Category: Uncategorized

The New York Times reports that President Trump declared on Tuesday while meeting with Netanyahu that Palestinians had no choice but to leave Gaza because of the devastation wrought by Israel’s war with Hamas. He indicated that they could move to Egypt or Jordan, who do not want them. If…

Trump agreed to postpone tariffs on Mexico when Mexico promised to send 10,000 troops to the US border, according to Bloomberg. Unfortuately the Mexican military has been corrupted by the drug culture, according to NPR. Trump may have made a bad deal with Scheinbaum.

New York Times’ David Brooks on how Trump will fail.

The Washingtn Po s The Washington Post is concerned about the fact that Trump is shortcircuiting the security clearance process for some of his new cabinet appointees. Trunp’s mishandling of classified data at his home in Mar a Lago showed he cannot be trusted with secret information. s

According to Just Security, US diplomats warned of possible trouble in the country of Georgia in light of the recent election turmoil. They said: Former U.S. national security officials and Georgia experts have been alarmed by the recently escalating repression of freedom of speech and assembly in Georgia and the…

The Wall Street Journal reports that Brazil and China used the G-20 meeting in Rio de Janiero to move closer together. The article said: As Xi Jinping prepares for a thorny trade relationship with President-elect Donald Trump, he is cultivating a rapport with someone he calls a like-minded good friend, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio…

Wall Street Journal columnist Mary O’Grady says the G-20 meeting in Rio de Janiero illustrates Brazil’s problems. She says: Brazil has long yearned to replace the U.S. as the regional hegemon on the South American continent. But seizing that role requires moral authority and economic heft. Lula is squandering both.…

The Carneige Institute interviewed Brazilian President Lula’s long-time foreign policy adviser< Celso Amorim, who served as Lula’s foreign minister in his first term. When I was science officer at the American embassy in Brazil, Amorim was the foreign ministry’s adviser to the science ministry. Amorim was not a fan of…

Secretary of State Blinken has appointed Amb. Steve Mull to lead the transition activities preparing for the Trump administration, according to Reuters. Steve and I served together in Warsaw, Poland, where he was the political counselor and I was the Science Counselor.

John Limbert was one of the American diplomats held hostage by the Iranians during the Carter administration. The Associastion for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST) has his interview about his experience. Amb. Limbert and I joined the Foreign Service at the same time and began our careers at the same…