The Washington Diplomat

Digital Edition Archives


Dawn of a New Era in U.S.-Saudi Relations

The United States and Saudi Arabia are entering a new era in their 76-year partnership with the release of the CIA assessment finding that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “approved” the 2018 murder of prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

NUSACC kicks off 50th year with webinar on Arab ‘energy transition’

Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Yergin headlined the first of a series of “Thought Leaders” webinars hosted by the Washington-based National US-Arab Chamber of Commerce (NUSACC). More than 400 business leaders, D.C.-based diplomats and senior government officials tuned into the event.

Venezuela’s Opposition Is Clinging to a Failed Strategy

The emergence of a dynamic young leader galvanized the Venezuelan opposition two years ago. Juan Guaido united disparate opposition parties and won recognition as the country’s legitimate president from Donald Trump’s administration and dozens of other governments.

DC-based organizations dominate 2020 list of world’s top think tanks

Washington, D.C., is home to more think tanks—and better ones—than any other city on Earth. In fact, six of the world’s 20 best such organizations are headquartered in the nation’s capital, according to the University of Pennsylvania’s Think Tanks and Civil Strategies Program.

A diplomatic first: Israel, Kosovo forge bilateral relations via Zoom

“Virtual diplomacy” just took on a whole new meaning. On Feb. 1, for the first time in history, two countries — in this case Israel and Kosovo — established official ties remotely, during a 28-minute ceremony broadcast via Zoom from two capital cities nearly 1,100 miles apart.

DC-based consular officials shine during global COVID-19 emergency

Say the word “diplomat” and most people automatically think of the roughly 175 ambassadors who represent their countries at physical embassies in the nation’s capital. Yet when foreign nationals find themselves in a pickle, they usually turn to consular officers — not ambassadors — for assistance.

Nagorno-Karabakh: After ceasefire, search for lasting peace begins

After 43 days of fighting, thousands dead and wounded, the creation of a new humanitarian crisis and a major geopolitical shift in a longstanding frozen conflict, a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh came into effect at midnight on Nov. 9, although many questions remain about what will happen to this disputed territory.

D.C. diplomats praise protesters in Belarus, Europe’s last dictatorship

“The Minsk government’s repeated attempts to intimidate society has been ineffective. We cannot abandon the democratic movement in Belarus in its time of need,” said Polish Ambassador Piotr Wilczek, who joined a recent panel of experts to discuss the brutal crackdown on protesters by the Lukashenko regime.