- Washington drops to the bottom of the sponse assessments (http://us.macmil rankings on promoting standards, en- letters of appreciation, comments lan.com/humanitarianresponsein hancing the implementation of human and criticisms. And to them all dex2008). rights and humanitarian law, and main- we would like to wish a very taining neutrality and independence in Happy New Year. More Foreign Policy Ideas responding to humanitarian needs. for Team Obama These are some of the results of the — From “Washington Letter” by In the December issue, we sur- Development Assistance Research As- Gwen Barrows, Jan. 1959 FSJ. veyed an array of foreign policy rec- sociates’ 2008 Humanitarian Response ommendations for the new admini- Index (www.hri.daraint.org/), releas- stration. Here are a few more that ed to an audience of nongovernmental the principles of good practice they merit attention. organizations, U.N. agencies, academ- agreed to,” Silvia Hidalgo, executive di- Elevate and strengthen diplomacy ics and civil society activists in New rector of DARA, explained, referring and development. The Global Plum York City on Nov. 19. DARA is a to the principles of good humanitarian Book identifies 100 leadership posi- Spanish nonprofit dedicated to im- donorship agreed upon in 2005 by the tions that will shape the next adminis- proving the efficiency, effectiveness 23 states. “Aid is not about generosity, tration’s foreign policy agenda (http:// and transparency of humanitarian aid it’s a question of responsibility,” she usglobalengagement.org/Portals/ (www.daraint.org/web_en/index.p added. “We’re using the HRI as a tool 16/ftp/Global_Plum_Book.pdf). hp). The group launched the index to help governments identify what Divided into four sections — The Pol- one year ago to make a comparative works well, and where they need to im- icymakers, The Managers, The Influ- evaluation of the practices and pro- prove the quality and effectiveness of encers and The Implementers — this grams of the world’s leading donor na- aid.” useful publication derives its name tions, the 23 members of the Organi- The index is based on field research from United States Government Policy zation for Economic Cooperation and in 11 different crises around the globe, and Supporting Positions, commonly Development’s Development Assis- interviews with representatives of known as the “Plum Book,” which is tance Committee. more than 350 humanitarian organiza- published after every presidential elec- “We developed the HRI as a way of tions directly engaged in providing as- tion and lists over 7,000 federal Civil holding governments accountable to sistance, and more than 1,400 re- Service positions that may be filled by

10 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2009 C YBERNOTES

political appointees. context and the choices and responses Relations and the Future of NATO This guide for students of the available to the new administration Enlargement,” DeHart presents the Obama administration’s likely foreign (http://isd.georgetown.edu/Ameri history of the enlargement issue and policy was released on Nov. 13 by the cas_Role_in_the_World.pdf). Dur- the rationale for each choice (http:// Center for U.S. Global Engagement ing more than a year of deliberation, isd.georgetown.edu/burden_of_str (www.usglobalengagement.org), the high-powered group, led by ategy.pdf). along with a report, “First Step Rec- Thomas Pickering, Chester Crocker Nuclear security. The seventh an- ommendations for the President-Elect and Casimir A. Yost, produced a series nual study from Harvard University’s to Elevate and Strengthen Develop- of related studies and working reports Belfer Center for Science and Inter- ment and Diplomacy” (www.usglobal that are also available online (http:// national Affairs, “Securing the Bomb engagement.org/tabid/3316/De isd.georgetown.edu/americas_role 2008,” urges the incoming administra- fault.aspx). _description.cfm). tion to carry out “a global campaign to Modernize foreign assistance. “New NATO’s future. A keystone of post- lock down every nuclear weapon and Day, New Way” comes from the Mod- war U.S. foreign policy, NATO’s role in every significant stock of potential nu- ernizing Foreign Assistance Network, the 21st century has been called into clear bomb material worldwide as a reform coalition composed of inter- question and its enlargement process rapidly as that can possibly be done” national development and foreign pol- is at a crossroads. The Obama admin- (www.nti.org/e_research/cnwm/ icy practitioners, policy advocates and istration now has three choices, ex- overview/cnwm_home.asp). experts, concerned citizens and pri- plains FSO (and FSJ Editorial Board Commissioned by the Nuclear vate-sector organizations (www.mod member) James P.DeHart in a new re- Threat Initiative (www.nti.org), a non- ernizingforeignassistance.net/doc port issued by the Institute for the proliferation organization co-chaired uments/newdaynewway.pdf). Study of Diplomacy of Georgetown by former senator Sam Nunn of Geor- MFAN also issued transition rec- University: 1) accelerate NATO’s east- gia, the report states that although ommendations for the president-elect ward expansion to bring in Georgia Russia still possesses the world’slargest to set the modernization process in and Ukraine; 2) sustain expansion, but stockpiles of such material, the effort motion, including ensuring that the slow it down for Georgia and Ukraine; should be broadened to include other Secretary of State nominee agrees that and 3) suspend eastward expansion to countries. There are 130 research re- modernizing foreign assistance policies achieve other foreign policy goals. In actors around the world that still use and operations is a top priority; em- “The Burden of Strategy: Transatlantic highly enriched uranium as fuel, many powering a single individual with broadened responsibility for USAID, the Millennium Challenge Corpora- Site of the Month: Technorati.com tion and the President’s Emergency Founded in 2002 by David Sifry, Technorati.com is the original Web log search Plan for AIDS Relief; and naming a engine and arguably the most comprehensive online source of information on the deputy national security and economic blogosphere. Whether you are an accomplished blogger or a curious neophyte, adviser for development, with joint you are sure to find this site interesting and helpful. National Economic Council/National Chosen by Time magazine as one of the “25 Web sites we can’t live without,” Security Council responsibility for in- Technorati.com indexes millions of blog posts in real time, tracking not only their teragency and White House coordina- authority and influence, but who and what is most popular in the blogosphere. The tion of development policy (www.mo site’s mission, in its own words, is to help bloggers succeed by collecting, high- dernizingforeignassistance.net/pre lighting and distributing the online global conversation. ssroom.html). The blogs are sorted by subject area: business, entertainment, politics, sports, Re-establishing American leader- lifestyle and technology, and then further defined by subcategories such as, under ship. In late 2006, Georgetown Uni- business, advertising, finance and small business. The site’s “Blogger Central” fea- versity’s Institute for the Study of ture zeroes in on the practice of blogging, featuring tricks and tools for practition- Diplomacy assembled a working group ers to refine their art. to evaluate the geopolitical challenges Of particular interest at the start of the New Year is Technorati ’s annual report, facing the country. The group’s final “State of the Blogosphere 2008,” an extensive and detailed survey that is loaded with report, “America’s Role in the World,” insights and information on the state of this ever-burgeoning realm (www.techno is a thorough and thought-provoking rati.com/blogging/state-of-the-blogosphere/). survey of today’s foreign policymaking

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 11 C YBERNOTES

50 Years Ago... illary’s appointment is a sign to friend and foe of the serious- Hness of my commitment to renew American diplomacy and restore our alliances. There’s much to do, from preventing the spread of nu- clear weapons to Iran and North Korea and seeking a lasting peace between Is- rael and the Palestinians, to strengthening international institutions. — President-elect Barack Obama, announcing Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s nomination as Secretary of State, Dec. 1 (http://change.gov/ newsroom/entry/the_national_security_team/ ).

of which have only modest security Americas Commission’s recent report, measures in place, the report notes. “Re-Thinking U.S.-Latin American Public diplomacy and relations with Relations,” argues that a hemispheric South America. The Brookings Insti- partnership is essential and offers spe- tution, whose Presidential Transition cific policy recommendations in five Web page we highlighted last month key areas: energy and climate change, (www.brookings.edu/topics/presi migration, trade, organized crime and dential-transition.aspx), has issued drug trafficking, and U.S.-Cuban rela- two more high-powered foreign policy tions (www.brookings.edu/reports/ reports aimed at the incoming admin- 2008/1124_latin_america_partner istration. ship.aspx). As part of a comprehensive plan to Open government. A diverse non- enhance Washington’s public diplo- partisan group that spent 20 months macy, “Voices of America: U.S. Public studying the problem of excessive gov- Diplomacy for the 21st Century” urges ernment secrecy and how to fix it, the creation of a nimble and entrepre- under the aegis of the nonprofit OMB neurial new nonprofit organization, the Watch, has released a series of recom- USA-World Trust, to complement and mendations aimed at bringing federal support U.S. government efforts, record-keeping and communication drawing on the good will, creativity, into the 21st century. “Renewing Gov- knowledge and talent of the American ernment” encompasses recommenda- people and like-minded partners over- tions in three areas: national security seas (www.brookings.edu/reports/ and secrecy, usability of information 2008/11_public_diplomacy_lord.as and creation of a government environ- px). ment for transparency (www.omb- The report’s diverse board of advis- watch.org/article/archive/551). ers included Intel Chairman Craig The group points to www.usas Barrett; Harvard professor, ambassa- pending.gov, a Web site launched dor and former Under Secretary of this year under legislation co-spon- State for Political Affairs R. Nicholas sored by President-elect Obama re- Burns; National Security Adviser-des- quiring the Office of Management and ignate Gen. James L. Jones; and for- Budget to put government contract in- mer USAID Administrator Andrew formation online, as a precedent for Natsios. The report’s recommenda- the kind of change needed. I tions are based on an appreciation of the new realities the U.S. faces in en- This edition of Cybernotes was com- gaging the world. piled by Senior Editor Susan Brady Brookings’ Partnership for the Maitra.

12 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2009 SPEAKING OUT Let’s Help “H” Make the Case for State

BY STETSON SANDERS

ince I joined the Foreign Service priately located in the Rayburn House five years ago, two things have Investing in the Office Building, conducted visits to Ssurprised me: the constant re- Bureau of Legislative 174 members of Congress during Fis- frain to “do more with less” because of cal Year 2006, according to its FY 2009 inadequate resources, and the hands- Affairs, known as H, Strategic Plan. But that means 361 off approach of the State Department will make it a more members — fully two-thirds of the leg- toward Capitol Hill. Increasingly, I effective advocate for islative branch — did not receive an have come to see these two issues as outreach visit that year. No wonder the intertwined, the former caused by the the department. department’s resource needs are not a latter. high priority on Capitol Hill! While there is no substitute for an
While the H Bureau recognizes it active, committed Secretary of State needs to do more, it has been con- and front office in making the argu- for us on several fronts to attain: greatly strained by the very resource problem ment for more resources, the depart- increased funding streams in order this column seeks to address, operating ment should also raise its profile with to meet the department’s expanding at funding 30 percent below minimum policymakers and appropriators on responsibilities; broader recognition needs. But as Ambassador Thomas Capitol Hill by investing in the Bureau of the role and needs of the Foreign Boyatt, a long-time advocate of lobby- of Legislative Affairs. Known as “H,” Service among policymakers on the ing Congress to support diplomacy, the bureau could be an effective advo- Hill; increased involvement of rele- stated in a July-August 2008 Foreign cate for the department and help re- vant congressional staff in State’s Service Journal interview, we ought to claim State’s proper place in the for- overseas activities; and closer collab- “build the structure around the needs” eign affairs community. oration with the private and nonprofit — not simply cobble together our strat- Readers of this magazine know all sectors. egy after we’re told how many re- too well that the Foreign Service’s sources we have at our disposal. growing responsibilities for “transfor- Increase H’s Staffing mational diplomacy” call for the re- Policymaking on Capitol Hill is a Target Outreach Efforts sources to identify, train and deploy a contact sport that relies on relation- State’s congressional relations team larger and more sophisticated corps. ships. Sending more State personnel needs to include mid-level and senior Yet despite the Diplomatic Readiness to build those relationships will im- staff members dedicated to liaison Initiative and other efforts to keep up prove opportunities to make our case. work with each of the following con- with those demands, all the trends are Currently, the H Bureau consists of stituencies: going in the wrong direction. just three people in the Appropriations • House Committee on Foreign Af- Fortunately, as the focus section of Affairs section, and four each to deal fairs the December issue of the Foreign with the Senate Foreign Relations • House Appropriations Commit- Service Journal spelled out, a wide- Committee and the House Committee tee’s Subcommittee on Foreign Affairs spread, bipartisan consensus has de- on Foreign Affairs. As hard as those • Individual House member offices veloped that the situation has become individuals work, such limited staffing • Senate Foreign Relations Com- too dire for “business as usual.” So is simply inadequate. mittee now is the time to expand the Legisla- Consider the following statistic: The • Senate Appropriations Commit- tive Affairs Bureau’s capacity to fight Bureau’s Liaison Office, now appro- tee’s Subcommittee on State, Foreign

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 13 S PEAKING O UT

Operations and Related Programs Every day, State’s overseas missions priate effort could be coordinated in • Individual Senate member offices support major initiatives and historic time for some Capitol Hill delegation • Other State bureaus and agencies events putting the vision of transfor- to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony The H staff should also be ex- mational diplomacy into practice. of the permanent building next year. panded to coordinate and capitalize on These achievements would enlighten the resources of the private and non- policymakers and appropriators on the Expand Pearson and profit sectors. This objective warrants Hill — but only if they know about Congressional Fellowships an additional officer, at the FS-1 level them and can take some of the credit. Currently, up to seven Foreign or higher. That individual’s responsi- Let me cite an example from my Service officers serve as Pearson Fel- bility would be to coordinate with pri- first Foreign Service tour, in Tajikistan. lows each year, and another five serve vate-sector and nonprofit entities that In August 2007, years of work and $40 as Congressional Fellows — “depend- are stakeholders in foreign affairs. million led to the opening of the Tajik- ing upon funding decisions.” Here Such cooperation with like-minded or- Afghan Friendship Bridge. The De- again, acknowledging State’s perpetual ganizations — many of which have ex- fense Department-funded, Army resource crisis would easily justify per- perienced, concerted congressional Corps of Engineer-constructed project manently allocating stable — if not in- relations operations — would allow was completed, literally, on the front creased — funding for these programs, State to leverage, where appropriate, lines of transformational diplomacy, elevating them at least to the status of their resources to provide additional with the goal of increasing economic most other department positions. support in making our case on Capitol activity and cultural interaction as “the Currently, both fellowships are one- Hill. centerpiece of a new Central Asian year assignments. The program de- Business for Diplomatic Action, for trade route.” scription says, “Employees selected for example, is a task force that facilitates The results are impressive. In the congressional assignments are encour- private-sector involvement in diplo- year since the bridge opened, Afghan- aged to seek a follow-on tour in H.” matic activities and cooperation with Tajik trade tripled, vehicle traffic rose This should be amended to make the the Department of State and the sevenfold and Afghan customs rev- assignments two years, with the first broader foreign affairs community. enues at the port of entry increased spent on Capitol Hill and the second a The Foreign Affairs Council, Ameri- tenfold, fueling the revitalization of compulsory year in H. can Academy of Diplomacy, and Cen- border towns and small businesses. Such a change would serve several ter for Strategic and International Unfortunately, the ceremony marking goals. First, it would develop a cadre Studies’ “Smart Power” Commission the project’s completion, attended by of H staffers and future officers with are just three of a growing number of the presidents of both countries, did both experience and contacts on the organizations whose data, expertise not include a single member of Con- Hill. Second, it would provide natural and advocacy would buttress the work gress or even a staffer, despite the fact liaisons to effectively coordinate and of an expanded H team seeking spe- that it took place during the traditional solicit input from bureaus, offices and cific, attainable achievements in the summer recess. So chances are that missions in forming their H-related appropriations and broader congres- the next time State representatives strategies. (See more on this below.) sional arena. seek funds for a similar initiative, they Finally, it would free State personnel will encounter more skepticism than to accompany congressional and staff Telling Our Story they otherwise would have. delegations, just as the military sends Many at State blame our poor ac- Another example comes from its officers on such events. Many of the cess to key members and staffers on India, where the new consulate gen- closest relationships on Capitol Hill are Capitol Hill on the fact that we do not eral in Hyderabad expanded the U.S. formed during such trips because they have a natural constituency to keep presence. The opening of any mission provide invaluable opportunities to foreign affairs and diplomatic issues in is rare in the diplomatic world, and this bond and share points of view while the forefront of legislators’ minds. Yet post is even more unique because it is traveling in areas of strategic interest. the success of the small Armenian- in the heart of one of the largest Mus- Similarly, networking with congres- American constituency in stalling the lim communities in the country. Un- sional policymakers often involves re- confirmation of an ambassador to fortunately, there was no congressional ceptions and after-hours events. Yerevan is just one example of an ef- representation on hand for the open- Funding should therefore be sought to fective, goal-oriented effort on Capitol ing or first visa issuance at the current provide officers on these assignments Hill carried out from a small base. temporary facility. Perhaps an appro- with shift differential, similar to that of

14 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2009 S PEAKING O UT

officers staffing the Operations Center those at critical-needs posts. Facili- or the Executive Secretariat. This tated by the expanded H staff, this would both incentivize officers who are Policymaking on would give policymakers and their staff considering bidding on these assign- up-to-date, personal indications of the ments and elevate the stature of the as- Capitol Hill is a contact role of the Foreign Service on the front signments — and the H Bureau in lines and begin to establish recognition general — by making clear that such sport that relies of our work. service is a top priority. It is time for State to be more ag- on relationships. gressive in seeking the resources to ful- Other Ideas fill its growing mission. None of these Use existing expertise. HR Online’s recommendations on their own will Employee Profile+ database could rectify the resource crisis overnight, identify officers of all levels with expe- but a multiyear effort would pay off in rience on Capitol Hill or congressional nection between their work and re- spades. relations, who could then be encour- ceiving the resources in order to per- As AFSA President John Naland aged to work in H — much the same form in the future. Some version of noted in a recent column, “The For- way an Arabic speaker might be con- the Foreign Service Institute’s PA-215 eign Service personnel system has tacted about an assignment in NEA. course, Principles of Appropriation been re-engineered every 28 years — Once the department’s leadership de- Law, could easily be adapted as online exactly the length of time since 1980,” cides to make the bureau’s staffing a or short-term training. As part of the the last time the Service received a higher priority, they can equate Hill ex- leadership training continuum, that congressional overhaul. With legisla- pertise with a “Congressional Needs” course should be mandatory for career tive change on the horizon, State must designation, similar to the critical- progression. ensure it has the resources to strongly needs language designation. Require each bureau and office to advocate its role — and resource needs Identify outside expertise. Congres- have a congressional relations compo- — in a revised regime of American for- sional appropriations are an extremely nent in its annual action plan and mis- eign aid, empowering itself in the fu- complex process. Even in Washington, sion strategic plan. For example, tech- ture to live up to its potential. I few people understand the difference nology and personnel offices could between appropriations and authoriza- work with H to document and demon- Stetson Sanders, a vice consul in Chen- tions, the timing and importance of strate the constraints they encounter in nai, previously served in Dushanbe. mark-ups, or the subtleties and impli- meeting their congressionally man- Prior to entering the Foreign Service in cations of budget scoring. While ap- dated obligations, such as increasing 2004, he was a Peace Corps Volunteer proximately one-third of the current H the opportunities for telecommuting, in Russia, executive director of the In- staff are political appointees, State recruiting and hiring officers in a ternational Intellectual Property Insti- should identify more veterans for those timely manner, and expanding paper- tute, and an intern with the Congres- slots with the required contacts and ex- less processes. sional Economic Leadership Institute. pertise — if they are not currently in Overseas posts and their desk offi- the department — to provide training cers could highlight upcoming events and strategic counsel on a long-term and activities that lend themselves to appropriations strategy. This should be invitations to congressional members done as committee memberships and staff. For issues of strategic im- change with each new Congress. portance, this might involve facilitating A related option would be to seek visits of foreign dignitaries and elected the services of a private firm on a con- officials to meet with lawmakers. An- Have something tract or retainer basis to assist in devel- other possibility might be to support to say? oping and executing a plan ensuring meetings and visits between foreign that accurate information is delivered ambassadors in the U.S. and lawmak- Speak Out! in a timely manner to the right policy- ers on key bilateral issues. Send your thoughts making and budget staff. Encourage officers to visit their rep- Beef up training. Foreign Service resentative and senators upon return- to [email protected]. personnel need to appreciate the con- ing from overseas tours, particularly

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 15 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

BY STEVEN ALAN HONLEY

appy New Year! Once again out to represent a sort of best-case sce- 2009 EDITORIAL CALENDAR for the it’s time for my periodic invi- nario for effective utilization of GRP FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Htation to take advantage of the positions. The broader story is not as JANUARY 2009 many opportunities to contribute to positive, however. Transformational Diplomacy/ the Journal. Shawn repeatedly ran into one dis- Global Repositioning Program Each issue of the magazine features concerting problem that bears men- FEBRUARY 2009 a focus section examining various tion: many Foreign Service personnel The World Politics of Energy facets of an issue related to the Foreign speaking about their experience with (PLUS AFSA Tax Guide) Service or international relations. This GRP declined to be quoted by name. MARCH 2009 month, as President Barack Obama Some of them even asked her not to Coping with Separation: takes office, we examine the transfor- mention their post, for fear of retalia- Unaccompanied Posts mational diplomacy initiative, includ- tion. It should trouble all of us that so & Evacuations (PLUS AFSA Annual Report) ing the Global Repositioning Program, few people felt safe going on the that outgoing Secretary of State Con- record on a subject of professional in- APRIL 2009 60th Anniversary of NATO doleezza Rice launched with great fan- terest. fare three years ago. The falloff in use of the Dissent MAY 2009 Iraq after the War: Whether to retain that approach is Channel and in nominations for AFSA’s Relations with Iran and the Region one of the key foreign policy decisions Constructive Dissent Awards in recent JUNE 2009 the new administration faces, yet to the years may be another reflection of this USAID/MCA & Development best of my knowledge, there was no climate. And the fact that the outgoing Assistance debate about the program before or administration allowed the four- (PLUS semiannual SCHOOLS after it was announced — neither in- decade-old Secretary’sOpen Forum to SUPPLEMENT) side nor outside State. And as far as I go dormant certainly reinforced the JULY-AUGUST 2009 know, there has been no public assess- view that constructive dissent is not FAS and FCS ment of its progress. welcomed. (PLUS AFSA Awards coverage) To rectify that situation, we are We follow that article with two oth- SEPTEMBER 2009 pleased to present Associate Editor ers that examine other aspects of the Consular Issues Shawn Dorman’s article describing outgoing administration’s record on OCTOBER 2009 how the program has been imple- transformational diplomacy: “The Public Diplomacy a Decade after mented, both in Washington and in the Brave New World of Democracy Pro- USIA’s Demise field, and how it has fared thus far. motion” by Robert McMahon of the NOVEMBER 2009 Her research began last spring in In- Council on Foreign Relations, and COVER STORY: “In Their Own Write” donesia, where she was able to meet “The Middle Eastern Partnership Ini- (annual roundup of books by FS authors) with the GRP officers at Embassy tiative: Adding to the Diplomatic Tool- Jakarta, as well as the deputy chief of box,” by FSO Peter Mulrean. DECEMBER 2009 The Foreign Service as an Institution mission, the management counselor, Looking ahead: To the right is a list (PLUS semiannual SCHOOLS the political counselor and others. The of the focus topics our Editorial Board SUPPLEMENT) U.S. mission to Indonesia has turned has identified for the coming year

16 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JANUARY 2009 L ETTERFROMTHE E DITOR

(subject, of course, to revision). career and cutting red tape to parlay- Because of our lead time for publi- ing one’s professional skills in retire- cation, and the requirement for Edito- There are many ways ment, as well as financial information rial Board approval, we need to receive and guidance targeted to Foreign Ser- focus article submissions at least three you can share your vice personnel. months (and preferably longer) prior There are many other ways you can to the issue’s release date. Thus, we insights in our pages. contribute to our pages, of course. I have already lined up authors for the hope you will share your reactions, January, February and March issues, Let us hear from you. positive and negative, not only to this but there is still time to submit manu- issue but to what you read every scripts for later months. Submissions month, by contributing to our Letters should generally be between 2,000 and section. Just bear in mind that, as with 3,000 words, though shorter pieces are the roundup, which will run in No- all periodicals, the briefer and more fo- always welcome. vember. For more information, con- cused your letter is, the more likely If those choices don’t grab you, or if tact Senior Editor Susan Maitra at we’ll be able to print it in full. (In gen- you feel we have not devoted enough [email protected]. eral, 200 to 400 words is a good target.) space to a professional concern or The Speaking Out department is functional issue, please consider writ- Share Your Insights your forum to advocate policy, regula- ing a feature article (also generally We take seriously our mission to tory or statutory changes to the For- 2,000-3,000 words long) for us. give you “news you can use” — e.g., in- eign Service. These columns (approxi- FS Heritage, a new department formation about how to advance your mately 1,500 to 2,000 words long) can we introduced last year, is off to a career; tips on dealing effectively with be based on personal experience with strong start. However, we continue to the bureaucracy at State and the other a professional injustice or present your welcome submissions spotlighting U.S. foreign affairs agencies, especially insights into a foreign affairs–related diplomats whose names many of us when you are trying to resolve a prob- issue. know only from history books or the lem; and updates on how AFSA is Our Reflections department pres- halls of State. working to improve working and living ents short commentaries (approxi- Our annual FS Fiction Contest conditions for Foreign Service em- mately 600 words long) based on continues with the same rules that ployees and their families. personal experiences while living or applied last year: Entrants are re- Much of that coverage is found, of traveling overseas. These submissions stricted to one story of 3,000 words or course, within the pages of AFSA should center on insights gained as a less, which must be e-mailed to us at News. That section offers many dif- result of interactions with other cul- [email protected] no later than March 1. ferent ways for members to share their tures, rather than being descriptive We will publish the winning story (se- experiences, thoughts and concerns re- “travel pieces.” We are also pleased to lected by the FSJ Editorial Board) in garding professional issues, including consider poetry and photographs for our July-August 2009 double issue, and the following departments: Family publication, either in that section or as the other top stories over the fall Member Matters, Of Special(ist) Con- freestanding features. months. For more details, see the ad cern (a forum for specialists), Where to Please note that all submissions to elsewhere in this issue, or contact us Retire, The System and You, On the the Journal must be approved by our directly. Lighter Side (FS humor), Memo of the Editorial Board and are subject to ed- We invite those of you who expect Month, and The System and You (notes iting for style, length and format. For to publish a book between now and from inside the bureaucracy). Contact information on how to submit a col- next fall to send us a copy (along with AFSA News Editor Francesca Kelly for umn, article or letter, please contact us promotional materials) for inclusion in more information at [email protected]. at [email protected] and we will be de- our annual compilation of recently Another place to look for such items lighted to respond. For other inquiries published books by Foreign Service- is our periodic FS Know-How de- — changes of address, subscriptions, affiliated authors, In Their Own partment. We welcome contributions etc. — e-mail us at [email protected]. Write. Sept. 1 is still the deadline for on topics ranging from managing one’s Let us hear from you. I

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 17 F OCUSON T RANSFORMATIONAL D IPLOMACY

GLOBAL REPOSITIONING IN PERSPECTIVE David Wink

GLOBAL REPOSITIONING IS A KEY ELEMENT OF SECRETARY OF STATE RICE’S SIGNATURE INITIATIVE. HERE IS AN IN-DEPTH LOOK AT THE PROGRAM.

BY SHAWN DORMAN

s we close the book on the Bush administration and Condoleezza Rice’s term as Secretary of State, it is appropriate to take a look at the Global Repositioning Program — a key element of her signature Transformational Diplomacy initiative — to evaluate its impact and consider what elements might be kept by the Obama administration.A “To advance transformational diplomacy ... we must change our diplomatic posture,” Sec. Rice said during her policy

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address at Georgetown University The so-called “peace the information provided was given on Jan. 18, 2006. “In the 21st cen- on background. tury, emerging nations like India dividend” of the 1990s had and China and Brazil and Egypt Scribbles on the and Indonesia and South Africa are been used to cut staff at Back of a Napkin increasingly shaping the course of The GRP set in motion the first history. At the same time, the new embassies around the world. major overhaul of staffing patterns front lines of our diplomacy are ap- in decades, revealing that many em- pearing more clearly, in transitional bassies were still staffed in much the countries of Africa and of Latin America and of the Mid- same way they had been during the Cold War. In Ger- dle East. Our current global posture does not really re- many, there were 200,000 people for every FSO, while flect that fact.” Rice outlined the Global Repositioning India had about 25 million per officer and China 40 mil- Program, designed to shift hundreds of Foreign Service lion, a point made often by Sec. Rice and then-Under Sec- positions from Europe and Washington (primarily) to retary of State for Political Affairs R. Nicholas Burns in “emerging nations.” describing the rationale for the GRP. Global repositioning was essentially the bureaucratic At the same time, the so-called “peace dividend” of the expression of transformational diplomacy, a restructuring 1990s had been used to cut staff at embassies around the of State Department staffing aimed at meeting the policy world, and even though the Diplomatic Readiness Initia- goals of TD. “It is clear today that America must begin to tive gave a significant boost to worldwide staffing during reposition our diplomatic forces around the world,” Sec. Secretary of State Colin Powell’s tenure, those gains were Rice said in the same speech. “So over the next few years erased by the requirement to fully staff large missions in the United States will begin to shift several hundred of our Iraq and Afghanistan. diplomatic positions to new critical posts for the 21st cen- In December 2005, the mandate came down from the tury. We will begin this year with a down payment of mov- Secretary of State: Create several hundred new transfor- ing 100 positions from Europe and, yes, from here in mational diplomacy positions in emerging countries by Washington, D.C., to countries like China and India and eliminating positions elsewhere. And do it fast! The first Nigeria and Lebanon, where additional staffing will make 100 new positions were to be in place and filled by the an essential difference.” summer of 2006. With an assignment system based on This “down payment” was to be followed by new re- bidding one to two years out, depending on language and sources. “We are also eager to work more closely with other training, and with just about every embassy and of- Congress to enhance our global strategy with new re- fice in dire need of more rather than fewer staff, the task sources and new positions,” Sec. Rice said. As it happened, of moving hundreds of positions quickly threatened to be however, she would implement the Global Repositioning a bureaucratic nightmare. Program (hereafter called GRP) without new resources, To cut through the inevitable red tape, Sec. Rice tasked only by shifting positions. U/S Burns and Under Secretary for Management Henri- Individuals closely involved in the GRP process offered etta Fore — a strategic pairing of the policy and manage- assistance and insights for this assessment. We consulted ment sides of the house. The two under secretaries with members of the team that recently completed a world- created a high-level working group of about 10 senior staff wide review of the program for the Office of the Inspector who were able to work independently and outside of any General. Approximately 30 FSOs from both gain- one bureau or box. The implementation process was not ing and losing posts offered their own observations and ex- publicized widely either inside or outside the department, periences. Though all sources are known to the Journal, and even the makeup of the group was not widely known. and we have identified people wherever possible, much of The group had to work quickly; as one participant de- scribed it, the earliest plans were drawn “on the back of a Former Foreign Service political officer Shawn Dorman is napkin.” The exercise was driven by the Secretary’s insis- associate editor of the Journal and the editor of AFSA’s best- tence on quick implementation of her GRP vision, without selling book, Inside a U.S. Embassy. allowing time for serious consideration of security, physi-

JANUARY 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 19 F OCUS

cal space and other supporting in- The two under secretaries as wish lists of jobs that should be frastructure — or even of the pre- created. In Phase I, every bureau cise roles of those whose positions created a high-level working that gained positions also had to would be moved. GRP decisions give up positions. Almost no bu- were also tied to population num- group of about 10 senior staff reau or embassy wants to lose bers in cities around the world, with FSOs, especially at a time when de- the goal of increasing U.S. repre- who were able to work mands are increasing, staffing is al- sentation in urban centers. ready short and budgets are tight. “The rather unique element of independently and outside of “There was blood on the floor,” says the GRP exercise was that the posi- one knowledgeable official. tion decisions were based on our any one bureau or box. But the bureaus duly came up policy priorities, rather than current with the proposed positions to add workload or resources,” explains and eliminate, and the working John Heffern, who was executive assistant to U/S Burns group created final lists, which Burns and Fore presented and co-chair of the GRP Working Group. “The idea was to Sec. Rice for approval. This happened so fast and so to add positions to posts in countries high on the Secre- late in the assignment cycle that some of the positions to tary’slist for transformational diplomacy, where posts could be eliminated in the first round already had officers as- demonstrate that the new positions would be used for new signed to them. As a result, some 29 people were left and additional tasks. We did not intend for the new posi- scrambling for new jobs quite late in the bidding season. tions to focus on control officer duties or preparation of The European Bureau took the biggest hit in Phase I, mandated annual reports.” giving up 34 positions in 2006. By the end of Phase II in 2007, EUR had given up 49 positions overseas, while Blood on the Floor Washington offices lost more than 100. The missions that In a climate of no new money, the GRP was the only gained the most positions were China and India. Among game in town. The final plan would involve the creation the other gaining missions were Brazil, Indonesia, Sudan, of 285 new jobs, to be assigned in three phases. An equiv- South Africa, Kenya, Bolivia and Venezuela. The biggest alent set of positions would be eliminated. The new ones losers in the repositioning were Germany and Russia. were to be primarily political, economic and public diplo- However, because Embassy Moscow had already begun macy slots, with no new positions added on the manage- its own “streamlining” initiative before the GRP,it was able ment side during the first two phases. Embassies receiving to manage the impact well, explains then-DCM Dan Rus- new officers were to support them through existing ad- sell. ministrative resources, including provision of housing and One target for Phase II was the elimination of certain office space. functional jobs in the department as well as labor jobs Phase I involved 100 new positions to be staffed in sum- overseas. In the end, labor positions were spared and most mer 2006. Phase II, for 2007, involved creation of another bureaus contributed both overseas and domestic slots. For 100 jobs. Phase III, for 2008, was supposed to include an- Phase III in 2008, all positions to be eliminated would be other 85 positions, though it has only been partially im- domestic. This round was not fully completed because of plemented because of budget constraints. increasingly serious budget constraints. Positions were When figuring out which positions to create and which eliminated and only a few new GRP jobs were created. to eliminate, the working group could not calculate in Phases I and II were managed by the two under secre- terms of one-for-one swaps, because one overseas FSO po- taries and the GRP Working Group, while Human Re- sition costs as much as two to three Washington positions sources was tasked with implementing Phase III. to support. So, in fact, more slots had to be cut to cover the new ones created. These would come from both Civil The Pain-Gain Calculus Service and Foreign Service ranks. The critical flaw in the GRP exercise was that it was not Bureaus, working with embassies in their regions, were funded. On the contrary, the worldwide crisis-level told to come up with lists of jobs that could be cut, as well staffing and funding shortages continued, and worsened.

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Transformational Diplomacy: What’s New?

uring a Jan. 18, 2006, speech at Georgetown Univer- an exotic foreign country and never leave the embassy? Dsity, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced a The power of transformational diplomacy may lie in that broad initiative that she called Transformational Diplomacy: “what we were supposed to be doing” element. Over the “To work with our many partners around the world to build past decade, what diplomats have actually been doing has and sustain democratic, well-governed states that will re- been increasingly dictated by demands from Washington, spond to the needs of their people — and conduct them- mandatory reporting for Congress and requirements for selves responsibly in the international system. … supporting official visitors. Missing resources and staffing Transformational diplomacy is rooted in partnership, not shortages have forced many diplomats to spend more of paternalism — in doing things with other people, not for their time confined within embassy walls. One piece of TD them. We seek to use America’s diplomatic power to help is actually outreach and public diplomacy activities by an- foreign citizens to better their own lives, and to build their other name. own nations, and to transform their own futures.” Similarly, the program management element of TD The Secretary’s Georgetown ad- sounded a lot like what USAID of- dress left many diplomats scratch- ficers already do and what State ing their heads: Well, if this is new, Some have called it just the FSOs are not trained to do. But it then what were we doing before? also raised the possibility that Some have called it just the latest latest bumper sticker in a State political, economic and pub- bumper sticker in a slogan-rich po- slogan-rich political lic diplomacy officers might have litical environment, doomed to access to new sources of funding pass into oblivion once the admin- environment, doomed to pass that would be welcome and useful. istration ends. This response from One element of TD, however, an FSO in a TD position was typi- into oblivion once the that focuses on the role of U.S. cal: “I’ve never really understood diplomats in transforming other how transformational diplomacy administration ends. countries, helping them be more was any different from what we democratic, has been met with were doing, or were supposed to be doing, anyway.” concern in some places. In China, for instance, use of the Even some of those closely involved in the process word “transformational” raises hackles. The sentiment that agree that transformational diplomacy as a new idea was host countries may not welcome American efforts to trans- oversold. Marc Grossman — while serving in both a man- form them is shared by many foreign governments, and so agement position as director general (2000-2001) and a TD officers define the term based on the dynamics of the policy position as under secretary for political affairs country in which they serve. (2001-2005) for Secretary of State Colin Powell — may As Anny Ho, the American Presence Post officer for have laid the groundwork for the Secretary’s TD concept Zhengzhou, has suggested in the China context: “Stay with his calls for FSOs to stop reading tea leaves and get clear of the terms American Presence Post and transfor- out and do something. Sec. Powell’s tenure was marked mational diplomacy. The Chinese cringe at hearing this by similar calls for more emphasis on action and less on (they don’t appreciate even the hint of being transformed). reporting. Instead, if TD gets brought up, explain it in terms of how One aspect of TD is as basic as “getting out from be- we (the State Department) are transforming ourselves and hind the desk” and engaging with people beyond the for- the way we do business, by expanding out beyond the eign ministries and the capital cities around the world. But cities where our embassy and consulates are based so that what Foreign Service officer chose a diplomatic career to we can better understand our host country as a whole.” sit behind a desk? Who thought, I want to go through the Sounds like good advice. difficult and absurdly lengthy entry process so I can go to — Shawn Dorman

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There has been almost no new In a climate of no new rious cuts to staff and programs (in- money for additional State positions cluding those under the TD rubric), outside of security jobs since 2004, money, the GRP was the State was sending new GRP officers even though staffing demands have to the same posts. As noted in the increased dramatically over the past only game in town. September 2007 OIG report, “In- five years. As AFSA President John spection of the Bureau of Human Naland pointed out in his testimony Resources, Part II”: “The GRP has before a July 2008 Senate Subcommittee on Homeland not yet brought together USAID and [State] department Security and Government Affairs, “Unfunded mandates planning.” include 325 positions in Iraq, 150 in Afghanistan, 40 in the “For Embassy Phnom Penh, the GRP has been all office to coordinate reconstruction efforts, 100+ training about pain mitigation,” says FSO Piper Campbell, who positions to increase the number of Arabic speakers” — works there. That embassy gained one position but lost and the 285 GRP positions. one public affairs slot and another in the combined polit- “Due to the mismatch between resources and require- ical/economics section. Brazil, a major gaining post under ments,” Naland explains in his testimony, “hundreds of the program, also lost positions, including two public diplo- Foreign Service positions worldwide are now vacant. As a macy slots, for a net gain of only one position. result, the State Department is reportedly moving to “We are so busy managing Washington visitors, I feel a ‘freeze’ (leave unfilled) about 20 percent of the Foreign great sense of achievement when I get out to talk to some- Service jobs (overseas and domestic) due for reassignment one — anyone — outside of a visit,” says an FSO serving in summer 2009 (excluding fully staffed Iraq and in Brasilia. “Relations with nongovernmental folks are the Afghanistan). That is on top of other positions left unfilled first to go. It is an odd paradox that as Brazil is stepping out in the 2008 assignment cycle. All together, 12 percent of onto the global stage and our relationship is booming here, overseas Foreign Service positions are now vacant.” we are being told verbally, through budgets and through Some of the FSOs who commented to the Journal on staffing, that it is not a priority.” global repositioning mentioned that “DRI cuts” — posi- tions created under Secretary of State Colin Powell’s Still Doing More with Less Diplomatic Readiness Initiative that are now being elimi- “Even with new GRP slots, we’re still grossly under- nated — had minimized the impact of gains from the GRP. staffed,” says one Washington-based FSO who served at a But one knowledgeable official explained that, in fact, losing post. “One new GRP position here and there is not there were no DRI cuts; rather, many of the new positions going to make any difference. We need dozens, hundreds created by the DRI were temporary by design, to accom- of new positions, so we can do the basics of our jobs, much modate the “bubble” of new hires brought in under the less anything transformational.” program between 2002 and 2004. Still, it is easy to see “By moving positions around we are not solving the key how new positions created under DRI would become es- issue that there simply are not enough to go around,” says sential to the embassies that received them. FSO Brian McInerney, who’s serving in South Africa. The “Iraq Tax” — the shifting of staff and resources to “Hopefully soon our elected leaders will realize this and accommodate the requirement to staff Iraq and increase State’s budget so FSOs can be placed everywhere Afghanistan at 100 percent — represents another signifi- they are needed and we don’t have to take from one place cant cause of staffing shortages for many embassies. The to give to another.” Iraq mission is the largest in the world, and one-year as- FSO Ralph Falzone, who served in a GRP position in signments mean new personnel must rotate in every year. Vietnam, explains that his post “could have absorbed three Whatever name we give to the cuts in recent years, the re- to four more positions. There was an impact for sure, but ality has been that GRP gains were not always as significant everyone is still ultimately doing more with less.” as they appeared on paper. Many posts lost people at the The OIG report on the HR Bureau notes: “The GRP same time that they gained people through the GRP. transferred positions but did not always transfer adequate This was also true with respect to USAID staffing. In resources. Almost all positions moved in the first two some countries, at the same time USAID was making se- rounds, for example, were in political, economic and pub-

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lic diplomacy affairs. The OIG team found near-unani- office or at the constituent posts to support the increased mous views among regional bureaus that sufficient sup- number of American employees and family members.” port costs for these positions had not been provided.” “The support and funding have been grossly inadequate There was no money allocated for FY 2007 for transfor- and the position has not been integrated into post opera- mational diplomacy or the GRP, according to a Congres- tions, other than nominally,” says one FSO in a GRP posi- sional Research Service report on transformational tion who declined to be named. Going on, this officer says diplomacy. that “there was no financial support and little informational The overall budget climate and weak state of the dollar support.” also contributed to the difficulties of supporting new posi- “We had no say or warning that we were getting addi- tions at embassies overseas. Travel within the host country tional positions,” said a senior diplomat formerly assigned was supposed to be a significant element for many GRP of- to Nigeria. “Our new embassy compound was some 50 ficers, especially those who were assigned to open new percent too small the day we moved in. There were no posts. But many embassies were facing crisis-level financial provisions for any additional support resources (housing, stress and had to actually cut travel money for the mission. vehicles, furniture, admin staff) with any of the GRP posi- Space was also an issue for some posts. “There was no tions.” office space for the new positions and we received little additional support funding,” said one officer who served American Presence Posts: Not Present in a large mission that gained positions under the GRP. Question: How do you create new, one-person posts in “There was never any thought given to the additional For- cities across the globe with no new money? Answer: You eign Service National staff needed in the general services don’t.

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An important element Sec. Rice No bureau or embassy wants The India mission, for example, introduced as part of the initiative had recommended up to 10 APPs was the plan to create American to lose FSOs, especially under the GRP exercise. But due Presence Posts — one-officer posts to complications in international outside capital cities in priority during a time when demands law and a shortage of funds, none countries. In making requests for have been established. A new U.S. new GRP positions, the missions, are increasing, staffing consulate in Hyderabad, inaugu- through the bureaus, were told to rated in October 2008, was the first include requests for new APPs. is already short and new U.S. post established in India This wasn’t actually a new con- since 1947 (when the country’spop- cept. “One-officer consulates were budgets are tight. ulation was only about 350 million). once staffed by diplomats in areas of This consulate was not established the globe that took weeks to reach under the program, but the princi- by boat,” says FSO Tom Daniels. “Support was minimal pal officer there is in a GRP position. and conditions often rustic. Communication with locals APP jobs were heavily bid because they were seen as and representation of U.S. interests were the keys to suc- new and exciting, involving lots of independence and re- cess. Sounds like old-style diplomacy in a modern era to sponsibility, and were considered a priority because the me.” mandate came from the Secretary. But the actual job for APPs had been introduced in France in the 1990s, in- just about every officer assigned to an APP position has cluding posts in Lille, Rennes, Toulouse and Bordeaux, in not delivered on the promises. Almost all APP officers ar- part to compensate for the elimination of consulates there. rived in their country of assignment only to discover that Egypt had one APP in Alexandria, and Canada opened an they would not be moving to the designated city or open- APP in Winnipeg in 2001. The U.S. office in Medan, In- ing that office at all. In a few cases, they found that not donesia, sometimes held up as an example of a successful only was the post not going to be created, but they could new APP, was a consulate before it was shut down in the not even visit their designated city because there were no mid-1990s, only to be reopened as a consulate during Sec. available travel funds. Powell’s tenure. It is now a two-officer post. Eight APPs The experience so far points to five key barriers to the were created during the past decade — all before the GRP. establishment of APPs: APP Lyon officer Harry Sullivan — who bid on that • Security constraints and requirements are significant. post after his job in the economic section of Embassy Paris • There is no provision for such facilities in the Vienna was cut under the GRP — says that “We cannot fully en- Convention or any other international agreement. Under gage the French from Paris only, so I am out of my office international law, APPs are actually consulates, so the rules and away from Lyon at least 50 percent of the time. There for opening a consulate apply — making creation of a new is a great thirst for knowledge about the U.S. that would outpost vastly more complicated than simply dispatching otherwise be unmet.” one good FSO with a laptop to the selected city. The es- While the establishment of new APPs sounds logical in tablishment of consulates poses numerous legal issues, falls terms of expanding U.S. diplomatic coverage in an in- under congressional oversight and poses reciprocity issues creasingly globalized world, it has often turned out to be with the host countries. unrealistic. A great example of big thinking, it was not • U.S. law does not allow an APP to be created in a city matched by big — or even minimal — resource support. where the U.S. already has a consular agent. In addition, security concerns in many countries create al- • Additional funding for the U.S. missions charged with most insurmountable barriers to opening single-person of- opening new APPs — including the facilities, security and fices. For the APP exercise under the GRP, cities were support staff — has been almost entirely absent. selected without regard to the financial, administrative, • Ground rules were not established for the APP pro- legal and security elements of the equation. In fact, real- gram, and there is no central office in the State Depart- ities on the ground have dictated that most of the APPs ment in charge of them, so each post had to figure out how not be created. to set up — or not set up — its designated posts.

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Out of 18 proposed APPs, only two have been opened: to the embassy, “Early in January 2008, post received no- Wuhan in China, and Busan in South Korea. Both were tification that a hold had been placed on additional APP established as consulates. In early 2008, Washington put openings until further notice. Uncertain how long the hold all plans to establish new APPs on hold. would last, post management wrote new work require- ments that provided for travel to Eastern Malaysia as a cir- Smoke and Mirrors cuit rider based in Kuala Lumpur. Drawing upon post Take Brazil, where three officers were assigned to es- travel funds as well as funds from other sections designated tablish APPs, in Porto Alegre, Belem and Belo Horizonte. for specific projects, the APP officer traveled to Eastern None of those officers has been able to set up a post, and Malaysia on eight separate occasions over the past 11 they have had to recreate their positions. “Embassy months. … Until the APP situation is resolved, the APP Brasilia thought that the department would provide extra officer will attempt to accomplish from a Kuala Lumpur funding for the costs involved,” an official involved in the base many of the same goals that were originally established OIG inspection of Brazil said. Most embassy travel funds for the APP position in Kota Kinabalu — developing re- went to support the ambassador’s travel. APP officers do gional expertise, establishing local contacts and conducting visit the cities in which they were supposed to take up res- public affairs outreach. The Kota Kinabalu position re- idence, but officers were visiting those cities before the mains on the open assignments list.” APPs were designated, so there has been little actual “Everyone thinks the APPs are a great idea,” one offi- change on the ground there. cer tells us, “but the problem has come in the execution. In Malaysia, the APP officer assigned to Kota Kinabalu You feel like the third wheel. Institutionally it’s tough, be- arrived in Kuala Lumpur in December 2007. According cause you don’t have support or a budget. You don’t fit

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INDONESIA: Poster Child for the GRP

mbassy Jakarta gained five positions under the Global ical counselor, three other political officers and two USAID ERepositioning Program and appears to have maximized FSNs working on democracy programs. It was breathtak- the benefits of a net increase in staffing. Officers in new ing to see that, after 10 years, not only has democracy positions have enabled the embassy to expand outreach taken hold in Indonesia, but Embassy Jakarta itself appears activities and increase domestic travel, not only for those to have come together in new and innovative ways to sup- five individuals but for the mission as a whole. With inno- port its growt