The Foreign Service Journal, September 2011

20 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 of the department, enhancing the ability of the Foreign Service to function effectively. Given the need to address our huge budget deficit, this task will be increasingly challenging; but I believe she will do the best she can. Embassies have become much more secure over the past decade, but at what cost? The department is increasingly moving its embassies, once fairly open facilities in downtown cen- ters, to suburban locations in fortress-like buildings that do not represent the open society that is the United States. Due mainly to budgetary pressures, but also for security reasons, the department is closing its American Informa- tion Centers or moving them into far less accessible chanceries. These measures have undoubtedly saved lives (as in Yemen last year), but we do pay a price for them in terms of effectiveness. Harry Sullivan FSO Consulate Nagoya Looking Forward After joining the Foreign Service in 1996, my first tour was in Cairo. The activities of the “Blind Sheik,” the mas- termind behind the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, were very much at the forefront of every consular offi- cer’s mind. So, too, was the importance of security advi- sory opinions and Consular Lookout and Support System hits, as well as the front-line responsibility of holding a consular commission and making decisions on visa cases every day. As I reflect on my diplomatic career, which ended in 2004, and my time in the private sector working closely with State, I see a Foreign Service that has evolved into a stronger organization. This is largely due to a renewed emphasis on the contributions of our country’s diplomats — the perspectives, insights and expertise they bring to bear to help solve complex issues around the world. Getting to this place has not been easy. In the imme- diate wake of 9/11, and other crises throughout history, hindsight made it easy to imagine how events might have evolved differently. Yet rather than only looking back to re- think processes and procedures, the Foreign Service has remained true to its mission and continued to look for- ward — reaffirming its commit- ment to develop and foster a unique cadre of experts. Our organization has also as- signed increasing value to authen- tic interagency collaboration and smart power, reaching beyond whole-of-government resources to include the insights and perspec- tives of civil society, the private sector and nongovern- mental organizations. This has been driven both by an appreciation of how the respective insights and per- spectives of each can inform a more holistic under- standing of global issues and transnational threats, as well as a recognition of a budget environment in which all must do more with less. As a result, the Foreign Service has enhanced its abil- ity to continue building relationships and bridges to ef- fectively inform and influence around the world, and to implement U.S. national security policy and foreign pol- icy interests. Cheryl Steele FSO, retired Senior Associate Booz Allen Hamilton An Outpouring of Support On Sept. 6, 2001, I arrived in Ottawa after completing a tour at the Office of the High Representative in Sarajevo, which at the time was one of our highest-threat posts. Like many others serving outside the U.S. on 9/11, I still remem- ber the helpless feeling of not knowing what was going on. The next day was full of all those tasks one does after ar- riving at post. I was alone because our four children were in college or living on their own and my wife, Martha, was still in the States with our cat and dog. So I stayed at work until it was almost dark on Sept. 12, then exited through the employee entrance, which has a view of the entire fence line facing Sussex Drive. I was immediately struck by themany flowers, notes, and stuffed animals Canadians had left on our fence as an ex- pression of their grief and solidarity with their American cousins. The riot of flowers and other expressions grew in number as the days progressed, but that first night was par- ticularly moving as I slowly walked the line, reading mes- sages of sympathy and hope while my emotions welled up. C OVER S TORY Nearing irrelevance, State almost appears to be a minor subsidiary of the Department of Defense.