The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2007

60 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J U LY- A U G U S T 2 0 0 7 eijing, one of our nation’s most critical missions, is in special need of a consis- tent means of secure delivery of diplo- matic pouches. However, the People’s Republic of China forbids diplomatic couriers from coming planeside to secure the transfer of classified materi- al from the cargo hold to cleared Americans. The only way to comply with that restriction on air transport would be to purchase three seats for each couri- er: one for the traveler, the other two for the pouches. But that obviously isn’t a viable option given the amount of classified material involved and the expense. Instead, staff from the Seoul Regional Diplomatic Courier Hub periodically fly to Hong Kong and take a 24- hour, 1,400-mile train journey north through the heart of the country to Beijing aboard what author Paul Theroux famously called “the Iron Rooster.” (See p. 62.) These trips are a lifeline for the embassy and its constituent posts. The Chinese restrictions on diplomatic pouches are strictly enforced: no single piece can weigh over 100 kilo- grams or exceed a cubic meter in size, and no single load of classified material can weigh over 1,000 kilograms. Customs and immigration officials in Beijing await the diplomatic couriers with a scale and measuring tape. (Because no passenger stops take place between Hong Kong and the Chinese capital, the Beijing West station is the nation’s frontier.) If any of these restrictions are vio- lated, the pouches must remain at the station with cleared American guards for 48 hours until the international train returns to Hong Kong. The Journey Begins Just departing Kowloon Station with 45 heavy classified pouches is no easy task. They are first off-loaded onto carts and pushed into the crowded terminal, then squeezed through narrow train doors and along tight cor- ridors before being jammed into four bed compartments. With one bed left free for the accompanying diplomatic courier, the other three beds are tightly packed with four large bags apiece, with one large pouch under a fold-down table and two stacked atop it, blocking most of the view out the window. A normal classified load requires three diplomatic couriers in neighboring compartments, spelling each other for bathroom breaks or visits to the dining car. While the scenery out the windows is certain- DS R IDES THE I RON R OOSTER T O DELIVER DIPLOMATIC POUCHES SECURELY WHILE COMPLYING WITH C HINESE RESTRICTIONS , STAFF FROM THE S EOUL R EGIONAL D IPLOMATIC C OURIER H UB TRAVEL BY TRAIN TO B EIJING . B B Y J AMES B. A NGELL James B. Angell, a diplomatic courier officer, is the officer-in- charge of the Seoul Regional Diplomatic Courier Hub. Since joining the Foreign Service in 1993, he has served in Frankfurt, Bangkok (twice) and Washington, D.C. The views expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of State or the U.S. government.