The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2015

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JULY-AUGUST 2015 5 July-August 2015 Volume 92, No. 6 FOREIGN SERVICE AFSA NEWS Assignment Restrictions / 69 VPVoice State – Farewell / 70 VPVoice USAID – Government Change? / 71 VPVoice FAS – Formula for Success? / 72 2015 QDDR: DetailsWanted / 72 VPVoice Retiree – The Big Issue / 73 Foreign Affairs Day Turns 50 / 74 2015 AFSAAwardWinners / 75 PEC: Speaking Truth to Power / 76 USAID Honors Fallen Hero / 76 2015 Merit AwardWinners / 77 AFSASponsors State Interns / 80 On the Hill: Workforce Diversity / 81 Thousands Join Online Discussion Board / 81 Sammie Finalists / 82 AFSAWebsite Gets a Facelift / 82 Scholarship Fund Grows / 84 VietnamTribute Reunites, Raises FS Profile / 84 2015-2017 Governing Board Election Results / 86 COLUMNS President’s Views / 7 The Country Team BY ROBERT J . S I LVERMAN Letter from the Editor / 9 Diplomacy: The State of the Profession BY SHAWN DORMAN Speaking Out / 18 America Needs a Professional Foreign Service BY CHARLES A. RAY Reflections / 101 The End of the British Empire in Aden BY KATE CARR DEPARTMENTS Letters / 10 Talking Points / 13 In Memory / 87 Books / 91 Local Lens / 102 MARKETPLACE Classifieds / 93 Real Estate / 96 Index to Advertisers / 100 Cover photos: Oath by Maria C. Livingston; Moving van by Eileen Malloy. FOCUS ON DIPLOMACY: THE PROFESSION American Diplomacy at Risk: A Report from the American Academy of Diplomacy / 22 The Foreign Service is being deliberately undermined, a new AAD report warns. The Academy offers 23 recommendations to reverse the threat to American diplomacy. BY RONALD E . NEUMANN The State of the Foreign Service: Continuing the Conversation / 29 AFSA members discuss the AAD report. The Diplomatic Academy: A First for Britain’s Foreign Office / 37 In a quest to become the “best diplomatic service in the world,” the U.K. establishes an education and training facility. BY JON DAV I ES Five Things You Should Know about the QDDR / 41 A participant in developing the 2015 Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review summarizes its highlights for skeptics. BY CHR I S DEGNAN George Kennan On Diplomacy As a Profession / 46 In 1961, the legendary diplomat talked with his colleagues at AFSA about the profession of diplomacy. FEATURES Uncovering the Lessons of Vietnam / 52 Efforts in 1975 to capture the lessons of Vietnam as a guide to future policy died in the National Security Council with the seizure of the SS Mayaguez . BY STEPHEN RANDOLPH “LESSONS LEARNED” FROM STATE / 54 THE KISSINGER MEMO / 58 Surviving Al-Jazeera and Other Public Calamities / 61 Deconstructing the uproar over a controversial Al-Jazeera interview, the author offers insight into the challenges of public diplomacy. BY ALBERTO M . F ERNANDEZ FS KNOW-HOW The Big Downsizing: Retirement Lessons / 65 Here are some pointers on the retirement transition from a member of the Foreign Service who’s been there recently. BY E I L EEN MAL LOY