George Packer, a staff writer for The Atlantic and award-winning author of several non-fiction books, is one of the most penetrating, persuasive, and important writers in the United States. He is consistently fair-minded, skeptical, and willing to challenge political orthodoxy and conventional wisdom. He wrote a remarkable book about the Iraq War, a probing biography of Richard Holbrooke, and a stunning account of the economic and social unraveling of America’s middle class.
Anna Gawel and Eric Ham give a candid talk about what went wrong in Afghanistan, what, if any, the long-term repercussions will be, and why there are no easy answers when it comes to a country known as the graveyard of empires.
On Sept. 10, The Washington Diplomat spoke with Asad Majeed Khan, Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States, about the legacy of 9/11, the US-Pakistan bilateral relationship and, of course, the recent Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
The new rules amount to Biden saying “enough of the bull” as he steps up efforts to get stubborn Americans vaccinated. When I asked about mandatory vaccinations at the beginning of the Biden administration, press secretary Jen Psaki said the president was opposed to them.
As the world grapples with new realities and a once-in-a-generation pandemic, multinational corporations are shifting priorities to meet new business climates and polarizing policy environments. Philip Morris International, no stranger to controversy, offers audiences a look at how this longstanding company is navigating the new normal to remain viable in the 21st century.
Until coronavirus paralyzed the airline industry in early 2020, more than a million passengers were flying annually between the United States and West Africa. Now that international travel is gradually returning to normal, Air Senegal hopes to grab a slice of that business.
The US-ASEAN Business Council, a powerful Washington-based corporate association active in 10 Southeast Asian countries, has named Ted Osius as its new president and CEO.
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.
The Hillwood Estate explores the 1920s through the eyes of founder Marjorie Merriweather Post, offering a flashy and fabulous look at the Roaring Twenties through one of the wealthiest figures of the age.
Signature Theater’s ‘Detroit 67’ mixes pain with pleasure. Playwright Dominique Morisseau lets Motown’s feel-good sounds of The Temptations, Martha and the Vandellas, and The Miracles lull you into a sense of tranquility while hitting you with one of the most damaging uprisings in Detroit’s history.
