Letter from the Editor

BY SHAWN DORMAN

This edition comes to you in the midst of a government shutdown that has left many of our readers either furloughed or working without pay. And that is on top of the thousands who have been pushed out of the Service in recent months, and many others who remain, fearing for their jobs. These are not normal times, and we are right to worry about the survival of the professional, nonpartisan Foreign Service.

After a year of disruption, we head into the colder months and the holiday season looking to our communities for comfort and warmth. In that spirit, we bring you the 24th annual celebration of writing and publishing by members of the Foreign Service community.

The “In Their Own Write” books edition is always a favorite for the FSJ team to put together, as we get to explore and highlight the perspectives and creativity of this unique community of world travelers.

Among the 52 selections, you’ll find books on policy and diplomatic history, as well as memoirs and guidebooks. And in the “Of Related Interest” section, you’ll find 16 books by non-FS authors on topics relevant to diplomacy and development professionals.

Part holiday gift guide, part diplomacy time capsule, this collection is a reminder of the intellectual richness within the Service. In a companion article, “In Their Own Words,” retired FSO David K. Wessel discusses writing with four FS family member authors, tracing how the life of a “trailing spouse” can become creative fuel.

I hope you will find inspiration in this collection for your own writing and publishing.

This month’s cover story, “Dayton Peace Accords at 30,” revisits the November 1995 peace agreement that ended the Bosnian War. For this anniversary, the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST) put together an extensive collection of oral histories relating to the efforts to bring stability to the Western Balkans. The selections here were compiled by Fran Leskovar, manager for the ADST project.

In “The End of CSO: Don’t Let Stabilization Expertise Go,” John H. Mongan reflects on the shuttering of the State Department’s Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, arguing that diplomatic conflict capacity must not vanish in the bureaucratic reorganization.

And FSO John Harris offers a lighter meditation on adaptation and perspective gained from commuting in Vietnam, in “Scooter Wisdom: Life Lessons from the Streets of Saigon.”

In a review essay of Scott Anderson’s new book on the Iranian Revolution, King of Kings, Ambassador John Limbert applauds the work of career diplomats who, “despite threats to their careers and their lives, insisted on providing the most accurate information and the best advice possible from the field to decision-makers in Washington without regard to partisan politics of the winds of political fashion.”

A fifth installment of “Service Disrupted” stories includes insider accounts of how current events are disrupting the critical work done by Foreign Service members. In FS Heritage, Sébastien Perrot-Minnot recounts “The Life and Tragic Fate of a Young U.S. Consul” in Guadeloupe. And the Education Supplement includes a piece on returning to U.S. schools from overseas.

Ambassador Tom Boyatt offers an Appreciation of Ambassador William Harrop, “A Hero of Our Time,” who led the way for AFSA to become a union in 1972. And in the Reflection, Don Hausrath remembers the diplomat, historian, and writer Kenneth Wimmel.

Taken together, all these pieces underline the enduring strengths of diplomats on the ground—judgment, improvisation, courage, and humility.

To those who have recently left the Foreign Service through retirement, “the fork,” a RIF, or the elimination of your agency or office, thank you for your years of service. Please stay connected; you’ll always be part of the FS community.

Know that you have an open invitation to write for the FSJ as you begin your next chapter. Tell your story and help ensure that there is a record of the critical work you have done in public service.

Please take a look at our 2026 Calendar (https://afsa.org/fsj-editorial-calendar) and check out the FSJ Author Guidelines (https://afsa.org/fsj-author-guidelines). Send your suggestions, pitches, and submissions to journal@afsa.org.