PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN FOREIGN SERVICE ASSOCIATION SEPTEMBER 2021 20 YEARS LATER Where Does Diplomacy Stand? September 2021 Volume 98, No. 7 Focus on 9/11, Twenty Years Later 22 Getting Off the X In a compelling personal account of the 9/11 attacks, one FSO offers tactics for surviving when catastrophe strikes. By Nancy Ostrowski 26 The Global War on Terror and Diplomatic Practice The war on terror fundamentally changed U.S. diplomacy, leaving a trail 39 of collateral damage to America’s readiness for future challenges. Intervention: FS Know-How By Larry Butler Unlearned Lessons, or the Gripes of a Professional 46 31 The State Department’s failure to Whistleblower effectively staff and run interventions Protections: America and 9/11: has a long history. Four critical A Nonpartisan The Real-World Impact of lessons can be drawn from the post-9/11 experience. Necessity Terrorism and Extremism As old as the United States itself, In retrospect, 9/11 did not foreshadow By Ronald E. Neumann whistleblowing has protections the major changes that now drive worth knowing about. U.S. foreign policy and national security strategy. By Alain Norman and 43 Raeka Safai By Anthony H . Cordesman From the FSJ Archive 9/11, War on Terror, Iraq 35 and Afghanistan FS Heritage The Proper Measure of the Place: 48 Reflections on the Diplomats Make Afghan Mission a Difference: Drawing from two tours, a decade The U.S. and Mongolia, apart, a veteran diplomat explores the competing visions for Afghanistan. 1986-1990 In the 1992 FSJ, Ambassador By Keith W. Mines Joe Lake describes setting up the U.S. embassy in Ulaanbaatar. Today he and his son explore how that relationship was built. By Joseph E. Lake and Michael Allen Lake THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2021 5 FOREIGN SERVICE Perspectives Departments 7 86 10 Letters President’s Views Family Member Matters Reform Can’t Wait: No Time to Waste An Old Friend 13 Talking Points By Eric Rubin By Brianna Hogan 72 In Memory 9 88 78 Books Letter from the Editor Reflections When Everything Changed Right of Boom: A Bomb and a Book By Shawn Dorman By Stephen G. McFarland 19 90 Marketplace Speaking Out Local Lens The Remonstrating Official Lake Elmenteita, Kenya 82 Real Estate By Ted Osius By Laura Merz 84 Classifieds 85 Index to Advertisers 53 AFSA NEWS THE OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE AMERICAN FOREIGN SERVICE ASSOCIATION 53 New AFSA Board Takes Office 58 Meet the 2021-2023 AFSA Governing Board 53 Announcing the 2021 AFSA Award Winners 63 2021 Kennan Award Winner: Valerie O’Brien 54 State VP Voice—Revitalizing the Core Precepts 64 Meet the 2021 Merit Award Winners 55 USAID VP Voice—The Future of USAID: 68 AFSA Selects High School Essay Contest Winner Three Scenarios 69 AFSA Pushes for Change on CDC Dog Import 56 Retiree VP Voice—Retiree Agenda for 2021-2023 Restrictions 56 Unexplained Health Incidents: 70 AFSA Speaker Series Reaches New Audiences AFSA Advocates for Members 70 AFSA Statement on New Federal COVID-19 Measure 57 FSJ Wins Publication Awards 71 DACOR: Remembering Fallen FSOs 57 Child Tax Credit News 71 AFSA Governing Board Meeting Resolutions On the Cover—Illustration by Brian Hubble. 6 SEPTEMBER 2021 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL PRESIDENT’S VIEWS Reform Can’t Wait: No Time to Waste BY ERIC RUBIN s I write, we are six months ment was finally announced at the end due process, ongoing challenges such as into the Biden administra- of July, six months after the start of the the UHI that have affected our members tion. We are still wrestling administration. It will likely be months in Cuba, China and elsewhere, painfully with the traumatic impact before he is confirmed and can start work. slow progress on diversity and inclusion, of the COVID-19 crisis on The nominee for Director General of the and some of the lowest promotion rates Aour world, our country and our profes- Foreign Service was selected months in the modern history of the Service, and sion. There are also some hopeful signs: ago, but as of this writing has not moved we are looking at a recipe for attrition and a developing bipartisan consensus on toward confirmation. We stand to lose unhappiness. That is no way to win any increased foreign affairs funding, hir- most of the first year of the administration kind of “war for talent.” ing and overseas staffing, as well as on before the conversation on change and I believe that this administration, expanded training and professional reform can even begin. like most of its predecessors, wants to education, and an overdue return to hav- Meanwhile, COVID-19 continues to support the career employees who are ing senior career officers nominated and warp and obstruct our ability to accom- the backbone of our federal govern- confirmed for top-level positions. plish our mission for the American ment. Words are not enough, however. Much is not right, however. As of the people, and new obstacles—some self- We need to begin now on an ambitious end of July, only one new ambassador inflicted—keep popping up. From the and comprehensive effort to fix what is had been confirmed by the Senate since CDC dog ban—a real crisis for our mem- broken, address the causes of low morale the start of the Biden administration. bers with beloved canine companions— and attrition, and create a proud, truly More than 90 countries have no U.S. to reduced official support for families, diverse and well-led corps of profession- ambassador in place. tandem couples, singles and others in the als who are committed to staying on, and Dozens of nominations have been Foreign Service family, it keeps getting who love what they do. placed on hold, primarily by one sena- harder to pursue the challenging career The Foreign Service had some of the tor, damaging the national interest. path that our members have chosen. highest career satisfaction ratings in Dozens of jobs have yet to be filled or One-third of them, according to both the federal government for decades. It even have nominees, including a long State Department statistics and a survey no longer does. If we don’t identify the list of ambassadorships, more than half we helped sponsor, have considered reasons, and commit to fixing them, we the assistant secretary of State positions, leaving this year. Thankfully, attrition is will see more attrition, more discourage- nearly all of the USAID assistant admin- nowhere near that level. But numbers like ment, and a loss of the talent we need istrator positions and most of the senior that are a clear warning sign of unhappi- to help our country deal with a very jobs in our other foreign affairs agencies. ness and a perception that the future is not unstable and troubling world. Both the administration and the Senate bright for those who stay in the Service. AFSA is eager to begin serious, in- bear responsibility The lack of visible engagement from our depth work with senior officials of all of and need to move top leadership on issues like the dog ban, our member agencies on the urgently quickly to break “unidentified health incidents” (UHI) and needed process of reform and modern- these logjams. Foreign Service reform does not help. ization. We have no time to lose. A nominee for Add capricious and nontransparent Please share your thoughts and ideas under secretary of security clearance suspensions that con- on what such a dialogue should include: State for manage- tinue for years without any semblance of [email protected]. n Ambassador Eric Rubin is the president of the American Foreign Service Association. THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2021 7 FOREIGN SERVICE Editor-in-Chief, Director of Publications Shawn Dorman: [email protected] www.afsa.org Senior Editor Susan Brady Maitra: [email protected] Managing Editor CONTACTS Kathryn Owens: [email protected] AFSA Headquarters: FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION Associate Editor (202) 338-4045; Fax (202) 338-6820 Director of Finance and Facilities Cameron Woodworth: [email protected] State Department AFSA Office: Femi Oshobukola: [email protected] (202) 647-8160; Fax (202) 647-0265 Publications Coordinator Manager, HR and Operations USAID AFSA Office: Dmitry Filipoff: [email protected] Cory Nishi: [email protected] (202) 712-1941; Fax (202) 216-3710 Controller Business Development Manager— FCS AFSA Office: Kalpna Srimal: [email protected] Advertising and Circulation (202) 482-9088; Fax (202) 482-9087 Member Accounts Specialist Molly Long: [email protected] Ana Lopez: [email protected] GOVERNING BOARD IT and Infrastructure Coordinator Art Director President Aleksandar “Pav” Pavlovich: Caryn Suko Smith Hon. Eric S. Rubin: [email protected] [email protected] Editorial Board Secretary Alexis Ludwig, Chair Daniel Crocker: [email protected] COMMUNICATIONS Hon. Robert M. Beecroft Treasurer Director of Communications Jane Carpenter-Rock Hon. John O’Keefe: [email protected] Ásgeir Sigfússon: [email protected] Daniel Crocker State Vice President Manager of Outreach and Internal Joel Ehrendreich Thomas Yazdgerdi: [email protected] Communications Harry Kopp USAID Vice President Bronwyn Llewellyn Allan Saunders: [email protected] Jason Singer: [email protected] Jess McTigue Online Communications Manager FCS Vice President Joe Tordella Jeff Lau: [email protected] Jay Carreiro: [email protected] Vivian Walker Awards and Scholarships Manager FAS Vice President Hon. Laurence Wohlers Theo Horn: [email protected] Vacant Retiree Vice President MEMBERSHIP AND OUTREACH THE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS John K. Naland: [email protected] Director, Programs and Member Engagement PROFESSIONALS State Representatives Christine Miele: [email protected] The Foreign Service Journal (ISSN 0146-3543), Joshua Archibald 2101 E Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 is Manager, Outreach and Camille Dockery published monthly, with combined January-February Strategic Communications and July-August issues, by the American Foreign Service Kimberly Harrington Nadja Ruzica: [email protected] Association (AFSA), a private, nonprofit organization.