Through the Diplomatic Looking Glass

2012 Calendar for Diplomats

2012-01-06T21:58:00.001+01:00

A New Year has just started and 12 months of new professional challenges are ahead of us.

A new and original Diplocalendar has just been published by Diplofoundation (http://www.diplomacy.edu)

The 2012 calendar visually introduces a selection of the main policy, organizational, and management challenges of today's world (e.g. budgetary cuts, reforms and multitasking).

You can take a look at the calendar (and further discuss the issues contained in it) at the page:
http://www.diplomacy.edu/2012

Through the same page it is possible to receive a copy of the Diplocalendar.
Just to give you an idea of the visual contents take a look at the January illustration concerning "Budget cuts".

Happy New Year!

Third diplomatic suspense novel for Adrian de Hoog

2011-09-21T21:21:00.001+01:00

Adrian de Hoog, former Canadian diplomat, has just published a new diplomatic suspense novel.

The novel is called Natalia’s Peace . It is a story about a confidential diplomatic initiative in The Hague aimed at developing new ideas to advance peace within the framework of today’s security challenges. It explores the causes of conflict today, such as kinship, belief systems and collective memories and fresh approaches for addressing them. The substantive ideas are carried forward with a lively plot.
More information is available on the book’s website: http://nataliaspeace.com/

This is the third de Hoog's diplomatic suspense novel. The Berlin Assignment (2006) http://www.theberlinassignment.com/ was a spy story set in Berlin just after the Wall came down and unfolded against the backdrop of German reunification. Borderless Deceit (2007) http://www.borderlessdeceit.com/ provided a foretaste of the loss of privacy in today’s digital world and the many challenges posed to the security of cyberspace diplomacy'.

Natalia’s Peace is widely available on Amazon sites in many countries and through numerous on-line retailers.
There is also a Kindle version http://www.amazon.com/Natalias-Peace-ebook/dp/B005LGBZ8Y/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1315351324&sr=1-1

DE HOOG Adrian, Natalia's Peace, Adytum Publishing, 2011, pp. 322.

Adrian de Hoog was in the Canadian diplomatic service for 30 years with postings in Nairobi, Bonn and Berlin (as consul general). He worked in areas such as development assistance, nuclear non-proliferation, the global environment, G-7 and international economic issues, and as head of diplomatic training.

Victor Comras and the Flawed Diplomacy

2011-09-18T17:32:00.000+01:00

Victor Comras, former US diplomat, has published a new book: "Flawed Diplomacy: The United Nations and the War on Terrorism" (Potomac Books, November 2010). It provides an insider's look at, and tells the story of the United Nation's efforts to respond to terrorism as a threat to international peace and Security and how these efforts were shaped and sometimes sabotaged by conflicting forces and interest groups inside and outside the United Nations. It also provides some key recommendations for strengthening this international effort.

The book stems, in part, from his own experiences as one of the original five International Monitors charged by the Security Council with reporting on the actions taken by countries to respond to terrorism. It also delves into the history of the UN response to terrorism and provides extensive discussion of the roles played by the Security Council and General Assembly as well as the 1267, 1373 Counter Terrorism Committee, and the 1540 Committees.

The book has particular relevancy as we consider, ten years after 9/11, the progress made, and steps that still need to be taken to deal with the threat of international terrorism.
.
It is possible to review the Table of Contents and read the introductory chapter of the book on line at http://www.potomacbooksinc.com/Books/BookDetail.aspx?productID=209192

The Washington Institute held a special event to launch the book. They have posted a report of that event (and the audio) at http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateC05.php?CID=3271

The book is available through all major and on line bookstores, including, inter alia, Amazon.com at http://www.amazon.com/Flawed-Diplomacy-United-Nations-Terrorism/dp/1597974382/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1302968116&sr=8-1.

It is now also available on Kindle at http://www.amazon.com/Flawed-Diplomacy-Nations-Terrorism-ebook/dp/B0050SNSLK/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2

----------------

Victor D. Comras led the State Department's foreign policy trade control and sanctions programs for nearly a decade. He retired from the State Department in 2001 with the permanent rank of Minister Counselor. In May 2002 he was appointed by the UN Secretary General to serve as one of five international monitors charged with overseeing the implementation of Security Council measures against al Qaeda and the Taliban. And, in 2009 he was selected to serve as a member of the UN Panel of Experts on North Korea sanctions. Mr. Comras is a leading expert, author and lecturer on international trade regulation, sanctions, export controls and the global effort to combat terrorism and terrorism financing.

Final words of departing UK Ambassadors

2011-09-11T15:13:00.000+01:00

Matthew Parris (and Andrew Bryson) is the author of an interesting and original book titled "Parting shots. The undiplomatic final words of our departing ambassadors" (Penguin, 2010).
The book is a based on a BBC 4 radio series (broadcasted in 2006) concerning final telegrams UK Diplomats wrote when leaving their country of assignment. They could say whatever they wished in their final telegram home, and they could be very frank about the cultures and countries in which they served. Some of these files were released to the BBC by the Foreign Office under the Freedom of Information Act. The older despatches - those written more than thirty years ago - are from the National Archives in Kew. Some of the text of the dispatches are available online (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00n85t5)

Here is a short description of the book provided by the publisher:
"When leaving a foreign posting, Britain's ambassadors were encouraged to write a valedictory despatch until the practice was abolished in 2006. Unlike the usual style of the diplomatic bag, these last reports from foreign posts were unbuttoned, indiscreet and often very funny. There was much settling of scores, some poking fun of foreigners, a degree of moaning about the privations of Embassy life - and sometimes a bit of serious analysis too. Based on a very successful BBC radio series, Matthew Parris, who once worked for the Foreign Office and had the task of distributing the despatches, and Andrew Bryson have compiled an always entertaining and frequently hilarious volume of the best of them."

The book is available in many online libraries.
Amazon.com provides the opportunity to read the initial pages http://www.amazon.com/Parting-Shots-Parris/dp/0670919284/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1315748856&sr=8-1

Career Diplomacy: Life and Work in the US Foreign Service

2011-04-28T18:05:00.000+01:00

Harry Kopp and Charles A. Gillespie, former US Diplomats, are the authors of the book Career Diplomacy: Life and Work in the US Foreign Service, which has been just published in its second edition and provides insights into the inner workings of the diplomatic service.

According to Lawrence S. Eagleburger, former Secretary of State the book is “The best description of life in the foreign service—its challenges, dangers, satisfactions, and fun—I have ever seen. It paints a superb picture of life abroad and at home, including both its good and bad aspects, and does a brilliant job of pointing out how our diplomacy must change if it is to meet the tremendous changes and challenges of the twenty-first century.”

The book has four parts: the instruction, the profession, the career, and the future foreign service.

Some excerpts of the volume can be downloaded at the dedicated site http://www.careerdiplomacy.com

Harry Kopp, Charles A. Gillespie, Career Diplomacy: Life and Work in the US Foreign Service, Georgetown University Press; 2011, pp. 301

The authors

Harry Kopp is a former foreign service officer and consultant in international trade. Kopp was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for international trade policy in the Carter and Reagan administrations. His foreign assignments included Warsaw and Brasília. Kopp left the foreign service in 1985 More information about Mr. Kopp can be found at: www.HarryKopp.com.

Charles A. Gillespie entered the foreign service in 1965 and retired in 1995. His career included assignments as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs; American ambassador to Grenada, Colombia, and Chile, and Special Assistant to the President on the National Security Council Staff. He was a member of the American Academy of Diplomacy, the Business Council for International Understanding, and the Forum for International Policy. Gillespie passed away March 7, 2008.

---

Sir Ivor Roberts edits Satow's Diplomatic Practice

2010-11-07T21:48:00.000+01:00

Sir Ivor Roberts, former Ambassador of UK to Italy, has recently edited a new edition of the famous book Satow's Diplomatic Practice. This book was first published 90 years ago and has been revised four times since. This is the first revised edition for thirty years, during which time the world and diplomacy have changed almost beyond recognition.

The new edition provides an enlarged and updated section on the history of diplomacy and revises comprehensively the practice of diplomacy and the corpus of diplomatic and international law since the end of the Cold War. It traces the substantial expansion in numbers both of sovereign states and international and regional organisations and features detailed chapters on diplomatic privileges and immunities, diplomatic missions and consular matters. It examines new forms of diplomacy from the work of NGOs to the use of secret envoys and commercial security firms; it furthermore highlights the impact of international terrorism on the life and work of a diplomat.

The Author
Born in 1946 in Liverpool, Ivor Roberts was educated at St. Mary's College, Crosby and at Keble College, Oxford. He graduated in Modern Languages in 1968 and took his MA in 1972. He entered the Diplomatic Service in 1968 as a Third Secretary in West African Department. His first postings included the Middle East Centre for Arab Studies in Lebanon, the Arabian Department of the FCO and the British Chancery in Luxembourg. He was transferred in January 1978 to Canberra as First Secretary in the British Chancery and returned to Canberra as Head of the Economic and Commercial Department and Agricultural Adviser until 1982. From 1989 to 1993 he was Minister in the British Embassy in Madrid. He was appointed Chargé d'Affaires and Consul - General in Belgrade in March 1994, and after recognition of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia by the United Kingdom, he became Ambassador. During his time in Belgrade he conducted negotiations on behalf of the international mediators (Lord Owen and Carl Bildt) with both the Yugoslav authorities and the Bosnian Serbs. He was also involved in the negotiations for the release of British soldiers held hostage by the Bosnian Serbs in May/June 1995. He left Belgrade at the end of 1997. From February 1999 to March 2003 he served as British Ambassador to the Republic of Ireland and from May 2003 to September 2006 as Ambassador to Italy and to San Marino. He retired from the Diplomatic Service in September 2006 on his election as the President of Trinity College – Oxford University.

Reviews
This classic guide to diplomacy has been stylishly updated and remains a masterly description of the way in which foreign policy should be conducted. It covers comprehensively the diplomatic challenges of a new century in the sort of prose that we must all hope will continue to be an attribute of the best Foreign Office officials. It is in all our interests that the exigencies of public spending control do not constrain the ability of diplomats in Britain and abroad to practise the arts so well surveyed here. (Chris Patten, Chancellor, University of Oxford; Former British Governor of Hong Kong )

Satow's Diplomatic Practice has been the diplomat's bible for nearly a century and the publication of the first new edition for thirty years will receive a much deserved welcome. This new edition of Satow is a treasure trove of information, all of it presented in a wonderfully readable form. It will be indispensable for all practitioners of diplomacy. (Judge Sir Christopher Greenwood )

Having clarity over the rules of the game, developing experience in separating duty from stupidity, finding the right words when the sword might be the alternative, are all part of the practice of diplomacy at its finest. This book is a treasure for illustrating what that is. (Jeremy Greenstock, The Times Literary Supplement. The full interesting article of Greenstock is available at http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/the_tls/article6893814.ece)

Sir Ivor Roberts, editor, SATOW’S DIPLOMATIC PRACTICE, 730pp. Oxford University Press. £110.

Herman Portocarero, Belgian Diplomat and Novelist - All Demons' Day

2010-06-06T16:58:00.004+01:00

The book All Demons' Day by Herman Portocarero rich in historical facts, is filled with intrigue, adventure, and suspense. Its narrative concentrates on the adventures of Rey, a pirate that sets ashore in San Cristóbal de La Habana, finding it afire with raucous music, dancing, and drunkenness. A free soul between the worlds of land and sea, Rey gets caught up in the yearly African carnival of Epiphany-All Demons' Day to soon become hunted by pirates and locals across the whole island.

Herman Portocarero, All Demons' Day: The Havana Pirate Manuscript, IUniverse, Bloomington, 2008.

Herman Portocarero is a Belgian diplomat born in Antwerp of Spanish ancestry, with a distinguish career within the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. After joining the diplomatic corps, he served first in Addis Ababa, then in Kingston and La Havana. Nowadays he is Consul General of Belgium in New York. In 1978 Herman Portocarero debuted in the French novel La Combine the Karachi. His Dutch debut, The Anagram of the World, appeared six years later. Of note the trilogy of novels New York Nights (2006), Jamaican Nights ( 2007), Haitian Nights (2008).

Marco Davi'

A successful novelist: the Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup

2010-04-18T21:19:00.001+01:00

Vikas Swarup is one of the most famous Indian diplomat-writers, very well known for his two novels "Q & A" and "Six Suspects".
His first novel Q&A (published in 2005) is particularly famous because the film version of the book, titled ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, directed by Danny Boyle, has won more than 70 awards including four Golden Globes and 8 Oscars, including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture. The novel has also been adapted for a stage musical and a radio play.
The book "Q&A" (already translated in 42 languages) opens in a jail cell in Mumbai, India, where Ram Mohammad Thomas is being held after correctly answering all twelve questions on India's biggest quiz show, Who Will Win a Billion? It is hard to believe that a poor orphan who has never read a newspaper or gone to school could win such a contest. But through a series of exhilarating tales Ram explains to his lawyer how episodes in his life gave him the answer to each question. Ram takes us on an amazing review of his own history -- from the day he was found as a baby in the clothes donation box of a Delhi church to his employment by a faded Bollywood star to his adventure with a security-crazed Australian army colonel to his career as an overly creative tour guide at the Taj Mahal.
The second novel "Six supects" (2008) is a multi layered story about crime and corruption in modern day India and it is based on true life events. Vivek 'Vicky' Rai, the playboy son of Cabinet Minister is dead, killed at his farmhouse at a party he had thrown to celebrate his acquittal. Six guests are discovered with guns in their possession - and each one is equally likely to have pulled the trigger. Who are these six suspects? And what were they doing in the farmhouse that night?
Vikas Swarup was born in Allahabad (India) in a family of lawyers. After his schooling, Vikas attended Allahabad University and studied History, Psychology and Philosophy. After graduating with distinction, he joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1986, motivated by an interest in international relations and a desire to explore different cultures. In his diplomatic career, Vikas has been posted to various countries such as Turkey (1987-1990), the United States (1993-1997) Ethiopia (1997-2000), the United Kingdom (2000-2003) and South Africa (2006-2009). Since August 2009, he is the Consul General of India in Osaka-Kobe, Japan. He has written for TIME, The Guardian, The Telegraph (UK), Outlook magazine (India) and Liberation (France). Apart from reading, he enjoys listening to music and playing cricket, tennis and table tennis.

Personal website: http://www.vikasswarup.net

The detective novels of Jean-François Parot

2009-12-22T18:14:00.004+01:00

Jean-François Parot, French Ambassador in Guinea-Bissau, has recently published his 8th detective novel: “Le Noyé du Grand Canal”. Set in the second half of the 18th century, the series written by Parot follows the adventures of Nicolas Le Floch, policeman and aristocrat, the illegitimate son of the Marquis de Ranreuil. When the cycle of novels begins in 1761, he is working with the (real) Antoine de Sartine, Lieutenant General de Police of Paris, and promoted to Commissaire of the Châtelet. Each novel, painstakingly researched, frames the central intrigue within a carefully reconstructed historical setting. Particular attention is granted to linguistic accuracy and period detail and loving care is lavished on the Ancient Régime gastronomic landscape. As each case is linked to real political events, the protagonist, assisted by the Commissaire Bourdeau and flanked by an entertaining gallery of secondary characters, is witness to the stormy events leading to the Revolution.

Nicolas Le Floch – éditions Jean-Claude Lattès – Série Grands Détectives 10/18:
L’Enigme des Blancs-Manteaux (2001), L’Homme au ventre de plomb (2001), Le Fantôme de la Rue Royale (2002), L’Affaire Nicolas Le Floch (2003), Le Crime de l’Hôtel Saint-Florentin (2005), Le Sang des farines (2006), Le Cadavre anglais (2008), Le Noyé du Grand Canal (2009), L’Honneur de Sartine (expected Autumn 2010)

Jean-François Parot was born in 1946 and graduated in history and anthropology. He is a specialist of the 18th century. He was Vice-Consul in Kinshasa in 1974, Consul General in Saigon and Athens, Counsellor in Doha, Khartoum, Djibouti, Ouagadougou, Sofia and Minister in Tunis. He acted as adviser to the Minister for Industry and was named Associate Director of the Directorate for Military Cooperation and Defence in 2002. He is Ambassador in Guinea-Bissau since 2006.
His works have been translated into Italian, Spanish, English and Russian. They are the subject of a television adaptation on France 2 by Hugues Pagan with actor Jérôme Robart in the leading role of Commissaire Le Floch. (http://programmes.france2.fr/nicolas-le-floch/).

(by Clementina Osti)

Murder in the Tower of Happiness, a novel by Egyptian Diplomat Tawfik

2009-11-28T11:57:00.004+01:00

The latest novel by Mohamed Tawfik, who was until recently Egyptian ambassador to Australia, has recently appeared in English translation.
Following is a short excerpt:
"When the first armchair smashed into the asphalt, Sergeant Ashmouni was at his usual spot on the median of the Nile Corniche, trapped by the road’s twin currents turbulently flowing forth to Maadi and back to Old Cairo. He was wiping the sweat away from his eyes with his worn out sleeve-and in the process adding a new stain to his white traffic-police uniform-when surprise from the thunderous impact catapulted him into the fast lane of the side of the road closest to the Nile."

Thus opens this fast-paced city thriller laced with dry humor that takes us inside Borg al-Saada-’Tower of Happiness,’ one of the luxury high-rises planted like alien bodies amid the fields along the Nile south of Cairo-and inside the sordid lives and lavish lifestyles of its super-rich and famous denizens. The naked, strangled body of Ahlam, a beautiful young actress, is discovered in one of the elevators, and as the police investigation gets under way, we meet many of the tower’s strange characters: the owner’s agent, Kasib Bey, overweight, toupeed, and decked in gold chains; wealthy contractor Abd al-Tawab Mabruk Basha (Tutu Basha to his friends), insomniac since Ahlam’s murder; Abd al-Malak, a psychic with a Ph.D. in genetic engineering from MIT; Farah, his erstwhile sweetheart, who has become one of the very candy dolls she used to scorn; belly-dancer Lula Hamdi, who would be able to see Timbuktu if she stood on top of a pile of all her money; Madame Esmeralda, the society lady from Chile; and the homely Dr. Mahgub, somewhat less well off than his neighbors. And of course there is Antar-the naughty boy-who roams the tower, enters apartments, and overhears conversations, unsettling and exposing the decadent occupants and their relationships.

Until 2008 Mohamed M. Tawfik served as Egyptian Ambassador to Australia and non-resident Ambassador to New Zealand, Samoa, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and the Marshall Islands.
He has published in Arabic three volumes of short stories, The White
Butterflies, Till the Break of Dawn and Agamyste. An English translation of
selected stories from all three volumes was published in Egypt in 1997
entitled The Day the Moon Fell. He is, perhaps, best known for his two
novels; A Night in the Life of Abdel-Tawab Tutu, and A Naughty Boy Called
Antar. Together, the two novels form an epic work that follows Egypt’s
political and social evolution across the twentieth century. Translated into
English by the author, A Naughty Boy Called Antar was published by the
American University in Cairo Press in December 2008 with the title Murder in
the Tower of Happiness.

"Du caviar dans les fraises", roman du diplomate français Bruno Clerc

2009-10-04T20:46:00.003+01:00

Bruno Clerc, diplomate de carrière français, vient de publier un livre intitulé "Du caviar dans les fraises", de façon d'un roman d'espionnage.
Ce livre, qui s'inspire de la connaissance que l'auteur a acquise lors de ses séjours à Rome, se situe au cœur du monde diplomatique et ecclésiastique romain quelques années après l'effondrement du communisme. Un certain esprit humoristique semble se mêler au caractère fantasque des personnages, notamment du héros, Archibald, ancien diplomate sud-africain et calviniste, devenu catholique, prêtre et français, musicien et aquarelliste.
Depuis la Renaissance, les gardes suisses portent une fraise autour du cou. Quoique très inconfortable, cette collerette de dentelle empesée a traversé les siècles. Peu après la chute du mur de Berlin, on imagine l'effroi des plus hautes autorités de la Sainte Église catholique, apostolique et romaine, en découvrant que ces fraises-là pourraient avoir été assaisonnées d'un peu de caviar par les services secrets russes.

Bruno Clerc, Du Caviar Dans les Fraises, Benevent, Paris, 2009, 290 p. (Euro 20,50)

Bruno Clerc est né en 1958 et a commencé sa carrière diplomatique en 1979. Pendant les premières années, il est attaché d'ambassade en Italie et attaché culturel à Vancouver. Ensuite il choisit de revenir à Rome et entrer au séminaire: il étudie au séminaire français et suit des études de philosophie et de théologie à l'université pontificale grégorienne. Après deux ans, en 1984, il réintègre le ministère des Affaires étrangères à Paris. En 1991, il part au Kenya, devenant représentant permanent adjoint de la France auprès des Nations Unies à Nairobi. En 1994, il est nommé à Genève, à la Mission permanente de la France auprès des Nations Unies. Après un nouveau séjour à Paris, il est nommé Consul de France au Cap en 2001, puis Premier conseiller d'ambassade à Budapest en 2005. Depuis août 2008, Bruno Clerc est de retour à Paris.

"Between terrorism and global governance" by Roberto Toscano

2009-09-12T09:08:00.002+01:00

Roberto Toscano, the Italian Ambassador in New Delhi, has just published a thought-provoking book titled "Between terrorism and global governance : essays on ethics, violence and international law".

Here is a short excerpt from the preface of the book:

"The first chapters of this book revisit, through essays devoted to thinkers in the field of poolitical philosophy (from Machiavelli to Huntington), the tension between ethics and politics, trying to suggest that ethics is intrinsically tied to politics, and that moral awareness and realism are not in contradiction insofar as we move beyond individual ethics and address the issue of responsibility toward society and especially the rights and interests of others.
The second main focus of this book is terrorism, the vile and despicable form of conflict that targets innocent civilians.Both for terrorism and for other transnational threats and crises, from the present downturn to global warming, the nation-state, though still primarily responsible, cannot conceivably be adequate to the task.
This is why ethics and realist politics point in the same
direction: that of the need to recognize duties toward those who are not our fellow citiziens as well as limitation to a sovereignty that, while legitimate, cannot be used against both legal and moral norms."

Roberto Toscano. Between terrorism and global governance:
essays on ethics, violence and international law, Har-Anand Publications, New Delhi, 2009, pp. 112, USD 11.20 (Rs 250)

The book is available at the online bookstore http://www.dkagencies.com/

-------------------
Roberto Toscano is the Italian Ambassador in New Delhi and previously was Ambassador in Teheran. In the diplomatic carreer since 1969, he directed for several years the activities of the Policy Planning unit of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He published several essays on the topics of human rights and of the ethics of international relationships. He taught International Relationships at LUISS University in Rome.
A complete list of his publications is available at http://www.robertotoscano.org

--------------
Stefano Baldi

Lorenzo Angeloni and the novel "In Darfur"

2009-07-24T20:38:00.003+01:00

The novel, inspired to the humanitarian emergency in Darfur, portrays the story of Giorgio Respighi, a United Nations civil servant. Sent in mission to Khartoum, as peacekeeping expert, he works to analyze the tragic humanitarian situation in the Western region of Sudan. Witnessing the harsh local conditions and the helplessness of the international community, Respighi will be exposed to an unprecedented bildung, leading him to take extraordinary and grave decisions. The war emerges as the background of the novel, in its double nature of the crude reality of the developing world, as well as the object of the progressive political thought aiming at its eradication.

Lorenzo Angeloni, born in Perugia in 1958, is an Italian diplomat who served as Ambassador of Italy in Khartoum, Sudan, from 2003 to 2007. The book supports, through its purchase, the hospital “Salaam Centre” managed by the NGO Emergency.

MARCO DAVI'

Book on the Italian Embassy in the Hague by Gaetano Cortese

2009-04-17T21:58:00.006+01:00

Gaetano Cortese, former Ambassador of Italy to the Netherlands, has published an illustrated book titled “The Embassy of Italy in the Hague (1907-2007)” dedicated to the historical Palace that hosts the Residence of the Italian Ambassador in the Hague. The book, which is available both in Italian and in Dutch, describes the history and main events of the Residence in the last century. The Book is filled with historical photos and prints that illustrate not only the beautiful building, but also the excellent relationship between Italy and the Netherlands which dates back to 1859.

Gaetano Cortese is also the author of another illustrated book on the Italian Embassy in Brussels, published in 2000 when he was Ambassador of Italy to Belgium.

Gaetano Cortese, L’Ambasciata d’Italia a l’Aia, Stabilimenti Tipografici Carlo Colombo, Roma, 2009. pp. 255. (Italian version)

De Ambassade van Italië in Den Haag (Dutch Version)

India in the XXI century

2009-03-23T09:12:00.004+01:00

Italian former Ambassador in New Delhi analizes nowadays India with a look to its past but mainly focusing on the future perspective of the country. Colonial legacy, political equilibria, contrast between countryside and cities, the role of political parties and media and inter religious relations are all topics examined by Ambassador Armellini who served in India from 2004 to 2008.

18 Ambassadress in Brussels

2009-03-07T19:57:00.003+01:00

The «Association Femmes d’Europe» in Brussels has published a book titled book "18 Ambassadrices vous reçoivent à Bruxelles".
In this book eighteen Ambassadress in Brussels virtually open the doors to their residences and share some unusual anecdotes about the history of these exceptional buildings. They reveal the intimacy of the Embassies and talk about their lives as wives of diplomats. From the Gala dinner to the informal luncheon with friends, the Ambassadress take the reader by the hand through the backstage of their receptions: décor, tables, menus and details on their personal recipes from around the world.
The volume presents eighteen of the most prestigious Embassies in Brussels such as France, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Unites States, Indonesia, Spain, Korea, Monaco and many others. It is fully illustrated with insight pictures by Eric Stinglhamber,
Of the 5 000 copies printed, more than 3 000 were sold on a subscription basis prior to publication. This project, like all other projects of the non-profit organization, is aimed at raising funds for those in need in Europe and the Third World.

Bibliographic Reference:
Association Femmes d’Europe, 18 Ambassadrices vous reçoivent à Bruxelles, Editions Laconti, Bruxelles, 2008, pp. 190 (ISBN 9782870080412)

Diari di Manlio Brosio a Washington

2008-12-05T13:30:00.003+01:00

Manlio Brosio (Torino, 10 luglio 1897-14 marzo 1980) ricoprì la carica di ambasciatore italiano negli Stati Uniti dal 1955 al 1961: oltre sei anni nei quali tenne un diario delle proprie giornate dense di impegni, incontri, impressioni e giudizi. Le sue pagine raccontano una stagione intensa da un punto di osservazione privilegiato. Uno sguardo in filigrana dalla capitale statunitense che permette di inserire le vicende italiane nel vivo del passaggio tra guerra fredda e distensione: la ricerca di uno spazio possibile per l'Italia costretta tra marginalità e ingerenza straniera, tra il rischio di rimanere esclusa dai circuiti decisionali e il pericolo di diventare terra di conquista per la superpotenza di riferimento.

Il volume di Washington dà inizio alla pubblicazione dei diari che Manlio Brosio ebbe l'abitudine di redigere nel corso della sua lunga e brillante carriera diplomatica: ambasciatore italiano a Mosca (1947-1951), Londra (1952-1954), Washington (1955-1961), Parigi (1961-1964) e segretario generale della NATO (1964-1971). Il piano generale dell'opera prevede l'edizione in quattro volumi di un'ampia selezione delle migliaia di pagine manoscritte.

Jacques Rial's Book on Publications of Swiss diplomats

2008-11-03T22:05:00.004+01:00

Jacques Rial, a retired Swiss diplomat, has published (in French) the book titled "Le Bicorne et la Plume: Les publications de diplomates suisses de 1848 à nos jours", which contains all data concerning publications of Swiss diplomats since 1848.

It is an extensive research that the author has conducted consulting catalogues of the main Swiss libraries and that has led to some surprising discoveries. For each author, Rial has provided a short biography of each author and the list of publications (both books and short essays). The book covers the editorial activities of 233 Swiss diplomats, with around 2000 bibliographical entries.

This book is included in the series "Diplomats as writers" by Diplofoundation. The first book has been "Through the Diplomatic Looking Glass", by S. Baldi and P. Baldocci, concerning books written by Italian diplomats.
Similar research has now been announced in other countries, especially in Latin America.

Jacques Rial was born in 1932 and Graduated in Literature in Geneva. From 1962-1967 he was a member of the UN Civil Operation in Congo. Rial enters the Swiss diplomacy in 1967 as head of Information in the Development Cooperation.
Secretary General of the Swiss Commission for UNESCO (1970-76). He has served in London and in The Hague. Ambassador in Yaoundé (1983), Montevideo (1988) and Zagreb (1992). Ambassador in charge for migration issues in Berne (1993).

Jacques Rial, Le Bicorne et la Plume: Les publications de diplomates suisses de 1848 à nos jours. (preface by Bénédict de Tscharner)
2008, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and DiploFoundation
Paperback, 240 pages. ISBN: 978-99932-53-19-8
Price: 20 Euros

For more information or to order this publication you can visit the Diplo Publications website:
(http://www.diplomacy.edu/Publications/display.asp?Topic=Books/LeBicorne)

Politica e diplomazia in Italia tra XIX e XX secolo. Vita di Antonino di San Giuliano (1952-1914)

2008-10-31T13:06:00.002+01:00

dal sito dell'editore:

Antonino di San Giuliano è in fondo un personaggio poco noto in Italia. Gli stessi storici hanno dedicato relativamente poche attenzioni alla vita e all’attività di questo statista siciliano.
Del resto, si è ritenuto che San Giuliano sia stato il mero esecutore di una politica estera voluta da altri: il re Vittorio Emanuele III e i diversi presidenti del Consiglio che si avvicendarono alla guida del paese all’inizio del Novecento, in particolare Giolitti. In realtà, pur restando nell’alveo di direttrici ben collaudate di politica estera, San Giuliano si assunse l’onere di importanti decisioni e dettò i tempi, anche a Giolitti, di rilevanti azioni: si pensi alla guerra di Libia. Fu poi San Giuliano che gettò le basi fondamentali del Patto di Londra, ovvero dello strumento diplomatico che conteneva le modalità secondo cui l’Italia sarebbe dovuta entrare nella prima guerra mondiale per uscirne da grande potenza. Egli lasciò a Salandra e Sonnino lo schema di un Patto che, a suo giudizio, avrebbe dovuto tendere però non tanto ad assicurare all’Italia vasti territori fuori dei suoi confini geografici, quanto piuttosto a darle la sicurezza di condurre una guerra la meno gravosa possibile. Questa biografia si propone dunque di far riscoprire a studiosi e appassionati di storia un personaggio complesso, che mosse i suoi primi passi nella politica locale a Catania, durante la seconda metà dell’Ottocento,e terminò la sua non lunga vita alla guida del ministero degli Esteri, quando l’Italia era tutta concentrata a sciogliere il dilemma se restare neutrale o intervenire nella Grande Guerra.

(2007) pp. 1016

ISBN: 978-88-498-1697-6

€. 45,00

"Turkey decoded" by the Swedish diplomat Ann Dismorr

2008-08-28T10:04:00.002+01:00

The Swedish diplomat Ann Dismorr has published an interesting book titled “Turkey Decoded” (Saqi Books, 2008, pp. 184). She was the Swedish Ambassador to Turkey from 2001 to 2005. In this period the prospect of EU membership helped Turkish governments to achieve substantial democratic reforms which led to the start of accession negotiations with Brussels in October 2005. In her book she examines the implications of Turkey's affiliation with Europe and its role in the Middle East against the broader concerns of the widening gap between the West and the Muslim world, terrorism, and the struggle for human rights and democratization.
The concluding sentences of the book seem to summarize its main argument: "President [Abdullah] Gül and the AK Party government face a historic challenge to demonstrate that Islam and democracy are compatible. Turkey has come a long way in proving that.… The EU is facing a historic choice of how to deal with Turkey -- the most liberal and well-developed democracy in the Muslim world of 1.2 billion people. The world is watching."

Ambassador Ann Dismorr is Head of the International Department of the Swedish Parliament. She has served as a diplomat with the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs for over 25 years. She was Ambassador of Sweden to Turkey from 2001-2005. She has also lived in Saudi Arabia and served as Ambassador of Sweden to Lebanon and Azerbaijan.
She was Private Secretary to the Swedish Foreign Minister in 1992-3 during the final stages of Sweden's EU accession.
From 1995-9 she was human rights expert at the Swedish mission to the UN.
She has an academic background in political science from Stockholm University, Gothenburg University and Yale University.

Gharekhan and "The Horseshoe Table"

2008-08-12T21:15:00.005+01:00

Chinmaya Gharekhan, former Permanent Representative of India to the UN is the author of the book 'The Horseshoe Table: An Inside View of the UN Security Council' (Pearson Longman, 2006, pp. 328). The book provides an inside view of the functioning of the United Nations Security Council which is a vital instrument at the service of the international community but over which the same international community has hardly any control. In this unique, unprecedented and intimate account, Chinmaya Gharekhan takes the reader through the meetings of the Security Council as it debated such issues as emergency situations during the first Gulf War; Iraq's WMD programme and the work of the special commission set up to eliminate them; the beginnings of the Oil-for-Food programme; the Balkan War of the early 1990s; the Rwanda Genocide, and the Lockerbie disaster involving Libya.

Chinmaya Gharekhan is a former Indian diplomat who served in Egypt, the Congo, Laos, Vietnam, and former Yugoslavia. He has has been posted several times to the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations. Later as Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office and the Specialised Agencies in Geneva, and lastly as India's Ambassador/Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York for over six years.

Book on Diplomacy as teamwork. Italy's experience with Amb. Fulci.

2008-07-26T18:03:00.005+01:00

There is probably only one book which contains contributions of 13 diplomats from the same country. It is the Italian book “Italy at the UN. 1993-1999. The years with Paolo Fulci. Diplomacy as a teamwork” (Rubbettino Editore, 2007), available only in Italian and edited by Ranieri Tallarigo (another Italian diplomat).
All the authors have been working with Ambassador Francesco Paolo Fulci while he was the Permanent Representative at the United Nations in New York. The five years described in the book have been very important for Italian diplomacy.
The contributions in the book, full of anecdotes and events, constitute an insider view of multilateral work. Multilateral diplomacy, like other diplomacies, is not an exact science. Nevertheless there are models and best practices that can be developed on the basis of experience. But an important element for success is leadership: from the writings of his collaborators it is clear that Ambassador Fulci was a leader who clearly indicated not only the objectives, but also the methods to achieve them.
Most of the collaborators of Ambassador Fulci are now Italian Ambassadors and it is most probable that they are still putting into practice all the teachings that they received during the Fulci’s years in New York.
The book could be considered a kind of handbook on leadership, teamwork and diplomacy based on a concrete experience in a multilateral diplomatic mission.

TALLARIGO, Ranieri (editor). L' Italia all'ONU 1993-1999. Gli anni con Paolo Fulci: quando la diplomazia fa gioco di squadra [Italy at the UN 1993-1999. The Years with Paolo Fulci. Diplomacy as a Teamwork], Rubbettino, Soveria Mannelli (Cz), 2007, pp. 112. (available at http://www.ibs.it)

Adrian de Hoog: Canadian diplomat and writer

2008-04-11T20:55:00.006+01:00

Adrian de Hoog, former Canadian diplomat with a thirty year career, has written two books: The Berlin Assignment (2006) and Borderless Deceit (2007).

His Novels

It is the turbulent Berlin of the early 1990s which provides the backdrop for de Hoog's first novel, The Berlin Assignment. It is a tale of political intrigue: not long after the fall of the Berlin Wall, with a new order in full swing, Canada’s new consul Anthony Hanbury arrives to assume his diplomatic duties. He quickly develops contacts, makes friends, and rises in Berlin society. But is his progress as innocent as it seems? Cold War spies still active in the city assemble a dossier, and the suspicions which accumulate soon threaten to destroy the consul.

Adrian de Hoog’s second novel, Borderless Deceit, is more international still. The intrigue spills effortlessly across borders; individual privacy is in short supply. A virus destroys the communication network of the Canadian diplomatic service. Implicated in the investigation are Carson Pryce, a reclusive, moody intelligence analyst, and Rachel Dunn, a brilliant diplomat with a glowing humanitarian track record. Carson for years has been secretly obsessed with Rachel and abuses his privileged access to intelligence information to keep track of Rachel and people around her. He knows things about Rachel which she doesn’t herself. The investigation into the virus deepens and Carson initiates a cover-up to prevent damage to Rachel’s reputation. As events begin to spiral out of control, both are suddenly forced to go into hiding. After separate, roundabout journeys they end up in an isolated villa in Costa Rica.

Adrian de Hoog was born in the Netherlands but he emigrated with his family to Canada (Brandon, Manitoba) in 1957.
He was educated in the universities of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Oxford and he obtained a D.Phil from the latter in 1974 (in the History and Philosophy of Science). That same year he joined the Canadian Foreign Service.
During his thirty year career working as a diplomat for Canada, he had postings in countries as varied as Kenya and Germany and at various stages of his career contributed to Canada's international interest by working on issues such as development assistance, nuclear non-proliferation, the global environment, and international economic topics pursued in for a such as the OECD and the G 7.
As Canada's Consul-General in Berlin shortly after the Berlin wall came down he witnessed the enormous social, political, economic and cultural changes sweeping over a city which was always restless and a center of change.
De Hoog retired from Foreign Service in 2004 and is now pursuing a career as writer. He lives in Ottawa.

http://www.adriandehoog.com

(Simona Gryllos)

Books written by Greek Diplomats

2008-03-27T23:10:00.003+01:00

In 2002 The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece has published a book (available only in Greek language) entitled: “Diplomacy and Authorship”.

For the first time the Ministry has put together a comprehensive catalogue of the books written by Greek diplomats, including those volumes that do not deal with diplomatic affairs.

The initiative came from Ambassador Adamantios Vasilakis when he was Head of the Centre for Analysis and Planning of the Ministry. Vasilakis not only took the initiative but also actively participated in the whole layout of the book.

In the book, diplomats are listed in alphabetical order; for each of them some basic biographical information and a photo are provided. This description is followed by a list of their writings classified by subject (International Relations, Law, Literature, History etc.).

Moreover, the comprehensive and well illustrated publication contains further useful data concerning Greek diplomats’ writings such as a list of the reprints, a list of awarded books and a useful list of abbreviations and acronyms.

Among famous Greek diplomat-writers included, one can find George Seferis (alias Georgios Seferiadis), who won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1963 for his lyric poetry.

The idea behind this book is similar to the one used in a recently published research (available in English language) by Diplofoundation and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs concerning books written by Italian diplomats (Through the Diplomatic Looking Glass -
http://baldi.diplomacy.edu/italy/diplomaticglass.htm).

A Catalogue of books written by Swiss diplomats is currently being compiled by Amb. Jacques Rial. The draft of this work is available at the webpage:
http://www.diplomacy.edu/Publications/display.asp?Topic=Writers-Swiss

Amedeo Guillet and his Private War

2008-03-10T21:50:00.007+01:00

The book by Vittorio Dan Segre entitled “La guerra privata del tenente Guillet. La resistenza italiana in Eritrea durante la seconda guerra mondiale” [The Private War of Tenent Guillet] (Tea, Milano, 1997) is an interesting biography of an Italian legend, military officer and diplomat, written by another eclectic figure, who parted his life between the Israeli diplomatic and intelligence services and the academic career.

The book (in Italian) is about the exceptional life of Amedeo Guillet, a former officer of the Italian Army. Descendant from a noble family from Piedmont, born in Piacenza in 1909, he graduated from the Academy of Infantry and Cavalry of Modena in 1930. An excellent horseman, Guillet was selected for the Italian Olympic equestrian team and was due to compete in the Berlin 1936 Olympics. Instead, he participated to the Italian conquest of Ethiopia in 1935 and volunteered during the Spanish Civil War, returning to East Africa in the aftermath if World War II.

During the war, Viceroy Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, gave Tenant Guillet command of the 2,500 strong Gruppo Bande Amhara, made up of recruits from throughout Italian East Africa. Guillet’s most important battle happened towards the end of January 1941 at Cherù when he decided to attack enemy armored units. At dawn he charged a column of tanks armed only with swords, guns and hand grenades. This was the last cavalry charge the British faced and one of the last in the history of cavalry.

After the Italian surrender in East Africa in 1941, Guillet began a private war against the British, faithful until death to the oath to the House of Savoy, with the nickname of “Devil Commander”. He was famous during the Italian guerrilla war in Ethiopia in 1942 because of his courage and ability to obtain the support of the local population - thanks to his knowledge of Arabic and Islamic civilization - in order to avoid being captured by the British Intelligence. Guillet was finally able to reach neutral Northern Yemen, where he trained soldiers and cavalrymen for the Imam’s army. He finally returned to Italy a few days before the armistice, embarking incognito on a Red Cross ship.

After Italy’s surrender, Guillet was promoted to Major for his war accomplishments and was assigned to the Military Intelligence. In this role, he worked closely with an official of the British services, Vittorio Dan Segre, who later became his close friend and biographer.

Following the war Guillet entered the Italian diplomatic service where he represented Italy in Egypt, Yemen, Jordan, Morocco, and finally as ambassador to India until 1975. In 1971, he was in Morocco during an assassination attempt on the King.

On 4 November 2000, the Italian Armed Forces Day, Guillet was presented with the Knight Grand Cross of the Military Order of Italy (the highest military decoration in Italy) by President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi.

Vittorio Dan Segre, born in Italy in 1922, emigrated to Palestine in 1938. He worked for the British Intelligence during WWII. He met Amedeo Guillet in Naples in 1944, after having read the intelligence files about the “Devil Commander” and the Italian guerrilla in Abyssinia. After a brief period in the diplomatic service of Israel, he pursued the academic career, teaching at the University of Haifa and then at Oxford University, MIT, and Stanford University.

(Marco Davi')

Emil Kazakov and Bulgarian Geopolitics

2008-02-24T09:10:00.009+01:00

The Bulgarian diplomat Emil Kazakov has recently published a book titled The Bulgarian Geopolitics in 20th Century: A National, European and Global View, Faber, 2007, 252 p. (The book is in Bulgarian); Preface by Prof. Beatrice Giblin.
It is an original study of the geopolitical permanencies (perceptions and material factors) that have shaped Bulgarian politics from the end of Ottoman rule in 1878 until the end of the post-communist period in 1997-2000.
The first part of the book is dedicated to the historical and geopolitical conditions that have contributed towards the formation of the individual identity of Bulgarian politics: the three wars in 1913, 1919 and 1947; the Macedonian Question and the formation of a territorial perception of national unity.
The second part investigates the specifics of contemporary Bulgarian politics "inherited" from the national geopolitical pattern. The third part concerns the different perceptions of the Bulgarian geopolitical position and their impact on the decision making process. The final part analyzes the influence of the global geopolitical ideas over Bulgaria's position as a NATO and EU member and defends the need of a pragmatic approach towards the formulation of Bulgarian politics.

Emil Kazakov has a PhD in geopolitics and is an expert in external relations. He was born in Varna, Bulgaria in 1960 and has been posted in Paris and he is currently at the Permanent Mission of Bulgaria to the European Union in Brussels.

Maynard Wayne Glitman, The last battle of the Cold War

2008-01-28T23:03:00.000+01:00

Providing a first-hand account of the bureaucratic and public struggles leading to the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty, the author focuses on debates among American negotiators, Europeans and Soviets. This is an important look at policy making and negotiations all the more relevant in an age of nuclear proliferation.
Ambassador Glitman played a central role in US INF policy and negotiations during the last decade of the Cold War. His record provides an invaluable account of the dramatic and pivotal developments in Washington, NATO, and Geneva, culminating in the unprecedented achievement of the INF Treaty in 1987, the first agreement in history to eliminate nuclear weapons. His book is an essential reading for anyone who seeks to learn the behind-the-scenes story of the hard work by dedicated diplomats. Part revealing memoir, part insightful diplomatic history, this is a remarkably thorough book highlighting the role and importance of disarmament and arms control negotiations.

Born in 1933, Mr. Glitman entered the Foreign Service in 1956. From 1956 to 1959, he was an economic officer in the Department of State and then was a fiscal and financial officer. An international relations officer in the Department of State until 1967, he was detailed to the United Nations General Assembly and to the National Security Council. From 1968 to 1973, he was a political officer in Paris. He returned to the Department of State to be Director of the Office of International Trade Policy and subsequently was a Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Trade Policy. He was then detailed to the Department of Defense, where he was Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, 1976 - 1977. From 1977 to 1981, he was deputy chief of mission at the United States Mission to NATO in Brussels. He was then appointed Department of State representative and deputy negotiator to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Negotiations, with the rank of Ambassador, in Geneva from 1981 to 1984. In 1984 Mr. Glitman was chief U.S. representative at the Mutual and Balanced Force Reduction (MBFR) Talks in Vienna. Since 1985 he has been the chief U.S. negotiator for Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces in Geneva. He was nominated U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Belgium, 1988-1991.

Maynard Wayne Glitman, The last battle of the Cold War: an inside account of negotiating the intermediate range nuclear force treaty, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2006.

(Marco Davi')

Rudolf Agstner and the history of Austrian Embassies

2008-01-11T23:13:00.002+01:00

The Austrian diplomat Rudolf Agstner, currently Ambassador in Addis Abeba, published several books on the history of Austrian embassies abroad such as for example on the embassies in Switzerland, in the United Kingdom and in Germany. On the embassy in Germany he published "130 Jahre Österreichische Botschaft Berlin. Von der Moltkestrasse zur Stauffenbergstrasse. Handbuch der Vertretungsbehörden von Österreich (-Ungarn) in Deutschland seit 1720" (Philo & Philo Fine Arts, 2003) [130 Years Austrain Embassy in Berlin. From the Moltkestrasse to the Stauffenbergstrasse. Handbook of the Representations of Austria (-Hungary) in Germany since 1720]. The book elaborates the Austro-German relations from a different angle, by narrating the history of the Austrian diplomatic and consular representation to Germany over the last centuries. It stretches from the embassy in the Palais Ratibor in the Moltkerstrasse which dates back to the times of the Habsburg Empire to the opening of the new Austrian embassy in the Stauffenbergstrasse in Berlin in 2001. The author describes the various Austrian embassies in Berlin, Bonn and
East-Berlin, and goes back to the 15 delegations, which were in Germany in the 19th century. He also refers to the times of famous Honorary Consuls such as Rothschild, Oppenheim or lemperer.
Rudolf Agstner is an Austrian diplomat. He entered the Austrian diplomatic service in 1977. He has served at the embassies in Paris, Brussels, Tripoli, Cairo and at the Permanent Representation at the UN in New York. He has also taught at the Institut für Zeitgeschichte [Institute for Contemporary History] of the University of Innsbruck. He has published 11 books and around 100 articles.

Robert Cooper and "The Breaking of Nations"

2007-12-28T23:04:00.000+01:00

Robert Cooper, The Breaking of Nations. Order and Chaos in the Twenty-first century, Atlantic Monthly Press, New York, 2003.

Albeit this is not a most recent publication, it nonetheless deserves to be considered for its sweeping interpretation of today’s global predicament. In this small book of essays Robert Cooper argues that two revolutionary forces are transforming international relations: the breakdown of state control over violence, reflected in the growing ability of tiny private groups to wield weapons of mass destruction, and the rise of a stable, peaceful order in Europe that is not based on either the balance of power or the sovereignty of independent states. In this scheme, the Westphalian system of nation-states and power politics is being undermined on both sides: by a postmodern Europe and a premodern world of failed states and post-imperial chaos. Furthermore, Cooper explores how the West should cope with the encroachment of premodern violence. The American approach to such threats is hegemonic. The European Union, meanwhile, aims to expand outward to absorb threatening societies on its periphery. In Cooper’s view, neither approach is sustainable, and he seeks a synthesis that would allow the United States and Europe to confront threats together over the long haul.

Robert Francis Cooper was a British diplomat until 2002 when he assumed the role of Director-General of the Directorate-General E - External Economic Relations, Politico-Military Affairs at the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union.
Born in 1947, he joined the Diplomatic Service of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1970. As a diplomat, he has worked at various British Embassies abroad, notably those in Tokyo and Bonn. At the Foreign Office, he was Head of the Policy Planning Staff from 1989 to 1993. He was the UK’s Special Representative in Afghanistan until mid-2002. Since 2007 he has been a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations.

In 2004, Cooper was awarded the Orwell Prize for The Breaking of Nations.

(Marco Davi')

French Diplomat Defarges' s book on geopolitics

2007-12-16T20:43:00.000+01:00

The French diplomat Philippe Moreau Defarges has published Introduction à la géopolitique (Collection, Points du Seuil, 2nd ed., 2005). As the title already reveals the aim of the book is to introduce the reader to geopolitical thinking. The author provides clear definitions and historical examples, which demonstrate the importance of geopolitics. Moreau Defarges offers an introduction to the geopolitical dimension of the great international issues such as war, international trade or international organisations. The book outlines the importance of geopolitical reasoning, the close link between spatial and political realities and how the geopolitical reality determines inequalities between states, which cannot be ignored.

Philippe Moreau Defarges, Minister Plenipotentiary, is also the co-director of the RAMSES report at the Institut français des relations internationals (IFRI) and professor at Science-Po. He is the author of several publications on international relations and geopolitical issues. These publications include Relations Internationales, Tome 1: Questions Régionales (Poche, 2003), Relations Internationales, Tome 2: Questions Mondiales (Poche, 2007) and Les Institutions Européennes (Broché, 2005).

Valija diplomatica – Books published by Spanish Diplomats

2007-12-01T19:53:00.000+01:00

Spain has a specific series of books exclusively dedicated to titles published whose author is a Spanish diplomat. The series is called “La valija diplomatica” [diplomatic bag] by Editorial Dossoles of Burgos (http://www.dossoles.es/). The series is directed by Amb. Alonso Álvarez de Toledo and includes some twenty titles written by different Spanish diplomats.
The books vary form International Affairs (Viaje Real a Grecia by Javier Jiménez-Ugarte) to Memoirs (Episodios de un Diplomático by Jaime de Piniés y Rubio), from Novels (La Cumbre by Jorge Fuentes) to Poetry (Rimas en claro. Primera Antología de Poetas Diplomáticos (s.XX)), from Culture (La Magia del Teatro by Enrique Llovet) to history (Las Depuraciones de la Carrera Diplomática Española
(1931-1980) by José Luis Pérez Ruiz).
This series is published under the auspices of the Association of Spanish Diplomats (ADE) which supports it through specific subscriptions of its members.
More titles of books published by Spanish diplomats are also available on the site of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Spain (Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de Cooperacción) at the page:
http://www.mae.es/es/MenuPpal/Actualidad/Publicaciones+de+la+D.G.C.E/bibliografia_diplomatica1.htm

Book on Peacebuilding by the Italian diplomat Alberto Cutillo

2007-11-19T12:58:00.000+01:00

The Italian Diplomat Alberto Cutillo has published an interesting and original book (in English) on Peacebuilding with the title: “Reviewing Fifteen Years of Peacebuilding. Past, Present and Future of International Assistance to Countries Emerging from Conflicts and Italy's Contribution”.
The book traces the evolution of Peacebuilding activities since the early 1990s and sheds light in those areas thatrequire further attention. In spite of the considerable efforts and resources invested in years of practice,Peacebuilding activities throughout the 1990s were undertaken by a multitude of actors in absence of an overall political strategy. The main challenges of Peacebuilding are therefore not due to lack of knowledge or lessons learned;instead, they are due to the failure to produce a commonly agreed doctrine and to translate it into meaningful guidelines on the ground. The book further argues that although progress is being made, the United Nations system and donor agencies have failed thus far to address satisfactorily three main gaps: political leadership,strategic coordination and a comprehensive mechanism.

Note that a Free Online PDF version of the book is available at: http://www.ssi.unitn.it/working_papers/index.htm

Bibliographic data:
Cutillo Alberto, Reviewing Fifteen Years of Peacebuilding.Past, Present and Future of International Assistance toCountries Emerging from Conflicts and Italy's Contribution,Universita' di Trento, Scuola di Studi Internazionali,Working Paper 01/2007, Trento, 2007, pp.139

The European Union and the Western Balkans

2007-11-13T12:18:00.000+01:00

Luca Gori, Italian diplomat, is the author of a book on the European Union policies towards the Western Balkans countries in the years 1996 - 2007. Gori who has served at the Italian EU mission in Bruxelles analizes the action taken by the Union and its efforts to integrate the region in the European framework. A very interesting book for anyone who also wants to understand the current situation.

The book is available at: http://www.libreriauniversitaria.it/

Book on French Diplomat Paul Morand

2007-11-11T19:22:00.001+01:00

A young Italian diplomat, Cesare Bieller, has recently published a book (in Italian) on the famous French Diplomat Paul Morand.

Paul Morand ( 1888 - 1976) was a French diplomat who excelled in writing novels. His books were noted in the Twenties for their elegant and concise narrative style, and for the author's insightful observations of the many countries he visited. Morand's reputation has been marred by his political stance during the Second War War, when he collaborated with the Vichy Regime. After the war he lived in exile in Switzerland and wrote more profound texts.

Paul Morand's books, be they his travel narratives or his moralistic works, are extraordinarily relevant today. Cesare Bieller reveals to us a few of the many facets of this modern and contradictory writer who loved Italy so much that he named his Memoirs, "Venices". It is a journey into the universe of a writer who, although misunderstood during his lifetime, remains compelling to this day.

Here are the bibliographic data:
Bieller Cesare, Paul Morand. Giorno e notte, Liaison editrice, Courmayeur, 2007, pp.79.
The book is available at http://www.ibs.it

Intercultural Communication between Greeks and Italiana

2007-11-05T13:30:00.002+01:00

Fabrizio Lobasso, Italian diplomat and former Consul in Athens, is the author with two researchers from University Ca' Foscari of Venice of an interesting book on intercultural communication between Italians and Greeks.

The book is addressed to professionals working in the fields of business, tourism and culture.

The project has been financed by the Italian Foreign Ministry.

Book on Asian Diplomacy by Kishan Rana

2007-11-03T23:28:00.000+01:00

The last book published by a former Indian diplomat, Kishan Rana, is titled "Asian diplomacies. The foreign ministries of China, Japan, Singapore & Thailand" (Diplo, 2007, pp.246).
The book contains information and unique data on the structures, operation and the working style of the foreign ministries of the five key countries in Asia, mentioned in the title. The book offers a comparative examination of the performance of these foreign ministries together with new insight into the countries covered, as also for its examination of the cultural dimension of the diplomatic process.
A brief quote from the Introduction: "World Affairs are more fluid than before and therefore demand greater attention. Diplomacy is globalised. One consequence is that almost all foreign ministries are reorganizing themselves, and fine tuning their diplomatic machinery to deliver improved performance. Such MFA adaptation-transformation-reform is a recurring theme in this study."
Further information on the book and order form for the book are available at the page http://www.diplomacy.edu/Books/publications.asp

Storie diplomatiche brevi e leggere di Ranieri Tallarigo

2007-09-25T08:43:00.000+01:00

Segnalo la recente pubblicazione delle memorie dell'Ambasciatore Ranieri TALLARIGO, Storie Diplomatiche, (pagg 112, euro 12) edito dalla casa editrice Rubbettino nell'ambito della collana Studi diplomatici. Una carrellata di ricordi, non sempre legati a grandi avvenimenti, che narrano la vita di un diplomatico.

F. Springer: Dutch diplomat and writer

2007-04-29T21:12:00.000+01:00

The Dutch Diplomat Carel Jan Schneider has published several novels under the pseudonym of F. Springer. He has been posted in New Guinea, New York, Bangkok, Brussels, Dhaka and Tehran. He was the Netherlands ambassador to Angola and the former GDR

He was born in 1932 in Batavia (today Jakarta) in the former Dutch East Indies.

His stories are often located in places where he has served. This is the case, for example, of Teheran, een zwanezang (Teheran, A Swan Song, 1991), considered as one of his best novels.

His book Bougainville, which has been translated in many languages, is the story of a diplomat confronted with the psychological effects of his old friend's death. The bookhas received the Ferdinand Bordewijk award in 1982. He has also received the Constantijn Huygens award for his entire work in 1995

Where diplomacy meets art

2007-02-24T22:22:00.000+01:00

Ugo Colombo Sacco di Albiano, an Italian diplomat, has published an interesting and original book on the history of the buildings that have housed the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Using the words of the author "For the first time, this book presents to the eyes of the general public the interiors of the state receptions rooms in the successive historical buildings of the mother house of Italian diplomacy: Palazzo delle Segreterie di Stato in Turin; Palazzo Vecchio in Florence; Palazzo della Consulta, Palazzo Chigi, the Farnesina, and Villa Madama in Rome."

The book is in Italian, but an illustrated brochure of the book in English can be consulted here.

Discorso ai volontari diplomatici del 1932

2007-01-27T22:48:00.000+01:00

Come era la carriera diplomatica negli anni trenta? E quali erano le aspettative del Capo del governo nei confronti dei giovani diplomatici? Leggendo il discorso pronunciato da Benito Mussolini, Capo del Governo, ai volontari diplomatici del 1932, si notera' che molti dei principi sono validi ancora oggi.

La violenza, Le regole - Un nuovo libro di Roberto Toscano

2006-08-03T18:18:00.000+01:00

Dopo il bellissimo libro "Il volto del nemico" (Guerini, 2000), Roberto Toscano torna a rivisitare i principi che regolano la politica internazionale e che sono alla base della convivenza pacifica con il suo volume "La violenza, le regole" (Einaudi, 2006). Ancor una volta ci troviamo di fronte ad un libro che non fornisce tutte le risposte, ma stimola il lettore a pensare al di fuori degli schemi. La violenza ed il terrorismo sono i temi che vengono analizzati nel libro. Il quadro che si profila e' inquietante, ma non per questo l'autore si lascia andare ad un facile catastrofismo. Vengono invece evidenziati e sottolineati tutti quei passi in avanti (come la Corte Penale internazionale) che, seppur faticosamente e con qualche incertezza, la comunita' internazionale e' riuscita a compiere negli anni recenti.

Nuovo libro di Maurizio Serra

2006-06-17T20:49:00.000+01:00

E' stato pubblicato per le Edizioni Settecamini, il nuovo libro di Maurizio Serra dal titolo "Fratelli separati. Drieu-Aragon-Malraux". Il libro ripercorre le vicende dei tre intellettuali francesi. Drieu, letterato borghese che l’odio per la borghesia trasformò in fascista romantico e autodistruttivo. Aragon, l’avanguardista approdato al comunismo e tornato in tarda età all’ispirazione libertaria. Malraux, il rivoluzionario divenuto campione e ministro dell’ordine conservatore, ma rimasto fino all’ultimo avventuriero e mitomane.

La Caduta dello Scia'. Diario dell'Ambasciatore italiano a Teheran (1978-1980)

2006-01-17T03:58:00.000+01:00

Giulio Tamagnini è stato Ambasciatore d'Italia a Teheran dall'otto gennaio 1978 al 30 giugno 1980. Egli ha quindi assistito non solamente alla caduta del regime dello Scia` di Persia, ma anche allo scoppio della rivoluzione, al ritorno dell'Ayatollah Khomeini, alla nascita della Repubblica islamica ed, infine, alla triste vicenda della cattura dell'ambasciata americana e della presa in ostaggio del personale diplomatico. Come chiarisce lo stesso autore nella sua introduzione, nel libro egli si astiene da ogni giudizio sulla Repubblica islamica che ha visto nascere e vuole fornire solamente una testimonianza del difficile travaglio con cui la Repubblica islamica è venuta alla luce. Il diario è quindi molto sintetico e fattuale. Non cerca di spiegare gli eventi, ma di raccontare come furono vissuti dal punto di vista dell'Ambasciatore d'Italia e della numerosissima comunità italiana residente in Iran. Per quanto scritto dunque con il distacco che si conviene ad un diplomatico che cerca sempre di mantenere sangue freddo e lucidità anche nei frangenti più difficili, per il lettore il racconto di quei drammatici avvenimenti risulta assai vivace ed emozionante.

Dalla lettura emerge in primo luogo come la diplomazia
italiana avesse per tempo espresso tutti e riserve sulla
tenuta del regime dello Scia` a causa dei suoi evidenti limiti
di autoritarismo, mancanza di democrazia, sbagliata politica
ed economica ed insufficiente rispetto per i diritti umani.

La velocità con cui il regime crollò risultò tuttavia
sorprendente ed il diario dell'Ambasciatore descrive quindi
tutto il lavoro diplomatico di difesa degli interessi e dei
cittadini italiani. Prima della rivoluzione vivevano in Iran
circa 15,000 italiani impegnati in grandi opere
infrastrutturali come, ad esempio, il porto di Bandar Abbas o
la diga di Lar (Damavand). L'integrazione di questa
consistente comunità con la popolazione iraniana era ottima e
rivelava anzi una forte affinità culturale e simpatia tra i
due popoli. Forse anche per questo capitale di reciproca
simpatia, la comunità italiana fu coinvolta solo marginalmente
negli scontri prodotti dalla rivoluzione. La rivoluzione
provocò comunque l'arresto delle attività economiche, enormi
difficoltà contrattuali, vari incidenti ed infiniti interventi
di tutela consolare dei nostri concittadini. Quando la vita
quotidiana cominciò a farsi veramente difficile, l'Ambasciata
iniziò a consigliare il rientro delle famiglie in Italia e la
comunità fu progressivamente fatta evacuata. Inizialmente
bastò aumentare la capacità degli ordinari voli Alitalia, ma
con lo scoppio della rivoluzione vera è propria, l'evacuazione
fu condotta dalla centrale operativa allestita in Ambasciata
grazie ai C 130 dell'Aeronautica Militare Italiana, operanti
dal Kuwait e dalla Turchia sotto il coordinamento dell' allora
Colonnello Arpino (il futuro comandante italiano
nell'operazione Desert Strom per la liberazione del Kuwait nel
1991).

Il diario dell'Ambasciatore rende quindi conto di tutto il
lavorio diplomatico teso alla liberazione degli ostaggi
americani catturati nella presa dell'Ambasciata statunitense
il quattro novembre 1979. Mentre il precedente attacco degli
"studenti" iraniani all'Ambasciata americana (quello del 14
febbraio 1979) emerge dal diario direttamente dal racconto
dell'Ambasciatore americano Sullivan, l'occupazione di
novembre ed il fermo dell'incaricato d'affari americano
Laingen al Ministero degli Esteri viene ricostruito a poco a
poco dai diplomatici dei vari Paesi in servizio a Teheran. Il
primo gennaio 1980 l'Italia assume la presidenza di turno di
quella che era ancora la comunità economica europea "a nove" e
l'Ambasciatore Tamagnini si quindi trova a compiere in prima
persona numerosi passi e colloqui con gli interlocutori
iraniani: i vari ministri degli esteri via via succedutisi
(Yadzi, Bani Sadr, Ghotbzadeh). Più volte convocato a Roma per
consultazioni, nel suo diario Tamagnini riferisce dei vari
colloqui con il Presidente della Repubblica Pertini, con i
Presidenti del Consiglio Andreotti e Cossiga, con i Ministri
degli Esteri Forlani, Ruffini e Colombo nonche`con una serie
di colleghi diplomatici destinati a carriere prestigiose e
brillanti. Dalle pagine del diario tra i collaboratori di
Tamagnini a Teheran spuntano i nomi di Bondioli Osio - futuro
Ambasciatore in Qatar, capo dell'Ufficio per il recupero delle
opere d'arte italiane rubate nel mondo e recentemente
responsabile per il recupero del museo archeologico di
Baghdad, dopo la caduta di Saddam Hussein - e De Ceglie
-futuro Ambasciatore in Pakistan e presso le Nazioni Unite a
Vienna-. Tra gli interlocutori a Roma: Renato Ruggiero -
futuro Segretario Generale e Ministro degli Esteri -, un
giovane Giuseppe Baldocci - futuro Ambasciatore a Teheran e
Segretario Generale-, Umberto Vattani - futuro Ambasciatore a
Bonn ed a Bruxelles, nonche` anche lui Segretario Generale -
ecc..

Benche` Tamagnini tenga a dire di non voler dare valutazioni
politiche, dai diari emerge comunque un'indicazione che appare
oggi in parte profetica. Egli scrive infatti che, a fronte
delle difficoltà non solo politiche, ma anche culturali nei
rapporti tra Iran e Stati Uniti e` "ai paesi europei, ed in
particolare all'Italia" che "compete un ruolo in a difesa e
nell'interesse dell'Occidente in un Paese come l'Iran". Sono
parole scritte nel 1979 in piena rivoluzione e pubblicate nel
1990, quando il " dialogo di civiltà" promosso dal Presidente
Khatami era ancora ben al di là da venire. Queste parole
restano infondo valide ancora oggi nonostante il fatto che -
chiusa ormai l'era Khatami - i problemi contingenti sembrano
ancora una volta impedire ogni possibile visione di lungo
periodo.

Dati bibliografici:
TAMAGNINI Giulio, La caduta dello Scià. Diario dell'Ambasciatore italiano a Teheran (1978-1980), Edizioni associate, Roma, 1990, pp. 270

Ricordo dell'ambasciatore Pasquale Diana

2005-10-20T03:12:00.000+01:00

L'inaugurazione dell'Antenna napoletana del Circolo di studi diplomatici, affidata all'ambasciatore Michelangelo Pisani Massamormile, è stata l'occasione per ricordare la figura di Pasquale Diana. L'ambasciatore napoletano, scomparso nel 1970, è un tassello importante per comprendere i rapporti tra lo Stato italiano e lo Stato vaticano tra il 1946 e il 1948, biennio in cui egli prestò servizio presso la Santa Sede e nel quale venne discussa e approvata la nuova Costituzione italiana (da RadioRadicale.it - Roberta Jannuzzi) .....continua
Sono disponibili anche i filmati dell'incontro che si e' tenuto l'11 ottobre 2005.

Libro di Alessandro Cortese de Bosis

2005-10-19T04:05:00.000+01:00

Il libro curato dal diplomatico Alessandro Cortese de Bosis dal titolo Lauro de Bosis. Storia della mia morte. Il volo antifascista su Roma, (Mancosu Editore, Roma, 1995, pp.125) puo' essere scaricato gratuitamente sul sito di liber liber.

Ecco una breve descrizione del libro tratta da un articolo di Leo Valiani pubblicato su ”Il Corriere della Sera” del 15.7.95.

"La sera del 3 ottobre 1931 un piccolo aereo scese repentinamente da duemila a trecento metri sopra Roma e inondò la capitale di 80 chili di manifestini antifascisti, per scomparire con altrettanta velocità. L'autore del messaggio, che ebbe molta eco nella stampa del mondo libero, era un giovane poeta, Lauro de Bosis. La sua gloriosa e tragica vicenda è stata sovente commemorata, soprattutto dopo la Liberazione. Suo nipote, Alessandro Cortese de Bosis, ha fatto molto bene a raccogliere alcune delle più significative ricostruzioni del sacrificio di colui che va onorato come uno dei massimi eroi dell’antifascismo."

Romain Gary, writer and diplomat, (1914-1980)

2005-09-13T04:06:00.000+01:00

Romain Gary was in the French diplomatic service for about 20 years (1945 – 1961), he was been posted in Bulgaria, in Switzerland, briefly in Bolivia and finally was the French Consul in Los Angeles (1956-60).

He was one of France's most popular and prolific writers, authoring more than thirty novels, essays and memoirs, some of which he wrote under the pseudonym of Émile Ajar. Gary also wrote one novel under the pseudonym of Fosco Sinibaldi and another as Shatan Bogat.

Gary, who wrote his works both in French and in English, is the only person to win the Prix Goncourt twice. This prize for French language literature may only be awarded once to any given author. Romain Gary, who had already received the prize in 1956 for Les racines du ciel, published La vie devant soi under the pseudonym of Émile Ajar in 1975. The Academie Goncourt awarded the prize to the author of this book, without knowing his real identity. Gary's cousin Paul Pavlowitch posed as the author for a time. Gary later revealed the truth in his posthumous book Vie et mort d'Émile Ajar.
Many of his books have been adapted for the cinema. Clair de femme (Womanlight, 1979) directed by Costa-Gavras, with Yves Montand and Romy Schneider as main characters, and La vie devant soi (Madame Rosa, 1977) directed by Moshe Mizrahi, who won the Academy Award as best foreign language film with Simone Signoret in the role of Madame Rosa, who won the César as best actress.
He has directed several films, such as Kill! (1971) and Les Oiseaux vont mourir au Pérou, (Birds Come to Die in Peru, 1968)
Romain Gary, suffering from depression, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on December 2, 1980 in Paris, France.

Collana di studi diplomatici

2005-05-29T20:07:00.000+01:00

Il circolo Studi Diplomatici promuove una collana di libri dedicata a diplomatici italiani, pubblicati dalla casa editrice Rubbettino.
Il curatore della Collana e' l'Amb. Luigi Vittorio Ferraris.
Finora (maggio 2005) sono stati pubblicati 3 volumi:
- Francesco Corrias, Un diplomatico italiano del '900 - l'Ambasciatore Angelino Corrias, 2003
- Franco de Courten, Diario d'Algeria (1996-1998), 2003
- Giuliano Borzoni, Biografia dell'Ambasciatore Renato Prunas, 2004

Altri volumi sono in preparazione fra cui un libro dell'Amb. Alberto Tarchiani.

Libri sull'Italia

2005-02-27T01:33:00.001+01:00

Alcuni libri scritti da diplomatici italiani sono stati dedicati all'Italia. Nella maggior parte dei casi si tratta di volumi pubblicati in una lingua diversa dall'italiano, visto che l'intento era soprattutto quello di contribuire ad un migliore conoscenza del nostro Paese. Fra questi Italy (Berna, 1956) di Gerardo Zampaglione e Italie (Editions du Suil, 1979) di Sergio Romano. Sempre di quest'ultimo autore anche la guida Toscane, Florence (Seuil, 1988) che propone al viaggiatore o al turista una originale serie di percorsi nella regione dell'Italia centrale, cosi' ricca di arte e di storia. Anche Giovanni Jannuzzi ha pubblicato un libro dal titolo Breve storia d'Italia (Letemendia, 2006) pubblicato sia in italiano che in spagnolo.

Libro sull'Ambasciata d'Italia a Berlino

2005-01-29T04:41:00.000+01:00

E' stato appena pubblicato un nuovo libro dedicato alla nuova Ambasciata d'Italia a Berlino inaugurata nel 2003. Si tratta di un edificio che ha una storia travagliata alle spalle. L'Amb. Silvio Fagiolo ha curato il libro L'Ambasciata d'Italia a Berlino, Nicolai, Berlino, 2005, pp.96. Questa la descrizione fornita nel risvolto di copertina:
"Poco prima dell'inizio della Seconda Guerra Mondiale, nella parte occidentale del Tiergarten inizio` la costruzione di una nuova sede per l'Ambasciata d'Italia. I lavori erano appena terminati e l'Ambasciatore non si era ancora trasferito nell'edificio, quando, alla fine del 1943, questo fu gravemente danneggiato dai bombardamenti alleati. Nel dopoguerra, il palazzo rimase in gran parte inaccessibile e abbandonato ad un lento degrado. L'inaugurazione ufficiale dell'Ambasciata e' stata possibile solo 65 anni dopo la posa della prima pietra. Questo libro ora solleva il velo di mistero che avvolgeva il leggendario edificio ai margini del Tiergarten ed offre uno sguardo esclusivo sui saloni dell'Ambasciata, ristrutturati in uno stile elegante e moderno, illustra in modo competente la lunga storia dei lavori di costruzione e presenta nel dettaglio il prezioso arredamento interno e la storia della sua raccolta e del suo restauro. Gli articoli redatti da competenti architetti e storici dell'arte sono accompagnati da eccellenti fotografie a colori. Un volume informativo su un "caso" di storia dell'architettura che fornisce, nel contempo, un contributo importante alla storia della citta' di Berlino."
Il libro puo' essere acquistato attraverso il sito dell'editore:
http://www.nicolai-verlag.de

Il Ministero degli Esteri nell'immediato dopoguerra

2005-01-15T07:31:00.000+01:00

Il libro “Il Ministero degli Affari Esteri al servizio del popolo italiano. 1943-1949” (Roma, 1949, pp. 718) pubblicato dal Ministero degli Affari Esteri contiene numerosi dati sulla struttura e sul funzionamento del Ministero degli Affari Esteri alla fine della seconda guerra mondiale e nell’immediato dopoguerra. ben curata la parte seconda dove oltre alla preziose informazioni sull'amministrazione esteri in quel periodo sono riportate notizie storiche sintetiche sulle sedi centrali del Ministero e sulle principali rappresentanze diplomatiche all'estero. Il volume fu voluto e curato dal sottosegretario, Giuseppe Brusasca che ricoprì più volte tale incarico tra il 1946 ed il 1951.

Diplomatici immaginari (ma forse non tanto)

2004-12-17T12:33:00.000+01:00

Segnalo per gli amanti della fiction-diplomacy il libro di Osvaldo Soriano 'La resa del leone' edito da Einaudi (pp. 235, Einaudi Tascabili Narr. str.-ISBN 8806137034 euro 7,23) che parla di un console argentino accreditato in un Paese africano immaginario e della sua relazione d'amore con la moglie dell'ambasciatore britannico nei giorni della guerra delle Falklands/Malvinas. Dissacratorio al punto giusto, chissa' che Soriano non abbia raccontato la storia di un vero diplomatico?????
Dalla quarta di copertina:
"In un improbabile stato africano un ancora più improbabile console argentino viene coinvolto in uno strampalato e irresistibile intrigo internazionale. Nei giorni della guerra anglo-argentina per le Falkand-Malvinas, la relazione del console con la moglie dell'ambasciatore inglese sembra, per una serie di equivoci, al centro delle ostilità fra i due paesi. Una sarabanda di personaggi folli anima l'ultimo spicchio di guerra fredda nel Terzo Mondo: un leader nero marxista-rivoluzionario con uno speciale talento per la roulette; un profugo argentino scambiato per una spia, sempre scacciato da ogni luogo; un sultano arabo che lavora per Gheddafi, ubriaco di whisky pseudo-analcolico; un terrorista irlandese che passa il tempo a preparare ordigni esplosivi e a spacciare denaro goffamente falso; nonché scimmioni animati dei ricevimenti d'ambasciata, una Rolls Royce col motore di una Lada... Un caotico punto d'incontro fra vecchi e nuovi mondi, fra grandi utopie e grande cinismo, cambiamenti e restaurazioni, in cui sono ben combinati la comicità di un film chapliniano, l'ironia di una commedia sofisticata e la malinconia di un tango argentino."

Il processo

2004-12-17T12:29:00.000+01:00

Per gli amanti di Medio Oriente segnalo il libro di uri Savir, principale negoziatore israeliano ad Oslo con Peres. questa e' la recensione disponibile su Amazon:

Process, The : 1,100 Days That Changed the Middle East
by URI SAVIR

The director-general of Israel's Foreign Ministry, who also served as his nation's chief representative in the secret negotiations that led to the Oslo peace accord between Israel and the PLO, offers his insider's account of how the historic agreement came about.
"I believe," Savir writes at the fiftieth anniversary of his homeland's founding, "that for all it has achieved, the Oslo process is the true test of [Israel's] maturity as a strong modern nation able to coexist with former enemies." It was also a test of the ability of Israelis to coexist amongst themselves; Savir brings a valuable perspective on the rivalry between Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin (and how it affected their efforts to unite Israel for peace) and the efforts of opposition leaders to thwart settlement. He takes us throught the peace process step by step, explaining precisely what was achieved to ensure, in the words of his negotiating partner, Palestinian Council leader Abu Ala, they could give "the next generation... a life different from the one we had known."

Diplomazia e musica: il diplomatico cantautore

2004-12-14T03:27:00.000+01:00

Un diplomatico italiano, Fabrizio Lobasso, ha recentemente inciso con una casa discografica cilena un CD dal titolo "sette per sette". Il quotidiano "Il Mattino" ha scritto: "Arriva, invece, direttamente dal Cile «Sette per sette» del cantautore-diplomatico Fabrizio Lobasso, alla ricerca di una nuova canzone napoletana in cui al fianco dei mandolini si schierano accordeon francesi, flauti inglesi e percussioni latine. Almeno due i brani che colpiscono: «Linguadoca», che racconta l’amore tra uno scugnizzo doc e una guagliona occitana, e «Benares» che vira invece verso sonorità più tradizionalmente e veracemente folk."

Diplomatici italiani artisti

2004-12-12T19:08:00.000+01:00

Non mancano fra i diplomatici italiani alcuni esempi di diplomatici impegnati nelle arti figurative, in particolare la pittura. Fra questi va segnalato Franco de Courten che ha da sempre conciliato, con successo, la sua carriera diplomatica con la passione per la pittura. Nel suo sito personale http://www.francodecourten.it sono disponibili le foto di alcune opere dell’autore oltre a brevi note biografiche. Franco de Courten ha anche pubblicato un libro insieme a Paolo Sabbatini Rancidoro dal titolo Incantesimi (Editalia) che comprende 49 opere illustrate con tecnica mista ed ispirate dagli incantesimi del mondo antico. Questa e' la breve descrizione del libro fornita dall'editore:
"Un autentico libro d'arte, ispirato dagli Incantesimi del mondo antico interpretati e adattati con levità alla realtà attuale. Quarantanove tavole eseguite "a quattro mani", illustrate con inchiostri colorati, oli, pastelli, vernici metalliche e foglia d'oro, accuratamente riprodotte in lito-serigrafia e racchiuse in un prezioso volume. Gli autori, Franco de Courten e Paolo Sabbatini Rancidoro, hanno composto un vero e proprio "Corpus" di incantesimi perfettamente aderenti alla tradizione. Sette capitoli, tanti quanti sono i corpi celesti influenti; sette opere per ciascun capitolo, ognuna delle quali contenente le "parole magiche" e quei simboli e quei sigilli che magnificano il potere."

Libri fotografici sulle Missioni diplomatiche italiane

2004-11-28T00:38:00.000+01:00

Sono stati pubblicati diversi libri che riguardano le residenze degli Ambasciatori o altri Palazzi di rilievo all'estero di proprietà dello Stato italiano utilizzati per ospitare le nostre Missioni diplomatiche.
Nella maggior parte dei casi si tratta di libri con numerose fotografie ed un testo - spesso sia in italiano che in inglese - soprattutto dedicato alla storia degli edifici. Sono libri stampati in tirature abbastanza limitate in edizioni fuori commercio e quindi difficilmente reperibili. Tra i volumi che appartengono a questa categoria che sono stati curati da diplomatici, si possono ricordare quello di Gaetano Cortese, L'ambasciata d'Italia a Bruxelles, 2000, pp.93 e quello di Pasquale Baldocci, La Residenza dell'Ambasciatore d'Italia in Tanzania, 1993, pp.50.

"Diario Sahariano" - Nuovo libro dell'Ambasciatore Claudio Pacifico

2004-11-21T16:24:00.000+01:00

L'Ambasciatore Claudio Pacifico ha appena pubblicato un nuovo libro dal titolo "Diario Sahariano" (Editore " W.I.C.S " : novembre 2004 ).
Questa e' la breve scheda descrittiva che volentieri condivido con tutti i lettori del blog.
"Il diario di un lungo e " lontano " viaggio sahariano , compiuto circa trent'anni fà a cammello insieme a un gruppo di guide Tuareg lungo le piste delle "azalay " , le mitiche carovane di sale, diventa anche il diario di un pellegrinaggio nella dimensione mistica e spirituale del Deserto , e di un'esplorazione alla scoperta della storia e delle civiltà del Sahara.
Riprendendo i testi dei grandi viaggiatori e storici arabi , oggi quasi dimenticati in Occidente , Al Bakri , Al Idrisi , Ibn Khaldoun, ' Abulfeda ' , Ibn Battuta , Al Kati , Al Yaqubi , Al Sa'adi, Al Wazzan El Zayaty noto in Europa come ' Leone l'Africano', l'autore ripercorre la storia turbolenta e grandiosa dei secoli di grandezza e splendore del Sahara, con i grandi Regni Sahariani e gli opulenti Imperi Neri del 'Bilad-as-Sudan': gli Imperi del Ghanah e
del Mali , del Soso e di Askia , degli Almoravidi e dei Songhai. E , dalle pieghe di un remoto passato , riemerge l'epica di mitici condottieri e sfarzosi sovrani : Okba Ibn Nafi ; Abu Bakr e Yusuf Ibn Tachfin ; Sumanguru Kante ' Il Turbine ' e Sun Dyata 'Il Leone del Mali' ; Kanku Musa e Sonni Ali ; Askya Muhammad 'Il Grande'.
Dai racconti dei suoi compagni Tuareg e soprattutto dell'amico indimenticato, Ali Mohamed Alyoù , " maestro di cultura Tuareg e "di vita del deserto " , emerge il mondo arcaico e dimenticato, con i suoi codici d'onore e di cavalleria, con i suoi poemi immortali, con la sua intensa spiritualità , delle antiche civiltà del Sahara.
E il lungo viaggio nel " mare " sconfinato del deserto , nell' "oceano dove non pesca il remo " , diventa , poco a poco , un cammino nei misteri della propria interiorità , un viaggio alla ricerca di se stessi."

The memoirs of Richard Gardner, US ambassador to Rome from 1977 to 1981

2004-11-08T02:21:00.000+01:00

Richard Gardner, former US Ambassador to Italy from 1977 to 1981, has published his memoirs under the title "Mission Italy: Gli anni di piombo raccontati dall'ambasciatore americano a Roma 1977-1981" by Mondadori.
Giulio Andreotti has published an interesting review (available also in English) of the book http://www.30giorni.it/us/articolo_stampa.asp?id=4356

Who are diplomats?

2004-11-06T05:26:00.000+01:00

Ivo Andric, Nobel Prize for literature in 1961, served as a diplomat until 1941.
Here is an excerpt form his definition of diplomats:

"They are people of sound but straightforward intelligence, people of simplified and limited sensitivity and a cool heart, but not without heart or any sensitivity; capable of deception, but not closed and mysterious, still less underhand; strong, but not rough; quick and decisive, but not hasty or impulsive; realistic, sober, but not dry and dull.
They need to know a certain amount, but there should be no trace of erudition or pedantry in what they know, and their knowledge should agreeably surprise and perhaps impress those with whom they are speaking, but never embarrass, offend or shame them.
It is the same with their courage: they need to have it, and it should be sound and reliable, but they should display it only in extreme circumstances and bear it as they bear arms which everyone knows they have, but are never seen.
They must also have imagination, but only in a certain degree, enough for a man to see every issue from every point of view and with all its possibilities and immediate consequences; anything more than that is both dangerous for them and damaging to the work they are doing."

The full text of Andric's note on diplomats has been published in:
Jovan Kurbalija, Knowledge and diplomacy, Diplopublishing, Malta, 1999
http://www.diplomacy.edu/Books/knowledge/Default.htm

Diplomats as litterateurs

2004-11-05T04:05:00.000+01:00

Shashi Taroor is Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information of the United Nations and has published several important books.
In an article published on the Indian newspaper "The Hindu" he mentions not only diplomats who won Nobel Prizes (Neruda, Paz, Saint-John Perse, Claudel)but also less known examples of literary diplomacy in Africa and India.
http://www.shashitharoor.com/articles/hindu/diplomats.php

Recensione libro Beltrame "La prima guerra del Golfo "

2004-10-26T03:37:00.000+01:00

Dalla recensione del libro di Stefano Beltrame: "La prima guerra del Golfo - Perché non fu presa Baghdad" pubblicata sul corriere.it:
"Beltrame, diplomatico di carriera, già autore di "Storia del Kuwait - Gli Arabi, il petrolio, l'Occidente", a dodici anni di distanza mette sotto la lente una guerra giudicata «tra le meno viste», da diverse angolature, in particolare dal versante dei paesi arabi, la storia dei quali è semisconosciuta all'opinione pubblica e affidata ai media......"
http://www.corriere.it/Rubriche/Libri/2004/09_Settembre/27/libri.shtml

Building Diplomacy

2004-10-25T02:27:00.000+01:00

Elizabeth Gill Lui has just published a book on the Architecture of US Missions abroad.
Here is the book description provided by Amazon.Com:
"Embassy architecture and design ranges from the humble to the stately, from the practical to the grand. Building Diplomacy is the first comprehensive photographic portrait of the official face of American diplomacy around the world. Elizabeth Gill Lui traveled to fifty countries to photograph American embassies, chanceries, and ambassadors’ residences. This record of her journey includes approximately five hundred artful and eloquent interior and exterior views shot by Lui with a large-format camera. Keya Keita, Lui’s daughter and partner on the project, shot a live-action documentary of embassies and the cultural milieu of each nation Lui and Keita visited. The text includes an essay by Jane Loeffler detailing the history of the U.S. Department of State’s building program......"
See also the article published on the New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/24/arts/design/24ande.html

Ultima fatica letteraria dell'ex ambasciatore russo in Italia, Nikolaj Spasskij

2004-10-24T00:38:00.000+01:00

Nikolaj Spasskij
Le reliquie di San Cirillo, Rizzoli, Milano, 2004, pp.191, € 15,50

Si tratta del secondo libro, pubblicato in italiano, dell'ex Ambasciatore russo in Italia. Il primo dal titolo "Il Bizantino" era stato pubblicato nel 2002 da Mondadori.

Questa una sintesi della trama de "Le reliquie di San Cirillo"(da Internetbookshop Italia):
Roma, autunno 1991. L'ambasciatore russo in Italia, Fëdor Tregubin, deve affrontare la fine dell'Unione Sovietica: ormai è un anticomunista, ma non si rassegna al crollo dell'impero. All'improvviso gli sembra che la vita non abbia più senso, e decide di suicidarsi. Prima, però, vuole portare a termine un progetto lungamente accarezzato: far rinascere la Russia dalle sue ceneri attraverso il ricongiungimento tra la Chiesa cattolica e quella ortodossa, organizzando un viaggio del Papa a Mosca e soprattutto recuperando le reliquie di San Cirillo, l'evangelizzatore del mondo slavo. Ma mentre il progetto prende piede, Tregubin si rende conto di essere una pedina di un gioco molto più grande e con scopi del tutto diversi rispetto ai suoi...

Pietro Quaroni sul funzionamento della macchina diplomatica

2004-10-22T04:40:00.000+01:00

In una sua forma ideale, la macchina dovrebbe funzionare cosi'. Il Ministro fa sapere agli ambasciatori interessati quello che egli desidererebbe fare od ottenere: gli ambasciatori gli fanno presente quello che ritengono possibile fare od ottenere - non bisognerebbe mai dimenticare l'aurea definizione di Talleyrand: "la diplomazia e' l'arte del possibile" - e sulla base di queste informazioni il Ministro prende le sue decisioni che la diplomazia eseguisce.

in Pietro Quaroni (con Del Bo, Guidi, Serra, Zagari), Inchiesta sulla politica estera italiana, Lerici Editore, Roma, 1970, pp. 93-94.

Citazioni di diplomatici

2004-10-21T04:01:00.000+01:00

Daniele Vare'
Una delle citazioni di diplomatici italiani piu' utilizzate nei siti web e' di Daniele Vare':
"Diplomacy is the art of letting someone have your way"
Non compare, pero', in nessun sito da quale dei numerosi libri scritti da Vare', tale citazione sia tratta.

Nuovi autori

2004-10-20T03:48:00.000+01:00

Mi e' appena stato segnalato un nuovo autore diplomatico.
Si tratta di Ferdinando Mor che ha lasciato la carriera nel 1986 con il grado di Ministro di I classe.
Il suo ultimo incarico e' stato di Ambasciatore ad Harare (Zimbabwe).

La penna del diplomatico - blog

2004-10-16T23:02:00.000+01:00

Nel settembre 2004 e' stato pubblicato il libro La penna del diplomatico, una ricerca su tutti i libri scritti dai diplomatici italiani dal dopoguerra ad oggi.
Questo blog e' a disposizione di tutti coloro che desiderano segnalare libri scritti da diplomatici italiani o fornire ulteriori informazioni sugli autori considerati dalla ricerca.