THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | DECEMBER 2024 27 world. ASIRT’s country reports on road safety are the gold standard. Rochelle has worked with members of Congress to highlight global road safety issues; there is now a bipartisan Road Safety Caucus on Capitol Hill. ASIRT continues to work closely with State to get information about road safety to employees and their families serving overseas. I am delighted that AFSA has formed a partnership with ASIRT. Past AFSA President Eric Rubin recognized the need, and current President Tom Yazdgerdi has energetically taken on this important cause. AFSA’s recent member survey showed that road safety is an important issue for the organization. AFSA members and their families know firsthand the deep personal loss that comes from road crashes. The Journal has played an important role in keeping our community informed and organized. I am honored to support Rochelle and ASIRT. Making roads safer for drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists is a classic case of “it does not have to be this way.” Radically reducing the deaths and injuries caused by road crashes is about better education and awareness, road safety technologies, enforcement, and making road safety a priority and not just a talking point. FSJ: You wrote a novel, Believers: Love and Death in Tehran, with former AFSA President Ambassador John Limbert. What was that experience like? During the Istanbul Conference for Afghanistan at the Ciragan Palace in Istanbul on Nov. 1, 2011, Turkish President Abdullah Gul (right) met with American officials. From left: Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Marc Grossman, U.S. Ambassador to Türkiye Francis J. Ricciardone Jr., and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William J. Burns. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
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