The Foreign Service Journal, June 2010

J U N E 2 0 1 0 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 7 Apples and Oranges I appreciate Susan Johnson’s re- quest in her January President’s Views column (“The State-USAID Relation- ship: Measure Twice, Cut Once”) for recommendations on how the Depart- ment of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development might work together more efficiently. I served with USAID from 1966 until 1994, in Afghanistan, Rwanda and Zambia. Back in Washington, I was also the USAID AFSA vice president twice, in the 1970s and again in the 1990s. When we talk about development and diplomacy we also need to include defense, because security is vital in hot spots like Iraq and Afghanistan. The three agencies have specific roles to play— the Department of Defense for security, State for diplomacy and USAID for development. Defense, State and USAID should remain separate and distinct. Coordi- nation is crucial to be sure, but we’re talking about apples, oranges and tur- nips. The missions and roles of each or- ganization are different. Recruiting is also different and should remain that way. USAID should be looking for specific develop- ment and program skills, not diplo- matic talents. Development strategies should be set by USAID in consultation with State and, when appropriate, DOD. When territory is relatively safe, it should be USAID that takes the lead when it comes to development imple- mentation. Turf always looms large, but with a new administrator in place, per- haps now is the time to set things right. John A. Patterson USAID FSO Minister Counselor, retired North Kingstown, R.I. Blatant Bias I just received the April issue of the Foreign Service Journal and was shock- ed by the evident bias toward the For- eign Service shown in the article “Re- membering Those We Have Lost.” Most of the piece was devoted to Vic- toria DeLong, whose family clearly merits our thoughts and prayers. But your failure even to name the locally engaged staff who died, never mind noting their contributions over the years, is shameful. Also, I’m sure there was much more to be said about Mrs. Wyllie and her contributions. The article perpetuates the stereo- type of AFSA being a group that only cares about Foreign Service officers. Our other colleagues and the family members who died deserve better. Judith Kaufmann FSO, retired Arlington, Va. A Terrific Issue I just finished the March Journal and must congratulate you on a terrific issue. It was nice to see TomBuchanan spread some common sense through his Speaking Out column (“A Real Reset Button for U.S.-Russian Rela- tions”). And the focus section articles by CharlieDuelfer (“Achieving Closure on Iraq’s Prewar WMD”) and Chas Freeman (“The Middle East: Forks in the Way Forward”) were gems. I really think both of the latter should receive wider exposure, and would encourage you to invite other journals to reprint them. The Foreign Service Journal deserves the recogni- tion of other media. Dean Howells FSO, retired Kittery Point, Maine What Might Have Been It may have been easier to achieve closure on Iraq’s prewar weapons of mass destruction if Charlie Duelfer’s revelation in his March FSJ article that there were no weapons of mass de- struction in Iraq had denied President George W. Bush a second term in of- fice. Charlie Duelfer spent almost two years in Iraq looking for WMD, and survived an attack that killed two of his bodyguards. He made his report to Congress in September 2004, in the midst of the presidential campaign and at a time when the war had gone sour. Yet a January 2005 New York Times editorial stated that 40 percent of Americans still believed there were WMD in Iraq. That same monthMark L ETTERS