The biggest immediate threat to Lithuania comes not from Russia, but from another former Soviet republic: Belarus. That’s the warning from Audra Plepyté, Lithuania’s ambassador to the United States. She says that if the autocratic regime of Alexander Lukashenko isn’t neutralized soon, all of Europe will ultimately pay the price.
As President Joe Biden held his head in his hands during an East Room address to the nation on Aug. 26, to discuss the killing of 13 servicemen in Kabul by a suicide bomber, it should have been a moment of sober reflection.
History will not regard Ban Ki-moon as a commanding or charismatic secretary general of the United Nations. A somber, cautious, and conservative diplomat from South Korea, Ban was not an arresting figure on the global stage. However, Ban believes he was a consequential, even visionary, secretary general, and he has written a memoir to make his case.
It is not a crisis of competence. It’s not that he won’t take responsibility, and it certainly isn’t that using a teleprompter means he should be impeached. Joe Biden’s problem is part of one of society’s greatest problems: His administration is simply horrible at communicating.
During his 35 years in the US Diplomatic Service, Scott DeLisi served in four Asian capitals and three African ones. But magical, mountainous Nepal has always occupied a special place in his heart. In fact, the day he retired six years ago, the former ambassador decided to devote all his energy to Engage Nepal, a nonprofit organization that helps fight poverty in one of the world’s poorest countries.
With the delayed Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics as a backdrop, it’s no surprise the Czech Embassy would choose sports as the theme of its 12th Annual Mutual Inspirations Festival. This year’s edition is dedicated to Czech gymnast and patriot Věra Čáslavská, a seven-time Olympic gold medalist, four-time World Champion and 11-time European Champion.
On Aug. 17, 1961, heads of state from throughout the hemisphere met at the Uruguayan beach resort of Punta del Este to launch President John F. Kennedy’s Alliance for Progress—a comprehensive 10-year plan known in Spanish as “Alianza para el Progreso” that sought to strengthen US diplomatic and economic relations with Latin America.
Carlos Elizondo, White House social secretary and longtime aide to first lady Jill Biden, was among the guests at the Meridian International Center’s annual celebration of embassy social secretaries and cultural attachés.
After 28 years at the Inter-American Dialogue and 12 years as its president, Michael Shifter is leaving at the end of 2021, just as the region faces some of its darkest days in modern history.
More than two centuries after its epic victory over the French army of Napoleon by the ragtag army of former slaves, Haiti is still seeking to redeem its heroic gamble.
More than 70 guests representing over 20 countries—including ambassadors and other VIPs— came together July 15 for a night of art and food to celebrate the opening of Embassy Row’s newest “in place to be.”
With the flags of the European Union, Lithuania, Belarus and the United States as a backdrop, a group of diplomats and lawmakers on July 21 inaugurated the bipartisan Friends of Belarus Congressional Caucus. Their goal: to bring down Europe’s last dictatorship.
On July 15, Sonia Guzmán, the country’s new ambassador to the United States, hosted a reception at her Washington, D.C., residence to promote both products. At the event, some 120 guests enjoyed premium cigars while sampling top Dominican rums, as well as coffee and chocolate.
Since Christopher Columbus first disembarked on the island of Cuba in the 15th century and brought infectious disease on an unsuspecting population, foreigners have dictated Cuba’s destiny. Irrespective of which great power was at play, all have pursued a similar course of action: Might is right. Little has changed in the intervening centuries.
Ambassador of the European Union to the U.S. Stavros Lambrinidis participated in a wide-ranging discussion with Anna Gawel on Global 360, produced by The Washington Diplomat, on July 8.
As President Biden remarked at the recent G7 summit to fellow world leaders “America is back.” While the United States is seeking to deepen relationship around the world, digital diplomacy has a pivotal role to play in influencing key decision makers at the White, State Department and on Capitol Hill. Digital media offers a low-cost way to engage, persuade and influence the citizens of allies and adversaries.
