Foreign Service: Five Decades on the Frontlines of Diplomacy

A behind the scenes look at 50 years of US diplomacy.

From Vietnam in the 1960s to the Afghanistan of this decade, James Dobbins was on the frontline of American diplomacy and working to advance U.S. national interests in some of the world’s most difficult and troubled situations.

In Foreign Service, Dobbins takes the reader behind the scenes at the Vietnam peace talks, the darkest dates of the Cold War, the reunification of Germany, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the U.S. military interventions in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Haiti, Kosovo, and Somalia. He provides a thoughtful insider’s account of all these ventures, analyzes the sources of both success and failure, and provides incisive portraits of many of the chief actors.

Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama turned repeatedly to Dobbins as a diplomatic trouble-shooter with the right instincts and experience to help find creative solutions for seemingly irresolvable problems. Now readers can benefit from his insights, learning that, while specific situations in world affairs are different, the basic principles and techniques for defending U.S. interests on the global stage remain constant.