Perhaps no country in the world is more closely associated with cooking and the culinary world than France. After all,
Larry Luxner
Miami native Larry Luxner, a veteran journalist and photographer, has reported from more than 100 countries in Latin America, Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Asia for a variety of news outlets. He lived for many years in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and the Washington, D.C., area before relocating to Israel in January 2017. Larry has been news editor of The Washington Diplomat since 2005.
Quick trivia question: Which was the first country to recognize the newly independent United States? Answer: The Netherlands, when on
Traditional Jaipongan dancers and a performance featuring the angklung marked the May 25 inauguration of the Washington Educational & Cultural Attaché Association (WECAA) at the Indonesian Embassy.
Every spring since 1992, the American Jewish Committee (AJC) has staged a mock Passover Seder for the DC diplomatic community. But, to paraphrase the famous question traditionally asked by the youngest at the table: Why was this year different from all other years?
When Western Hemisphere heads of state gather in Los Angeles for next month’s Ninth Summit of the Americas, at least three presidents won’t be in attendance: Cuba’s Miguel Díaz-Canel, Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro and Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega.
Hemmed in between China, the world’s most populous country, and Russia, its largest, is landlocked Mongolia—a former socialist “people’s republic”
With only 38,500 inhabitants in a territory exactly the same size as the District of Columbia, Liechtenstein is the world’s wealthiest country. According to the World Bank, its annual per-capita income is $175,813, ranking Liechtenstein ahead of Monaco, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Bermuda. Yet this 62-square-mile, German-speaking principality—wedged in between Switzerland and Austria—isn’t exactly a household name for everyone, conceded Liechtenstein’s ambassador to the United States, Georg Sparber.
The top envoy of one of the world’s smallest countries lashed out at its most powerful—barely a month before a
Juan Carlos Pinzón, Colombia’s ambassador to the US, discussed his country’s bilateral relations, the 2016 peace deal with FARC rebels and other issues in a March 30 talk at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
The Inter-American Dialogue, one of the nation’s most prestigious think tanks on Latin America, is getting a new boss: Rebecca Bill Chavez, PhD. She replaces Michael Shifter, who’s stepping down after 28 years with the Dialogue.
Clay tablets from ancient Egypt. A portrait of King Louis XVI of France. Japanese cherry trees. A heavy desk built
Yemen’s disastrous civil war, now in its eighth year, shows little sign of a resolution despite efforts to bring the country’s various warring factions to the negotiating table.
YEREVAN, Armenia — For most of his career, political consultant Eric Hacopian helped prominent California Democrats—including Reps. Adam Schiff and Brad Sherman of Los Angeles—win elections.
Kristjan Prikk, Estonia’s man in Washington, sees no imminent Russian invasion of the Baltics following its carnage in Ukraine. But he’s clearly worried that if the world doesn’t teach Vladimir Putin a lesson soon, the consequences for Europe could be severe and frightening.
Last year on July 14, Bastille Day, French Ambassador Philippe Étienne proudly unveiled a 1,000-pound bronze “mini-me” of the Statue of Liberty on the lawn of his official residence in D.C.’s Kalorama district before a crowd of dignitaries that included US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.
Iceland, with only 345,000 people, is among the most advanced, prosperous nations in Europe. And despite its oil wealth, Nigeria, with 214 million inhabitants, remains one of the world’s most corrupt countries.Yet when it comes to women’s health and gender equity, the two share a few things in common.
