The Foreign Service Journal, May 2007

the embassies and town meetings and so forth — I say it in this building and to anyone who will listen to me — is: ‘Be prepared … to spend more time in more diffi- cult posts with higher differen- tials, including perhaps those with danger pay. There may be in store for you in your career more family separation; and for tandem cou- ples, there may be more times in a career where you have to serve apart.’” That’s the long and short of it, Staples says, because the fundamental nature of what it means to be in the Foreign Service is changing. More posts are located in the developing world, often far from embassies, in countries where political violence is the norm. In that challenging atmosphere, Foreign Service personnel are leading an effort Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice calls “transformational diplomacy,” that is all about bringing democracy and economic development to parts of the world with little or no experience of them. To do so, they will have to be jacks- (and jills-) of-all- trades, experts in development and proficient in media relations. As Staples puts it, they need to be eager to speak at the chamber of commerce over lunch, but then in the afternoon go talk to kids. It is, he freely acknowledges, a big change from the stereotypical image of the diplomat as information-gatherer and as liaison, simply and only, to a foreign government. Yet even as Staples defines the role as a new one, he recalls the proud history of the Foreign Service officers who served in World War II and, more recently, in Beirut and other hot spots, where unaccompanied posts and extreme danger were the norm. It’s as if to say, this isn’t the first time the Foreign Service officer has done his patriotic duty in a time of war and it won’t be the last. The wartime diplomat’s role, in reality, is not new at all. In line with that mandate, Rice has made it clear that officers will have to serve in hardship assignments if they want to advance to the Senior Foreign Service. A December 2006 memo from the director general’s office made it plain that review boards are being encouraged to “weigh positively creditable and exemplary perfor- mance at hardship and danger posts because of the unique and challenging work environment, including service in areas of widespread warfare with U.S. combat troops.” Although the American For- eign Service Association agreed to that change to the promotion precepts, it has reminded the director general of the importance of “preserving the fairness and integrity of a promotion system based on how well an employee performs, not on where an employee is assigned.” AFSA also expressed concerns about the potential of this new language to bias the selection boards in favor of someone, for example, doing mediocre work in Baghdad over someone doing brilliant work in London, Cairo or Beijing. The association also warned that it might adversely affect strong performers who do not happen to be in a position at this point in their lives to take on such tasks, such as employees with young chil- dren. Staples insists that service in Iraq, Afghanistan and other critical-needs countries does not ensure a pro- motion in and of itself. Exemplary work performance remains the most important criterion. “A lot of people think, ‘My last year of service in Iraq or Afghanistan is going to get me promoted.’ It hasn’t happened that way.” Nevertheless, many in the Foreign Service say the stronger push to serve in such places and make greater personal sacrifices conveys a mixed, and unfair, mes- sage. Those who have done their jobs well in other parts of the world, but are not able to volunteer for positions in unaccompanied and danger-pay posts (whether for family, health or other reasons), should not have to fear that their careers will suffer as a result. Toward an Expeditionary Force Staples is an articulate voice and advocate for the diplomatic corps. A longtime officer himself, with a long history of working in the toughest spots in the world — from El Salvador as a young junior officer to his more recent trips to Iraq — he knows what it’s like to serve his country where the stakes are highest. As F O C U S M A Y 2 0 0 7 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 21 Shawn Zeller, a regular contributor to the Journal , is a senior staff writer for Congressional Quarterly. The Bush administration has made it clear that it views the military as the ideal in government service.