Outpost: Life on the Frontlines of American Diplomacy: A Memoir

by Christopher R. Hill

  13. June 1999. Skopje. Greeting refugees in Stenkovac camp two days after riots in the camp had almost caused the death of a Roma family.

  14. June 1999. Skopje. At the airport with Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and British General Sir Michael Jackson (back to camera, gesturing with his hand).

  15. June 1999. Skopje. Waiting with President Clinton while the First Lady talks to U.S. troops at the airport.

  16. August 2000. Warsaw, Poland. Presenting credentials to Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski, who served as Poland’s president from 1995 to 2005 and helped to achieve Poland’s entry into NATO and the European Union.

  17. May 2001. Warsaw University library. President George W. Bush greeting attendees at his speech, in which he signals his support for continued enlargement of NATO.

  18. May 2003. Taking a walk with Secretary of State Colin Powell at midnight in Krakow’s central square.

  19. August 2004. Seoul, South Korea. With Foreign Minister of South Korea Ban Ki-Moon. Ban would go on to become the Secretary General of the United Nations.

  20. February 2007. Beijing, China. The U.S. negotiating team.

  21. July 2007. Pyongyang, North Korea. The first of three trips to the heart of darkness.

  22. July 2007. En route to Beijing from Seoul with South Korean counterpart Chun Yung-woo.

  23. December 2007. Second trip to North Korea. This time a visit to the nuclear reactor now shut down per our negotiation. I’m flanked by Special Assistant Chris Klein and Yuri Kim and our South Korean interpreter on the end. No one was looking forward to the visit.

  24. July 2008. Singapore. With Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice attending a meeting on North Korea on the fringes of the ASEAN Regional Forum.

  25. October 2008. Third and last visit to North Korea. This time I walked across the Demilitarized Zone in the “Truce Village” of Panmunjom, leaving behind North Koreans and being welcomed by U.S. personnel and South Koreans.

  26. January 2009. Washington. Vice President Joe Biden saw me at a State Department event and talked me into one more Foreign Service adventure. The next day I learned from Secretary of State Clinton that the adventure in mind was Iraq.

  27. April 2009. Baghdad. Meeting President Talabani late on my first night in Iraq, having arrived that same evening at 7:00 P.M.

  28. April 2009. Baghdad Airport. Greeting Secretary Clinton on my second day in Iraq. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mullen had been visiting and also came to the airport to greet her.

  29. July 2009. Washington. The end of a meeting on Iraq in the White House Situation Room with General David Petraeus, General Ray Odierno, and President Obama.

  30. August 2009. Erbil, Kurdistan. A formal meeting with Kurdish Regional Government President Massoud Barzani.

  31. November 2009. Kurdistan. Taking a walk in the mountains of Kurdistan, well protected by Kurdish Peshmerga forces.

  32. November 2009. Meeting with Ayad al-Samarrai, the Speaker of the Council of Representatives, to discuss the election law. Samarrai’s calm manner helped in the law’s final passage, thus clearing the way for March 2010 elections.

  33. May 2010. Baghdad. With Ammar al-Hakim, leader of Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI). Hakim would withhold support for Prime Minister Maliki for months, prompting many to believe he would instead support the Iraq National Party with its Sunni base. He eventually came around to Maliki.

  Acknowledgments

  After a career in government, where two-page memos are the norm, writing an entire book is a challenge. It took more than a village to accomplish the research, the editing, and the marketing.

  This book is largely about representing our country overseas. It afforded me an opportunity to revisit moments in history, to make better sense of them in the fullness of time, and to reconnect with colleagues who lived those moments with me. I am especially grateful to those secretaries of state—Warren Christopher, Madeleine Albright, Condoleezza Rice, and Hillary Clinton—who proposed me to presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama for nominations to five Senate-confirmed positions, a privilege and an honor.

  Everybody has a story to tell, but not everybody has people who provide the encouragement to tell that story. I had many supporters who suggested I write a book, and wouldn’t take no for an answer. I’m especially grateful to Strobe Talbott, president of the Brookings Institution. He offered insights on early manuscripts and gave much needed advice and assistance. So did a dear friend, Wanda Rapaczynski, who was a key advisor in reading and commenting on the manuscript. Bob and Adele Sweet were also early on the bandwagon of support as were Bob and Kathy Owen.

  I want to thank the University of Denver and its Korbel School of International Studies for supporting me, in particular Provost Gregg Kvistad, and the staff, including executive assistant Janet Roll. I want to thank my agent, David Halpern, of the Robbins Office, for embracing this project, walking me through the book proposal, and ultimately connecting me with Simon & Schuster. Of course, I could not have found David without my good friend and former colleague Chris Klein. I also want to thank the Academy of Korean Studies for its support of this project and in particular Victor Cha of CSIS.

  So many people helped with comments and editing. I’d like to thank Cliff Martin, our work/study at Korbel, for being the first to help turn my State Department prose into something people might want to read. Strobe, Wanda, and Chris Klein helped here too, but there were others. Colleagues and friends Carol and Ken Adelman, John Burley, Mitko Burcevski, General George Casey, Lynn Cassel, Glyn Davies, Charlie Firestone, New Zealand Ambassador Roy Ferguson, Tom Gibbons, Phil Goldberg, Pat Haslach, Walter Isaacson, Eric John, Paul Jones, Edgard Kagan, Yuri Kim, Sung Kim, Andy Koss, Kamala Lakhdhir, Cameron Munter, Brett McGurk, Andy Nagorski, Jim O’Brien, Evelyn Polidoro, Jeff Prichard, Phil Reeker, Laura Rosenberger, Kathleen Stephens, Charlie Stonecipher, and Pam Traas jogged my memory and provided advice and editing. David Brody, a friend and author in Denver, volunteered to edit, bringing an important perspective of someone not steeped in foreign service lore.

  I am lucky to have the world’s finest publishing team in Simon & Schuster. Jonathan Karp encouraged me from the start and especially in reading and commenting on the manuscript. My editor, Alice Mayhew, kept me on track with detailed notes and rigorous edits that ensured the flow of the manuscript. She was directly involved in all phases of production, and I join many other authors in saying she is simply the best. Assistant editor Jonathan Cox kept the production going, ensuring deadlines were met, and reassuring me throughout. Kate Gales and Julia Prosser are brilliantly managing the publicity, while Stephen Bedford is wonderful at the online marketing of the book. Elisa Rivlin, from the legal office, protected me from myself with her careful review. Ruth Lee-Mui provided an excellent interior design, and Jackie Seow a superb cover. Production editor Mara Lurie was an oasis of calm in handling last-minute edits and keeping the manuscript on schedule.

  My wonderful children, who shared my life in the foreign service—Nat, Amy, and Clara—encouraged me throughout, as did my siblings Prudence, Elizabeth, Jonny, and Nick. I also want to thank my stepdaughter, Mary, for her support.

  Finally, my wife, Julie, provided all the love and encouragement that an author could ever ask for. She read every word of every chapter, provided research, helped select and organize the photographs, and balanced sharp criticism with high praise. Her good cheer and optimism sustained me throughout. Without her, I could not have done it.

  About the Author

  © WAYNE ARMSTRONG/UNIVERSITY OF DENVER

  CHRISTOPHER R. HILL is the dean of the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver. As a career diplomat, Hill was a four-time ambassador nominated by three presidents. He served as Ambassador to Iraq, the Republic of Korea, Poland, and the Republic of Macedonia and as President Bush’s Assistant Secretary of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.

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  Notes

  Prologue

  U.S. forces had liberated Nasiriya: William Branigan, “A Brief Bitter War for Iraq’s Military Officers,” Washington Post, April 27, 2003, p. A25, retrieved 13 October 2009.

  “Strategic Framework Agreement”: http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2008/11/20081127-2.html.

  Security Agreement: http://www.cfr.org/iraq/us-security-agreements-iraq/p16448.

  Status of Forces Agreement: www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/JL02AkO1.html.

  the framework agreement: http://iraq.usembassy.gov/american-iraqi.html.

  that money can be a weapon of war: Commander’s Guide to Money as a Weapons System, Handbook No. 09-27, April 2009.

  Commander’s Emergency Resource Program (“CERP”):

  U.S. Army field manual: “How Petraeus Changed the U.S. Military,” CNN.com/2012/11/10/opinion/Bergen-petraeus-legacy/index.html.

  L. Paul Bremer: Peter D. McManmon Jr., “L. Paul Bremer, III: Managing the Iraq Reconstruction Effort,” http://www.thepresidency.org/storage/documents/Calkins/McManmon.pdf.

  Fifteen minutes into the ride: “Bomb explodes near U.S. Ambassador’s convoy in Iraq,” USA Today, July 13, 2009.

  Chapter 1: Early Diplomatic Lessons

  Congolese leftist leader Patrice Lumumba had been killed: Alan Riding, “Belgium Confronts Its Heart of Darkness,” New York Times, September 21, 2002.

  Duvalier had just declared himself president for life: Encyclopaedia Britannica, s.v. “Duvalier, François.”

  Chapter 2: Peace Corps

  to a University of Michigan crowd of five thousand: “Remarks of Senator John F. Kennedy,” http://www.peacecorps.gov/about/history/speech.

  Chapter 3: First Mentor

  Hollywood’s view of the Foreign Service: See, among many others, Missing (Universal Pictures, 1982).

  Chapter 4: A Force of Nature

  “ ‘We the People’ ”: “Walesa Makes Historic Speech to Congress,” Harvard Crimson, November 16, 1989.

  calling on Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall: “Berlin Wall” speech, posted by Reagan Foundation, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MDFX-dNtsM.

  Chapter 5: Frasure

  UNPROFOR: The United Nations Protection Force was created by UN Security Council Resolution 743 in 1992.

  taking of UN hostages: See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Deliberate_Force.

  Mount Igman: See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igman.

  Chapter 6: A Peace Shuttle

  NATO bombing of Serb positions was front-page news: NATO bombing of Yugoslavia—Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

  Chapter 7: Unfinished Business

  As Dick made the announcement: nytimes.com: COLLECTIONS, GREECE.

  Chapter 8: On to Geneva

  “sniper alley”: See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sniper_alley.

  The story of the Dayton Peace Accords: Richard Holbrooke, To End a War (New York: Random House, 1998).

  Chapter 9: “Your Beautiful Country”

  the first ambassador to Macedonia: www.gpo.gov/fdsy/pkg/CREC-1996-06-28-pt1-pgs7336-3htm.

  question from a Greek journalist: “U.S. use of Macedonia instead of FROYM,” macedoniaonline.eu/content/category/1/13/45/50/5095.

  Chapter 10: Kosovo: “Where It Began and Where It Will End”

  the Battle of Kosovo: http://www.balkanhistory.com/kosovo_1389.htm.

  Kosovo Liberation Army: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/Europe/july-dec98/kla_7-15.html.

  included former smugglers: There are many references to this allegation. Start with http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosovo_Liberation_Army.

  “hyperpower”: http://www.nytimes.com/1999/02/05/news/05iht-france.t_0.html.

  a KLA fighter looking like Che Guevara: He turned out to be a KLA member visiting from his home in Denmark. Much to the consternations of the Danes, there were many connections of the KLA to Scandinavian countries. See, for example, http://thebloodyellowhouse.wordpress.com/albanian-mafia/.

  Chapter 11: Unfinished Peace

  “the most dangerous place in Europe”: Galen Guengerich, “The Most Dangerous Place in the World,” September 27, 1998. www.allsoulsnyc2.org/publications/sermons/fcsermons/most-dangerous-place-world.html.

  “the Hill Plan”: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/balkans/who.htm.

  intercepts of his cell phone calls: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ra%C4%8Dak_massacre.

  On March 24 the bombing began: www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/kosovo/etc/cron.html.

  Chapter 12: The Safe Room

  I ordered all hands down to the vault: For a good account see www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/daily/march99/macedonia26.htm.

  slowdown at the border: www.cnn.com/WORLD/europe/9904/07/kosovo.refugees.03/.

  bombs struck the Chinese embassy: There continue to be those who believe the attack on the Chinese embassy was deliberate. In fact, it greatly complicated the NATO effort. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/340280.stm.

  the main Stenkovac camp: http://www.afsa.org/pdf/inside_us_embassy-tales_from_the_field.pdf.

  Chapter 13: Patterns of Cooperation

  George W. Bush arrived in Warsaw: http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov › President.

  “No U.S. ambassador had ever visited the cemetery: english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2004/09/. . ./2004091761035.html.

  his February 2003 speech: http://www.foxnews.com/story/2003/02/05/raw-data-text-powell-un-speech-part-ii/.

  openly criticized the Roh government: John Bolton, Surrender Is Not an Option (New York: Threshold Editions, 2007), p..

  Chapter 14: Calling an Audible

  “They are coming now”: For a description of my first meeting with the North Koreans, see Mike Chinoy, Meltdown (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2008), p.

  Chapter 15: Plastic Tulips

  went out to meet the press: www.foxnews.com/story/2005/07/10/rice-says-n-korea-talks-just-start/.

  the resumption of talks was “only a start”: www.foxnews.com/story/2005/03/20/rice-warns-europe-on-weapons-to-china.

  Washington’s press cycle: http://www.donaldgross.net/2005/10/breakthrough-at-the-six-party-talks/.

  the Joint Statement: www.atomicarchive.com › Special Reports › Nuclear Crisis: North Korea.

  designation of Banco Delta Asia: http://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/js2720.aspx.

  developments came to light with the press: Donald Greenlees and David Lague, “The Money Trail That Linked North Korea to Macao,” New York Times, April 11, 2007.

  Chapter 16: Heart of Darkness

  adopted Resolution 1695: www.armscontrol.org › Arms Control Today › September 2006.

  announced a new joint statement: www.washingtonpost.com › World › Special Reports › North Korea.

  tendentious story: “North Korea Sanctions,” Financial Times. www.ft.com › World › Asia-Pacific.

  On June 21, I arrived in Pyongyang: “U.S. Nuclear Envoy Arrives in Pyongyang,” http://english.cri.cn/2947/2007/06/21/1321@240822.htm.

  Chapter 17: Showing Up

  Hun Sen had just arrested: www.hrw.org/news/2006/01/03/cambodia-hun-sen-systematically-silences-critics.

  Chapter 18: Breakfast with Cheney

  had entered George Washington University Hospital: usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/2007-07-28-cheney-surgery_N.htm.

  Chapter 19: “That’s Verifiable”

  wanted to see the facility: New Doubts on Nuclear Efforts by North Korea: www.washingtonpost.com › World › Special Reports › North Korea.


  including CNN, recorded the event: edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/27/amanpour.yongbyon/.

  Chapter 20: Global Service

  impediment to progress: There have been numerous studies to demonstrate that attitudes toward the United States in 2003–2004 had worsened, due in part to differences on engaging with North Korea. See “RAND Study Warns That South Koreans’ Long-Term Support for Alliance with U.S. Threatened by Differences over North Korea,” http://www.rand.org/news/press/2004/03/12.html.

  a “town hall” meeting: “Rice tries to quell staff dissent over forced duty in Iraq,” http://edition.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/11/02/state.iraq/.

  Chapter 21: Taking the Fifth

  looking for reading material: Thomas Ricks, Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq (New York: Penguin Press, 2006).

  General Petraeus’s and Ambassador Crocker’s testimony to the Congress: articles.washingtonpost.com › Collections › Iraqi Government.

  a very upset General Zinni: “Zinni Gets Undiplomatic Treatment from Obama Team,” http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/02/04/zinni_unloads.

  Dick Holbrooke’s name got dragged in: Al Kamen, “The Not-Quite-Man Act,” Washington Post, February 25, 2009, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/24/AR2009022403543.html.