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In this edition, I am delighted that we are featuring an interview with Ambassador of Hungary Reka Szemerkenyi. Formerly a security advisor to the Hungarian prime minister, Ambassador Szemerkenyi does not shy away from discussing the ever-thorny circumstances with Russia that many Central and Eastern European countries face. She also provides an understanding of the challenges confronting Hungary in securing energy, which are of utmost significance for any modern nation today. The United States and Japan have long held a special relationship, as anyone who has been to Washington, D.C.’s annual Cherry Blossom Festival knows. We also interview Japanese Ambassador Kenichiro Sasae. Geographically, his country is one of the closest to North Korea, which makes for a complicated scenario given the regime’s interest in developing nuclear weapons. Ambassador Sasae sheds some light onto Japan’s relations with North Korea as well as the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. Furthermore, we speak to Ambassador of Panama Emanual Gonzalez-Revilla, who gives us fascinating insight into the history of the Panama Canal and plans to widen it. This icon of Panama has a fascinating history, from its first attempts to be dug by the French to its semi-recent handover from the U.S. to the Panamanians. The ambassador enlightens us with a wonderful look at how the canal impacts not only his country’s trade, but plays a pivotal role in world commerce. In Los Angeles, we take a look at the opening of the new Lithuanian Consulate General. The city has more than 60 consulates serving West Coast locals, and Lithuania is the newest to join the flourishing international community there. With a Lithuanian-American community estimated at 100,000 people, we have no doubt that the new consulate general will serve its population well while also promoting the history and culture of this Baltic nation to the locals. In this magazine, we publish magnificently beautiful photos from the French ambassador’s residence with exquisite architecture after having its $4 million renovation to update everything from the plumbing to the chandelier. It is truly breath-taking and no doubt the 10,000 visitors a year who come to the residence will be in awe as much as we were. For anyone who is daydreaming of a tropical getaway, have a read of our travel article on the Society Islands. Situated in French Polynesia, the islands play indulgent background to a luxury cruise on the 332-passenger m/s Paul Gaugin. Calling in at Bora Bora, Tahiti and endless postcard-worthy volcanos, reefs and beaches in between, this cruise is a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the islands that were immortalized in the film “Mutiny on the Bounty.” We know that finding exceptional medical services abroad can be a challenge; therefore, we are pleased to highlight our medical listings from pages 86 through 91 to assist in connecting you with some of the country’s top doctors. Our educational section on pages 64 to 67 is brimming with America’s most respected and trusted schooling options for your children. For parents in the diplomatic community, you will no doubt find it an indispensable resource. Warmest regards, I hope you and your families have a Dawn Parker wonderful summer. Publisher & Founder Diplomatic Connections 4

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H. E. Reka Szemerkenyi Ambassador of the Republic of Hungary to the United States 6

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By Roland Flamini

“That’s the best background for the job here,” was how President Obama described Hungarian Ambassador Reka Szemerkenyi’s previous post before coming to Washington. Ambassador Szemerkenyi is a political appointee, but of a different kind. Before taking up her very first diplomatic appointment earlier this year, she was for the past five years Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s security adviser. At home, Orban, who leads the conservative Fidesz Party, is something of a folk hero, having as a young lawyer made a historic speech at a mass meeting in Budapest in 1989 in which he called for the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Hungary. Abroad, his government has drawn criticism for what many see as restrictive new press laws and legal reforms that put the independence of Hungary’s judiciary in question. In an interview at the elegant Hungarian continue to page 10 D I P L O M A T I C C O N N E C T I O N S B U S I N E S S E D I T I O N | J U LY - A U G U S T 2 0 1 5

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Embassy residence, Ambassador Szemerkenyi told Diplomatic Connections that Budapest has since reversed some of these changes at the request of the European Union — which Hungary joined in 2004 — but that the international media and Orban’s critics have yet to catch up with the corrections. Hungarians, on the other hand, still gave Orban a two-thirds majority in successive parliamentary elections in 2010 and again in 2014 (the latter has since been lost as a result of two bye-elections). Ambassador Szemerkenyi also defended the Orban government’s decision to sign a massive liquid gas deal with the Russian state-owned energy company Gazprom in the midst of the Ukraine crisis. Additionally, the country hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin in Budapest. The ambassador said the Hungarians are as reluctant as any nation to be dependent on Russian energy supplies, but she spells out why they have no other choice. She suggested that much could be achieved in Central Europe if there was closer cooperation among the neighboring countries, including helping resolve the Ukrainian crisis. While bilateral relations with Washington are good, she sees her task as clearing up residual misunderstandings about where the Orban government wanted to go with its reforms. Also on her list is boosting Hungary’s already healthy trade with the United 10

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States, which in the first quarter of 2015 stood at $1.8 billion, an increase over the previous year of 18 percent. Ambassador Szemerkenyi has a master’s degree in strategic studies from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Washington. She is married with four children, a son and three daughters. Diplomatic Connections: This is your first diplomatic post. What was your last job before you came to Washington? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: I was senior security policy adviser to the prime minister in Budapest. I covered the transatlantic relationship, energy security, cyber security, regional cooperation. Diplomatic Connections: That explains why you are generally considered to be close to the prime minister. I read one report that said appointing you ambassador to Washington “practically means the presence of Viktor Orban in Washington.” Would you care to comment on that? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: I had worked in the first Orban government as state secretary of security policy, and I was invited to work for the prime minister in the second Orban government from 2011. Obviously, the issues that I covered and the topics that I have been helping with are strategic — crucial to the prime minister’s thinking. Diplomatic Connections: If you were to character-

Attila Kisbenedek/AFP/Getty Images

NATO Parliamentary Assembly President Michael Turner (L), NATO PA Secretary General David Hobbs (R) and the leader of the Hungarian delegation to NATO PA Mihály Balla (C) inform the press about the today and yesterday work of the assembly in the parliament building of Budapest on May 17, 2015, during their joint press conference.

Attila Kisbenedek/AFP/Getty Images

Hungarian President Janos Ader inspects the honour guard in front of the parliament building of Budapest on March 15, 2015, during a flag-hoisting ceremony prior to the official commemoration of the 167th anniversary of the 1848 – 1849 Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence. The revolution in the kingdom of Hungary grew into a war for independence from the Habsburg rule.

ize Hungary’s relations with the United States at this point, would you say they were highly satisfactory, satisfactory or in need of improvement? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: In strategic cooperation and NATO, the relationship has really been very close and very positive. We have fought alongside the U.S. in the Balkans. We worked very closely with the U.S. in Afghanistan. I was there to visit Hungarian troops, and they were fighting alongside American servicemen and women. They had a very good relationship, handling some of the most difficult tasks together. Hungary has just recently offered a 150-strong force in the fight against ISIL; they are now starting their mission in the northern part of Iraq, in Kurdistan. I have been to northern Iraq to prepare for this mission. These are the elements that make it a strong, allied relationship. The most recent decision was not just strategic. We understand the challenge that ISIL poses, but it’s also an expression of commitment because obviously the budgetary commitment is significant, especially for a European economy which is still coming out of the [financial] crisis. But it’s a good example of how we feel about the relationship, how much we treasure this, and how much we want to work on promoting and strengthening this. Diplomatic Connections: What about economic cooperation?

Ambassador Szemerkenyi: Another important pillar in the relationship. There’s a very strong trust and strong cooperation between the Hungarian and American business sectors. Forty of the 50 biggest multinational companies of the U.S. are active and investing in Hungary. The biggest American investors include IBM, General Electric, Alcoa, Coca-Cola, Ford and Citibank. Half of these companies tell me that they want to increase their investment. Outside the European Union the biggest investor in Hungary is the United States. The U.S. in turn is the largest area of Hungarian investment abroad outside the European Union. This is where Hungarian capital is going. And though we attract significant American investment to Hungary, we always want to improve this. In comparative EU terms the Hungarian economy expanded by 3.6 percent in 2014, which is the highest rate of growth in the European Union. The debt level is at 77 percent [of the GDP, from 83 percent in 2010], investments have grown by 14 percent in 2014, the highest level in 17 years. Unemployment went from 10.2 percent to 7.7 percent, the best rate of decrease in unemployment within the European Union context.

Diplomatic Connections: Would you welcome the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership [TTIP] currently under discussion, assuming it will eventually happen?

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European heads of state and government (Back, from L) Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny, Croatia Prime Minister Charles Michel, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfvén, Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka, Slovenian Prime M Chancellor Werner Faymann (front, from L) High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Frederica Mogherini, Estonian Prime Ministe Grybauskaite, French President of Republic François Hollande, Latvian Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma, European Council President Donald Tusk, Romanian Prime Min tel, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico, British Prime Minister David Cameron, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boiko Borissov and European Council Secretary-General Uwe C

Ambassador Szemerkenyi: We expect the Free Trade

tinued American protection if the need arises?

Agreement to bring significant benefits to the Hungarian economy through various ways, some of them indirectly — for instance through its impact on the German economy and through the German economy on our economy. There are some fundamentally important issues that still need to be addressed; one of them is to keep Hungarian agriculture free from genetically modified organisms. But overall the understanding is that it can be a very beneficial agreement for any Hungarian economy. It’s understandable that it’s a complex agreement, but I think it could be a very strong pillar of the overall European-American relationship. It’s a logical step to move forward. Diplomatic Connections: Given the Obama administration’s much discussed “tilt” towards Asia, do you feel that your country, and indeed Europe generally, is being neglected by the U.S.? In these perilous times are you confident of con-

Ambassador Szemerkenyi: I think the belief that

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there was a declining U.S. interest in Central Europe lasted for some time, but the good news is that this seems to have changed back. We do now enjoy a larger attention span from Washington, and it’s a process that has to be strengthened. But still, if I walk around the corridors of the State Department, I meet people who have been to Afghanistan, Korea, Iraq, all kinds of exciting places, but not to Europe. And definitely not to Central Europe. You can’t have a transatlanticist value system if you don’t have Atlanticist people. We have to focus on having our policy people, our experts in the various fields to know each other, and to work together. It needs a concerted support for strengthening the transatlantic elite on both sides of the ocean. For example, if we had worked together on one of the energy projects that Hungary was promoting over the past 15 years, just one of them, it

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a Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic, Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning Schmidt, Polish Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Belgian Minister Miror Cerar, Portuguese Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb, Austrian Federal er Taavi Rõivas, Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, Lithuania’s President Dalia nister Klaus Werner Iohannis, Cyprus President of Republic Nicos Anastasiades, European Parliament President Martin Schulz, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Xavier BetCorsepius pose for a family photo during a European Union summit at the EU headquarters in Brussels on April 23, 2015.

would have made the difference now. We need to work with each other. Diplomatic Connections: There are areas of disagreement over the Orban government’s reforms, which have been questioned both by the European Union and by the United States as contrary to democratic principles and freedom of the press. How does one explain, for example, the new press laws, the amendments to the justice system, etc. The Orban government has been widely criticized as having gone too far to the right. Ambassador Szemerkenyi: What makes Hungary different from the other Central European states, when you take a closer look at the transition from communism to a democracy, is a phenomenon that wasn’t present in the other states. When you look at the media elite, or the intellectual elite, lawyers, judges and other key segments in the society, there was a big difference between Hungary and the rest of the

region. In the rest of the region there was a very fundamental change of these people in 1990. If you walked into a newspaper office in Prague in 1991 you would find totally different faces from 1989, so that was a major change. In Hungary, there was a pre-condition before the transition that some of these changes could only be made by a two-thirds parliamentary majority, and nobody had a two-thirds majority in parliament since 1990. A large part of the population felt that the transition had been dragging on and while some things did change others did not fundamentally — until 2010 when, for the first time in post-Cold War history, Orban’s Fidesz Party won a very clear two-thirds majority. The real message from the country in 2010 was that people were demanding these changes to finally close the Cold War era and the communist heritage and to look into making serious structural reforms. That was the winning party’s responsibility to the electorate, and that explains these major reforms that we could only

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start in 2010. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m sure everybody wished we could have done it back in 1990 like the others did, but the nature of our transition was very different. While other countries accomplished a very fundamental change to a new democratic elite, this did not really happen the same way in Hungary and the result was large frustration for much of the population. Diplomatic Connections: But the reforms are criticized as limiting both personal and media freedom. For example, in the run-up to the most recent election, the government was accused of suppressing the voices of opposition.

Ambassador Szemerkenyi: When you have a four-year term in which to accomplish the changes, and such a very large amount of change to make, mistakes are inevitable. There was recognition that in many cases corrections were necessary. But the main line of the reform and the main message were definitely consistent with what was called for: leave 14

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the communist past and to make the transition to a democratic system; but the new institutions had not been set up. The majority of Hungarians accepted that the values behind the reforms were clearly pro-democracy, but from the outside they were misunderstood, and one of the problems of the second Orban government was how to transmit this message internationally, which was not an easy task. Diplomatic Connections: Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re saying it was a communications problem? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: In the European Union we started a very thorough negotiation process with the Council of Europe going over the detail of these reforms, sector by sector. We established which issues had been misunderstood and changes had to be done, and which reforms were accepted. The end result was that by 2014, we had gone through this process and we have made all the changes in the con-

stitution and in the legal system that were seen as necessary by the Council of Europe. We can now say that Hungary’s democracy is the most thoroughly scrutinized democracy in Europe. The system has been examined by all sides from all perspectives, and we have reached a successful completion of this exercise. I think it’s a very healthy thing. Diplomatic Connections: If the actual adjustments have been made, why do you think then that the criticism continues? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: The trouble is that while this is a completed process legally and from a political point of view, from the media perspective and from the domestic political viewpoint, it still offers a good platform to focus on. If you take a look at the Hungarian media you will definitely find there is a debate going on which is not being reported overseas. I can see similar debates taking place in Slovakia and other countries of the region, which is really a very healthy sign of the parliamentary process. But since they are not covered internationally there’s a different perspective outside. We have been raised on the ideas of freedom of speech, of democracy, of religion. These are the values that motivate us. Diplomatic Connections: The other development in Hungary that is raising eyebrows in Washington is the Hungarian government’s apparent rapprochement with Russia as seen in Vladimir Putin’s recent visit to Budapest, and the big Hungarian natural gas deal with the Russian oil corporation Gazprom. This is happening even as the West is distancing itself from Moscow because of the Ukraine crisis — and especially coming from Orban who is one of the heroes of the 1989 anti-Soviet revolution… Ambassador Szemerkenyi: I was in the square in Budapest in 1989 when Orban made the big speech [calling for Soviet withdrawal from Hungary]. I remember there was a huge crowd. While he was speaking I was looking at the roofs around the square trying to determine from where they would start shooting at us, but no shots came. As for the gas deal, we understood the implications of dependence on one energy source — that is, Russia. We’ve been trying to develop diversification, supporting all efforts and developing our own projects in the region. Over the last 10 years, we supported Nabucco [pipeline from the Caspian Sea to Europe, bypassing Russia, cancelled in 2013], which failed. We proposed several cooperation frameworks in the region with the Poles and Croatia to develop an alternative gas import source for the countries of the region. Unfortunately, no decision was taken on these projects and none was implemented. You end

up after investing a lot of political, and even financial, capital and a lot of time without any result, and without creating any satisfying alternative for the region. We were there in every single project, and some of them failed or didn’t materialize for a lack of American interest, sometimes for lack of regional interest. Energy dependence has very clear political consequences; we’ve seen this situation coming, and this dependence on energy imports is a factor in everyday decision making.

Diplomatic Connections: You are saying you had no alternative but to negotiate with the Russians. Ambassador Szemerkenyi: Absolutely. Diplomatic Connections: How do Hungarians feel about that, given the history of more than four decades of Soviet domination? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: For us it’s a pragmatic, very down-to-earth understanding of what is meant by cooperation. There is no political value content in this, but when it is interpreted it can easily be interpreted from that side, especially by those who do not follow it very closely. The political value choice of Hungary has been very clear, solid and repeated several times. We were the first to make the decision to join the Euro-Atlantic community both as NATO members and as EU members and those are two solid anchors. Nobody’s questioning that and there’s a repeated confirmation from all political leaders of these two integration frameworks providing the real stability for the country. The value choice of Hungary is crystal clear. Diplomatic Connections: But Hungary is paying a price in terms of its image both in the European Union and internationally. Ambassador Szemerkenyi: I think the very heavy criticism of the last years coming from the international media has created a lot of concern in Hungary about how well are we understood. Many of the issues that are raised are not seen the same way in Hungary and it certainly doesn’t strengthen the perception that there is a mutual understanding. Hungarians want to be understood better, which is important because we need the transatlantic cooperation. If we look at the challenges of the next five to 10 years, even the U.S. will not be able to handle them on its own. The Fidesz Party — the governing party — is by their genes the most transatlantic in Hungary, and we believe that the better we understand each other the better we will cooperate. That’s the job I got from my prime minister — to sort out the questions that have arisen in the last few years. Diplomatic Connections: Could you envision the

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Russian President Vladimir Putin and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban look on as members of their respective delgations sign agreements between the two countries at Parliament on February 17, 2015, in Budapest, Hungary.

None of those have materialized. In the last 10 years we have not managed to establish a practical cooperation on such initiatives. Poland, because it has access to the sea, now has an important project in hand to develop its own energy terminal. We think that this is of strategic importance for the region, and for the longer term it will be. But in the short term, this is now reaching only the Polish market. We have a very

Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Central European countries taking the initiative in trying to mediate between Moscow and the West in the Ukrainian crisis? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: It would be very reasonable for the countries in Central Europe to make their particular understanding of developments in the region heard more in-depth by their allies. That is definitely something we think we can share more within the European-Atlantic community. Diplomatic Connections: One thinks of Central European countries as having had a common experience with Russia, though not a pleasant one. Do they not see it as a common experience? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: Absolutely. In the most fundamental values there is a big commonality. But every communist system was different before 1990. Hungary was the most open. It was called Goulash Communism. We could even travel to Western Europe once every three years, and the whole family could go, whereas in other countries one family member was held back as a hostage. We had a relatively acceptable academic situation in the late 1980s. Most other countries in the region did not. The communist parties had a very different face in these countries in many aspects and for many reasons. So it would be an exaggeration to say that all of them were the same. There was a lot of difference, and you can see it also now. In the fundamental values of democracy, freedom of action, freedom of media, freedom of religion, we all agree, but then we have our differences as do other countries in the European Union. The differences are normal. It would be an exaggeration to expect that just because we were situated next to each other, we should agree on everything. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s normal to have differences of opinion, but the most important thing to me is that beyond the differences we agree on so many things. We can still go back to this despite the actual situations and we can use this as a basis for supporting each other. I think some of the differences have been over-exaggerated, but some of the main founding values are underestimated. Diplomatic Connections: What kind of differences, for example? Ambassador Szemerkenyi: As I said, we have developed at least three major project proposals for working together in energy cooperation â&#x20AC;&#x201D; with Poland for instance.

good understanding of values in the most profound sense of the word, but we have not succeeded in turning these common values into common projects. This is the challenge now, and this is what is underlined by the crisis in Ukraine right now — we don’t have those common projects, and countries are left to handle their dependence on their own.

Diplomatic Connections: What is it like being a woman

ambassador in this town?

Ambassador Szemerkenyi: It’s fantastic. It’s a real honor to be nominated. As a woman coming from security policy, it is really a fascinating and a great job, especially in this historic moment. We can start a new chapter — so I see my job here as the person who lays the ground for the next 10 years of cooperation, and I think that is a gift of history. n

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H.E. Kenichiro Sasae Ambassador of Japan to the United States

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By James A. Winship, Ph.D.

When Kenichiro Sasae [pronounced Suh-suh-a– eh] was a young man, before his entry into Japan’s diplomatic service, he dreamed of becoming a novelist. “In those years,” he recalls, “I was interested in reading the work done by Ryo– taro– Shiba. He wrote extensively about Japan’s historical transitions and the evolution of modern Japan, especially its encounter with foreign powers and its relationships with other Asian states. His focus was on the Meiji period in Japan and the emergence of national leadership as the shogunate form of government was replaced by more modern institutions.” Though this future Japanese ambassador to the United States busied himself as a fledgling writer in high school, he

admits that at university, “I found I did not have enough talent to become a serious writer.” Then, he says, his love of writing turned from a focus on literature to a focus on history. Good preparation for a future diplomat, to be sure. Still, his interest in historical fiction melded the art of a novelist with the historian’s insight into the life and mind of the Japanese people as they moved from a policy of extended isolation from the outside world to a new era of close encounter with the modernity of Europe and America. While Ambassador Sasae was a student at Tokyo University, Japan was confronted with the so-called “Nixon Shock,” (1971) a surprise change in the direction of U.S. economic policy that

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decoupled the U.S. dollar from the gold standard and resulted in the emergence of an international system of floating exchange rates that jolted the Japanese economy. At the same time, Nixon and Kissinger were engaged in a process of secret diplomacy that would pave the way for Nixon’s visit to China (1972). That Nixon visit led quickly to the normalization of diplomatic relations between Japan and China. These abrupt changes in the framework of global economic policy and the structure of diplomatic relations in Northeast Asia served to dramatize the importance of diplomacy to the growth of the Japanese economy and the security of the Japanese people. This was history in process, and university student Kenichiro Sasae was drawn from the reading of history and the writing of historical fiction to the making of history as a career diplomat. Much of his study focused on Japan in the midst of transitions, and Ambassador Sasae’s diplomatic career has followed that path as Japan has responded to a changing global and regional context. Now, as Ambassador to the United States, he is once again responding to transition by evolving a new set of regional relationships in response to China’s rise and strengthening Japan’s security relationships with the United States. Ambassador Sasae joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1974, beginning what is now a more than 40-year career in diplomacy, much of it spent inside the bureaucratic structure of the Foreign Ministry itself. Immediately before his appointment as ambassador, Mr. Sasae served as Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, the highest ranking career position in the Ministry (2010 – 2012). Prior to that he served as Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs (2008 – 2010). As DirectorGeneral of the Asian and Oceania Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2005 – 2008, Sasae served as Japan’s lead representative to several rounds of the “Six Party Talks” among South Korea, North Korea, Japan, the United States, China and Russia that explored the security concerns arising from North Korea’s withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (2003) and sought to limit its nuclear weapons development program. Early in his diplomatic career, Ambassador Sasae studied at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania. His first overseas assignment was as First Secretary at the Japanese Embassy in Washington, D.C. (1984). After only a short time in the United States, he was called back to Tokyo to serve as Principal Deputy Director of the First International Organizations Division at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo (1985). Following that appointment, in rapid succession he served as Princi-

pal Deputy Director of the Soviet Union Division, Principal Deputy Director of the First North America Division and Director of the Second North America Division. Following a year-long interlude as Counsellor at the Japanese Embassy to the United Kingdom and a Research Associate at London’s highly respected International Institute for Strategic Studies, Sasae was appointed Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Japan to the International Organizations in Geneva, Switzerland. There, he served for three years

The then-U.S. Envoy Christopher Hill (L) meets with Japan’s then-envoy Kenichiro Sasae (R) [now Ambassador of Japan to the United States] at the “Six Party Talks” at the Foreign Ministery on July 13, 2007, in Tokyo, Japan. Hill was in Japan for talks over the North Korean nuclear issues before proceeding to China and South Korea.

as Special Advisor to Mrs. Sadako Ogata in her role as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (1994 – 1997). Returning to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tokyo in 1997, Mr. Sasae was named Director of the Northeast Asia Division and subsequently as Deputy Director-General of the Asian Affairs Bureau. From 2000 – 2001 Sasae served as Executive Assistant for Foreign Affairs to Prime Minister Yoshiro– Mori (Liberal Democratic Party) before returning to the Foreign Ministry as Deputy Director-General of the

Foreign Policy Bureau and later serving as Director-General of the Economic Affairs Bureau. He reached the pinnacle of Japan’s foreign affairs bureaucracy when he served as ViceMinister for Foreign Affairs (2010 – 2012). When we spoke with Ambassador Sasae, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had just finished a state visit to the United States. The ambassador was kind enough to offer us his insights into the official and the behind-the-scenes workings of that visit as well as to give us glimpses of Japan’s

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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Obama approach the podiums for a joint press conference at the Rose Garden of the White House on April 28, 2015, in Washington, D.C. The Japanese Prime Minister and his wife were on an official visit to Washington.

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Inset Photo: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

First Lady Michelle Obama stands with Akie Abe, wife of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, during an official arrival ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House on April 28, 2015, in Washington, D.C. D I P L O M A T I C C O N N E C T I O N S B U S I N E S S E D I T I O N | J U LY - A U G U S T 2 0 1 5

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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C) speaks to a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress while flanked by Vice President Joseph Biden (L) and House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) (R) in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol on April 29, 2015, in Washington, D.C. The Prime Minister and his wife were on an official visit to Washington.

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current national security and foreign policy concerns. Diplomatic Connections: As we sit here for this interview, you must be breathing a sigh of relief now that Prime Minister Abe’s visit has come and gone. What is it like here in the embassy when you are getting ready for a major visit like that? Ambassador Sasae: There is a great deal of preparation for a major visit like the one Prime Minister Abe recently made. Most of the work of the Ambassador’s office is done before the official visit takes place. This is true not only in terms of the official substance of the visit but also in terms of logistics and services. Every moment of the visit must be scripted and orchestrated so that each scheduled event, each meeting proceeds smoothly. We try to anticipate everything that we can. And, of course, this becomes even more complicated when —as was the case with this visit to the United States — the Prime Minister is not just visiting Washington, D.C., but several other American cities on both coasts as well. 26

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Every bit of the agenda — defense and national security, economics, trade issues and broader Asia-Pacific affairs — must be thoroughly considered and carefully prepared for. You go into extensive preparation and close collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prime Minister’s Office. And you do the same thing with the American counterpart institutions — the White House, the National Security Council, the State Department, the Department of Defense, the Treasury Department, the Office of the Trade Representative, and — since the Prime Minister was addressing a Joint Meeting of Congress — the leadership of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Diplomatic Connections: Much of your career has been at the Foreign Ministry itself. There can be very few diplomats in the world who have such deep experience and practical knowledge of dealing with North Korea as you have. Based on your long-term involvement in the Six Party Talks

Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe waves after addressing a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on April 29, 2015, as Vice President Biden and House Speaker John Boehner look on.

regarding North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons that have gone on intermittently since 2003, what can you tell us about your experience dealing with the North Koreans and learning to negotiate with that regime? Ambassador Sasae: I began to work on the North Korean issue when I was the Director for Korean Affairs at the Foreign Ministry. That was 1997. At the time the situation was difficult. There were famines and food shortages in North Korea. And in spite of the nuclear deal done in the 1990s [1994’s “Agreed Framework”], we were beginning to be worried about North Korea renewing its nuclear weapons program by moving in a different direction. There was also growing recognition that Japanese citizens had been abducted by the North Korean regime. Negotiations with North Korea had been ongoing, but they were unsuccessful. When I took the job as Director for Korean Affairs, my ambition was to do something to help those Japanese citizens who had been abducted. Then later on we found out that North Korea might be breaching all of its agreements previously negotiated by the U.S. government. We discovered that they were trying to develop missiles and even nuclear weapons, perhaps with the eventual goal of marrying the two. I do not want to get into too much detail about the Six Party Talks that began in 2003. But, I found that the basic objective of the North Korean negotiators was to make certain that their regime would survive intact. They basically distrusted the United States and others, including Japan, because they perceived that the eventual goal of these powers was regime change. But, at the same time, we had to try to make sure that their weapons and missile development programs would be eliminated. We also sought to address seriously a variety of humanitarian questions. The lesson I draw is that we have to be engaged. Engaging means many things. It can mean putting pressure. It can mean defining clearly the specific interests of all sides in any negotiation. Engagement and negotiation are easy to talk about, but difficult to do because they are often not popular with the domestic audience. At this moment, to be honest, we are stuck. We haven’t found any means that are effective and enforceable with the North Koreans. Dealing with North Korea is very difficult. But for all the frustration, you can’t simply sit back and wait. You have to exert extensive pressure and pursue engagement and try to find some way out together with them. Diplomatic Connections: We are acknowledging this 28

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year the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II in 1945. Still there are deep and painful memories on both the American side and the Japanese side and elsewhere in Asia. Those memories and the pain they recall are real and important, but they are also in the past. How do we acknowledge those events and the emotions that go with them and at the same time go on to build a stronger relationship?

Ambassador Sasae: Seventy years is a long period. Our reconciliation process is not one or two years in the making. When we are told about all the tragic events of the war-time period, we are basically being told by our parents’ generation. We listen to these memories and share them. We respect those who suffered, and we vow never to forget these events. We seek not only to know the history but also to digest it, to learn from it and to make those lessons a part of our own history. We never want to lose those memories, no matter how painful. But, it is not good to become a hostage to that pain. I think this is what has happened between Japan and the United States. We keep and respect those memories. We try to learn from them and to avoid repeating these events. But, we have moved on. We have a different relationship now. And, we live in a very different world with new sets of concerns and security threats. Diplomatic Connections: Japan is beginning to try to expand its ability to shield itself, to expand its national security capabilities. Prime Minister Abe proposes to reinterpret portions of the Japanese Constitution to allow the Japanese Self-Defense Forces greater flexibility in the missions they undertake. Yet, in the region, China, Korea and Taiwan all have specific histories that lead them to be concerned about a possible resurgence of Japanese militarism. How does Japan strengthen national security and at the same time reassure its neighbors who distrust any Japanese military? Ambassador Sasae: There is no intention to move toward militarism. We have come a long way and are proud of our post-war history — 70 years of peace-loving and peacebuilding efforts. We have provided economic assistance to our Korean and Chinese friends. If we have any other motivations, why should we engage in these extensive efforts to help other countries in the region develop? Diplomatic Connections: Do you envision that the Japanese Self-Defense Forces will be able to work in a close and coordinated fashion with the armed forces of other countries in the region? For example, do you envision collaborative efforts to protect shipping lanes and to insist on the basic

principle of freedom of the seas? Ambassador Sasae: The United States is our only ally. For many years there has been a fundamental imbalance between the American Forces and the Japanese Self-Defense Forces, especially in times of contingency. But the new defense guidelines to which Japan and the United States have agreed to in the 2 + 2 talks that were held at the time of Prime Minister Abeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s visit are designed to allow us both to adapt to the new, emerging security environment in the region and beyond. We are trying to do something more natural for a sovereign state in the realm of international relations to make Japan a normal actor in the realm of global security by removing some of the restrictions on the activities of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. These restrictions made sense in the aftermath of World War II, but today we live in a very

different world with very different security threats. Japan has no expansionist ambitions. We seek only to become a normal nation-state actor with the ability to defend itself against threats and to participate proactively in the evolving global security architecture of the 21st century. Diplomatic Connections: Why is the Abe government so interested in expanding Japanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s defense capabilities? Ambassador Sasae: Our goal, always, is to be safe and secure. Because of a whole new range of threats coming from North Korea and elsewhere, we have to increase our deterrent capabilities. We seek to strengthen deterrence, not to develop the ability to project our forces into other countries. This message of deterrence needs to be seen and interpreted correctly. There are other countries in the region expanding their own military infrastructure and seeking to become more insistent in asserting their influence and ex-

Japanese Ambassador Kenichiro Sasae with Dr. James Winship, Diplomatic Connections

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panding their claims to authority. We don’t want the Japanese government to be giving misleading signals. At the same time, we cannot sit back and do nothing to respond to the changing security situation. We need to make sure that we are not going to be threatened. Diplomatic Connections: There is a continuing issue between Japan and China over what Japan refers to as the Senkaku Islands and the Chinese refer to as the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea. Japan currently exercises sovereignty over the islands, though China challenges that status. How do you understand that situation and the guarantees to protect Japanese sovereign territory that are part of the Mutual Security Treaty between Japan and the United States? Ambassador Sasae: President Obama said the right thing when he reiterated the statement made during his visit to Japan in 2014. He made it clear that the Senkakus fall within the purview of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty. [Diplomatic Connections Note: During a joint press conference with Prime Minister Abe in Washington, D.C., in April 2015, President Obama said, “I want to reiterate that our treaty commitment to Japan’s security is absolute, and that Article 5 covers all territories under Japan’s administration, including the Senkakus.”]

This was at a time when the Japanese people had begun to be worried about all the provocations by China, including not only their claims to the Senkakus but also their creeping expansion in the South China Sea. Even though actions in the East China Sea are independent of actions in the South China Sea, they derive from the same Chinese policy motives. We are allies and friends, so for the United States to reiterate that, “We will defend you if it is necessary” is always an important and reassuring step. Diplomatic Connections: May we shift gears to talk about economic issues for a few moments, particularly the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership [TPP] trade agreement, which was very much a part of Prime Minister Abe’s agenda while he was here in the United States. Do you think the visit helped to advance the agenda of the TPP and improve its prospects for approval? Ambassador Sasae: Very much so! In the process leading up to the Prime Minister’s visit there were extensive discussions and negotiations undertaken between the two governments. There was major progress. We are rather close to the final chapter. That is important for not only other countries in the region to know, but also for Congress to be aware of.

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The Prime Minister appealed to Congress and was quite explicit about the fact that Japan and the United States need to have this TPP. It is crucial to creating jobs and employment and to strengthening the export markets for all of the partner countries. There are substantial economic benefits to be gained in this effort. Longer term this is also a national security issue. Longer term security means that people need to see a strong American presence, not just in security matters but in expanding the Asian regional economies as well. Diplomatic Connections: Where trade is concerned, there are highly emotional issues with the domestic constituencies on both sides. The agricultural sector in Japan is always concerned about agricultural imports, and food supplies have always been treated as a national security issue reflecting Japan’s potential vulnerabilities. In the United States there is the automotive issue as well as an abiding concern about job loss that has generated a new surge of support for a “Made in America” emphasis. Can these emotional pockets of resistance to any new trade agreement be overcome? Ambassador Sasae: I think so. I hope so! The age of “trade wars” between the United States and Japan was over a long time ago. Back in the 1980s, even in the 1990s, we had long debates about opening up the countries, what dislocations might occur, what would be the specific arrangements regarding certain industries. But after all of that, we see more direct investment taking place in both countries. Of course there is the exchange of goods and services, but the important thing is that there is more Japanese investment in the United States producing nearly one million American jobs. Interestingly enough, there are many Americans driving Japanese-branded cars, but they are not Japanese cars anymore. The brand is Japanese, but it is an Americanmade car. That is an important awareness. Diplomatic Connections: That was an interesting dimension of the Prime Minister’s trip. It was not just a state visit to Washington, D.C. There was a definite trade and economic recovery dimension to his efforts, an extension of his “Abenomics” emphasis on stimulating the Japanese economy. Ambassador Sasae: There were very good discussions, not only about technology but also about how to encourage venture capitalism and new start-up enterprises. The Prime Minister talked with many entrepreneurs, and I was struck by the fact that Japan’s younger generation is attracted to these high-tech businesses where they can apply their knowledge and develop their business skills. Traditionally, Japanese young people aspired to go to large established companies

that provided job security. They preferred not to go out on their own. But these days that cultural norm is being challenged. That is a good thing for us.

Diplomatic Connections: One of the more persistent and difficult issues between the United States and Japan is the issue of American bases in Japan, particularly on the island of Okinawa. How do you think that will be resolved? Is there a way to work toward defusing that concern? Ambassador Sasae: This issue needs to be placed in the larger context of Asia-Pacific security. There has been a decision, an agreement made with the United States to redistribute American Forces in the region. This includes a reduction of the American footprint in Okinawa by decreasing the number of Marines there and relocating some of them to Guam. In that way there will be more land available to the Okinawan people. That is a political necessity. [Diplomatic Connections Note: About half of all American military personnel in Japan are stationed in Okinawa. There is widespread concern on Okinawa that the bases bring noise, crime and environmental damage to the island.] It is important for the Okinawan people to understand that the presence of American Forces on Japanese soil is vital to our nation’s security. At the same time, we have to make sincere efforts to win the support of the Okinawan people. Diplomatic Connections: A very different final question, Mr. Ambassador. As you look at your long career and especially as you look at your time here as Japan’s Ambassador to the United States, what is on your “to do” list for the future? Ambassador Sasae: First, I think our alliance is stronger now. That is a good thing for which I have long wished. Maintaining and strengthening that alliance has been my most important job since coming to Washington, and it will continue to be so. Second, there are those policy areas where we need to have close policy coordination and cooperation. That is certainly true of the regional security issues we have been discussing, but there are other issues as well. We need to make certain that there are no surprises in our relationship. To accomplish that we have to assure that there is always a good and open dialogue between us. Third, all of this alliance and friendship is based on a wider and deeper level of exchanges between the people of Japan and the United States. Seventy years of exchanges have been enormously productive. Diplomatic Connections: On that note of shared experience, we must bring our conversation to a close. Thank you, Mr. Ambassador. n

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By Roland Flamini

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Joey Oliver/Diplomatic Connections

ention Panama, the Central American country, to virtually anyone and what springs immediately to mind? Its canal, the 48-mile man-made waterway linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans across the Isthmus of Panama. Built and administered by the United States, it was finally handed over to the Panamanians in 2000 and is the cornerstone of an economic boom based primarily on a well-developed services sector that accounts for more than three-quarters of the GDP. In the past two years, growth has recently dipped from its annual average of 8 percent to a still enviable 6 percent. Panama’s ambassador to the United States, Emanuel Gonzalez-Revilla, said in an interview with Diplomatic Connections that this would be sustained, if not bettered, upon mid-2016 completion of a project to double the canal’s width to accommodate the floating behemoths that define today’s maritime industry. Panama’s economic success was doubtless what has prompted neighboring Nicaragua to consider building its own canal along the San Juan River with the backing of a private Chinese financier. Political maturity has been slower in coming to Panama. In 1989, the CIA’s relationship with its long-time agent Manuel Noriega, Panama’s de facto ruler, soured to the point where the United States mounted an invasion to remove him, an episode in Panama’s recent history Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla recalls as “dark days for us.” Times have changed since Noriega’s so-called “narcokleptocracy” of drug trafficking and money laundering. In the 2014 elections President Juan Carlos Varela actually won in part on the promise to clean out corruption — a commitment which, the ambassador says, Varela is now putting into effect.

H.E. Emanuel Gonzalez-Revilla Ambassador of Panama to the United States D I P L O M A T I C C O N N E C T I O N S B U S I N E S S E D I T I O N | J U LY - A U G U S T 2 0 1 5

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A merchant ship sails along the Panama Canal.

Diplomatic Connections: This is your first diplomatic

the 1970s, when he was 27 years old.

post. What was your previous occupation? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: I was in business in the private sector, basically an investor with interests in financial services, energy, shipping and several other projects. Diplomatic Connections: Until the president asked you to come to Washington as ambassador? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: Five years ago I almost went to New York as our ambassador to the U.N., but the timing wasn’t right. My children were too young and my wife and I decided not to go. When President Varela was running for office, he would always tell my wife and myself that if he won he would send me to Washington. This time we couldn’t say no. But I’m not the first in my family to hold the post. My father’s brother was Panama’s ambassador to Washington in

Diplomatic Connections: If anybody around the world

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knows one thing about Panama, it’s that it has the canal that connects the two great oceans. But how do the Panamanians regard the canal? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: It’s an icon of Panama. We’re very proud of it and of what we have been able to achieve since we took over administering the canal on January 1, 2000. It’s a very important part of the economy. However, Panama is more than just the canal. It’s the banking center, it’s the ports, it’s an incredible air hub. We have the second largest free trade zone in the world, and, of course, beaches. We have two oceans less than 50 miles from each other and they couldn’t be more different. We have tremendous resources to exploit when it comes to tourism, but we

adding another lane, and it was actually started, but was stopped because of World War II and never resumed.

Diplomatic Connections: So the United States was the original owner?

Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: I wouldn’t say it was

have a long way to go still on that front. But mostly I think the people in Panama are great. It’s a land of immigrants, so we have people from all over the world. Diplomatic Connections: What percentage of the national economy is the revenue from the canal? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: The canal is probably a little bit under 5 percent — $2.6 billion in revenue. But indirectly it’s a lot more than that. Diplomatic Connections: And the plan is now to widen it. Is this the first time that it has been altered in any significant way since it was built? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: Actually no. The French came first and tried to build it and that didn’t go anywhere, and the United States took over in the early 1900s and ended up building it. In the 1930s there was a plan to expand it by

owned by the Americans. There was a treaty that basically gave the Americans the right to administer the Canal Zone, and it was under the U.S. Department of Defense. The last U.S. chairman of the board of the Panama Canal was the undersecretary of the Army. A treaty was signed in 1970 which basically spelled out the mechanism by which the Canal Zone was turned over to Panama, and that included several military bases. Diplomatic Connections: Is there still an American military presence? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: No. It was a staggered process. The Americans returned bases and the railroad. The last thing to be turned over was the operation of the canal itself. Basically what the country has done is undertaken a re-development of all that very valuable real estate. So, for example, where some bases were before you now have ports. The railroad was also redeveloped. Diplomatic Connections: Is the current project to double the width of the canal? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: Think of it as another lane that will be able to handle longer and bigger ships. Right now, the largest container ship that can go through the canal can carry close to 4,000 containers, but the ships going through the expanded canal will have a capacity of 13,000 containers. So, it will triple the container capacity per ship that can go through the canal. Diplomatic Connections: Is there a time frame for this project? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: The first locks were flooded in June, on the Atlantic side. Then they have to finish the Pacific side. The intention is to have the expanded canal operational by the beginning of the second quarter of 2016, likely around March or April of next year. Diplomatic Connections: Then you will have tripled the canal’s capacity. Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: In terms of container ships, yes. Of course, you have water limitations and other things, thus we say we’re going to double the capacity of the canal. Diplomatic Connections: If the so-called Torrijos-Carter Treaty was signed in 1970, why did the canal handover take so long?

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agreed that there would be a transition of a number of years. Diplomatic Connections: What is your take on Nicaragua’s plans to build a second canal? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: From what we understand, it’s a private venture and you have to ask the Nicaraguans how they’re going to build it and the reason behind it. What we can do in Panama is continue to run the canal as efficiently as we can. With expansion almost ready we’re going to be able to accommodate 90 percent of the ships that sail the seas in the world. Panama is more than the canal, and the canal itself is more than the canal, by which I mean that the canal is more than just the ditch, it’s everything around it. We have the air hub, the banking center, a significant amount of legal services, an ecosystem of ports. That takes a lot of time to create, so we’re confident that we’re going to continue to be competitive. If the Nicaraguans want to build one, then we’ll compete with them. At the end of the day, competition makes you better. Diplomatic Connections: Until recently, and along with other Latin American countries, Panama has had a boom economy… Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: Last year economic growth was around 6 percent of the GDP, but the average over the last 10 years was 8.5 percent. The peak was a little bit over 12.5 percent. We’re forecasting 6 percent for the

A map of Central America showing the Panama Canal (center) as well as three originally proposed routes for new and larger capacity canals to the north and south of what was the existing channel when Lyndon B. Johnson was president.

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next five years. On the other hand, inflation has also gone down — from 6 percent to 2 percent.

Diplomatic Connections: What are the main elements of this growth?

Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: I think our plans for the canal, which have had an effect on the economy. Also, government infrastructure and private sector investment. We encourage foreign investment. We have incentives for multi-nationals setting up shop in Panama — regional headquarters, from the tax perspective, and also more flexible labor requirements. We have about 100 regional headquarters in Panama, whereas a decade ago we had not even half of that. We have U.S. corporations like Dell, Procter & Gamble, Caterpillar and many others. And then the incredible air connection that we have. Diplomatic Connections: And yet your period of growth was not based on commodities as it was for most of the hemisphere. You don’t have raw materials, and as a consequence you are not as dependent on China as a major importer of commodities. Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: No,

Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: In the treaty it was

Ed Grimaldo/AFP/Getty Images

Panama Canal Administrator Jorge Luis Quijano (C) opens a valve to begin filling the new Aguas Claras locks with water from the Gatun Lake for the first time, on June 11, 2015, in Aguas Claras, Colon Province, 53 km from Panama City. Crews began flooding part of the widened Panama Canal for its first operational tests, the group responsible for the massive project said.

we’re essentially a service economy. We don’t export commodities. About 80 percent of our GDP is service based. At the end of the day our forte is intrinsically a logistical center because of our location, because of the canal. We’re a hub. That’s our strength and we need to leverage that going forward. Diplomatic Connections: The other thing people are apt to remember about Panama is the U.S. invasion to remove, and eventually arrest, Noriega. Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: Dark days for us. It was a historical moment in our history, but we’ve come a long way since that day in late December 1989. I was not living in Panama at the time. I was in college in the United States, and I didn’t go back until 1992 because of the political crisis.

Diplomatic Connections: Despite the economic growth, Panamanians, in presidential elections in May 2014 rejected the ruling party’s choice for president — and President Ricardo Martinelli’s wife for vice-president — and elected the opposition candidate, Mr. Varela. How do you account for that rebuff? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: It’s partly a Panamanian idiosyncrasy. Since 1989 not one single party has retained power in an election. The Panamanian people don’t like to see the same face and no party has been able to repeat its initial success. Every time there is talk of re-election people get upset, and if you ask why you get a thousand answers. It’s part of who we are, I think. Martinelli did try to own the country’s economic growth, but people don’t necessarily attribute the

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growth to the government, but to the system as a whole. Diplomatic Connections: Didn’t Mr. Varela campaign on the promise of ending corruption? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: There were allegations of corruption within the government, and Varela ran a campaign for a government that was transparent and fiscally responsible. He also ran on the theme that the government should be for the people. He said many times that the presidency’s main purpose was to serve the people, not to do business. Diplomatic Connections: But has President Varela followed through in his campaign promise to clean up corruption? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: President Varela is sending a clear message that corruption will not be accepted with impunity. Some irregularities were found in some government departments — some misappropriations of government funds. The cases were turned over to the judicial system for investigation, and the cases are following the normal course of the process. It’s not a political witch hunt. It is something that needs to be done. 40

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Diplomatic Connections: Panama has just been the venue of The Latin American Summit, which Cuba attended for the first time at the insistence of some of the other participants. What role, if any, did Panama play in calling for Cuban participation? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: That goes back to the summit in Cartagena when it was agreed by the majority of the states that Cuba needed to be invited to the next summit in Panama. But Panama has traditionally played a role of building bridges between countries. We’ve spoken to all sides always, and President Varela wanted to play that traditional role. In October, Panama announced that Cuba had been invited; I think it was a savvy decision, and we have all seen the results. In December, President Obama decided to normalize relations with Cuba. The whole Western Hemisphere was a winner at that summit because when the U.S. offered an olive branch to Cuba, it also toned down the tensions with other countries and should help improve America’s relationship with other nations in the region. Diplomatic Connections: Venezuela, for example? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: Yes. We’re neighbors, so

Johan Ordonez/AFP/Getty Images

Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela (2L) is applauded by his American colleagues after giving his speech during the opening ceremony of the VII Americas Summit in Panama City on April 10, 2015.

Raul Arboleda/AFP/Getty Images

we need to make sure that we have a relationship. You don’t always agree with your family members, but you try to find middle ground. The world is so complicated today, with all the problems in the Middle East, the Ukraine. The political problems we have in Latin America are actually quite small in comparison, and there’s a light at the end of the tunnel in some issues. Colombia’s peace agreement with the FARC, for example, that’s huge. We have free elections [in the hemisphere]. We have mostly democratic countries in the region. Diplomatic Connections: Would you agree though that the end of the commodity boom is altering politics as well as economics in the hemisphere? Growth in the hemisphere is now what — 1 percent? — and left-wing governments are beginning to feel pressure? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: The tremendous economic growth in the region has reduced poverty; I remember hearing that there are 200 million less poor people in the region. That also creates an effect. We need to have stable institutions. I think what creates more threats to stability than anything else is all the corruption scandals that are coming out in the different countries. We have corruption in Panama. You have the allegations of corruption in Brazil, there’s Guatemala and so forth. If you have strong institutions and efficient governments, the region can continue to grow and improve the lives of its people. In Panama we were growing at 8 percent, but now it’s lower; in the last government, foreign debt increased by $10 billion, which is significant when compared to previous years, but we’re being a lot more fiscally responsible now. You have to basically make changes according 42

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Panama’s President Juan Carlos Varela and his wife Lorena Castillo pose with President Obama before the opening ceremony of the VII Americas Summit, in Panama City on April 10, 2015. Obama and Cuba’s Raul Castro stood with other regional leaders at the start of a historic Summit of the Americas.

to the economic reality of the moment. I think it all boils down to transparent government and state institutions. If you have that you can take care of the rest. Diplomatic Connections: How are Panama’s bilateral relations with the United States? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: Great. We’ve been friends and allies for over a hundred years. It’s a very close relationship and we cooperate tremendously in security issues. Diplomatic Connections: How much joint activity is there in the U.S. offensive against narcotics? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: We are active participants with the U.S. in curtailing drug traffic. But also illegal immigration, money laundering, human trafficking, illegal arms trade. As President Varela says, there are people who live by the rule of law, and there are people who live outside the rule of law, and you can call those outside the rule of law drug traffickers or terrorists, but in the end they use the same methods and the same channels whether they are moving drugs or arms. Our fight includes strengthening our supervision not only of the banking system. We recently passed a

sweeping law that targets 30 industries for supervision, requiring reporting to prevent money laundering. There are probably more industries regulated in Panama than in the U.S. — or Europe for that matter. We want to make sure we protect our banking position. Diplomatic Connections: And you have to protect the canal… Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: And we do. It’s not only in Panama’s interest to keep the canal safe. If something happens to the canal world trade is affected — 160 countries make use of it. So, every year we do a security exercise with the participation of 15 or 20 countries. But it’s beyond that. We have to keep our border safe, and make sure our coast is not used by drug traffickers, or the financial system, or the free zone. Diplomatic Connections: How large is the Panamanian diaspora in this country? Ambassador Gonzalez-Revilla: Not large. Panamanians are not emigrants by nature. We have the largest middle class in Latin America, and we receive more immigrants than people leaving. n

Panama’s President Juan Carlos Varela (R, rear) and President Obama witness the agreement signing between (from left) GE Aviation President and CEO David Joyce, Boeing Chairman and CEO Jim McNerney, COPA Airlines Chairman Stanley Motta and COPA Airlines CEO Perdo Heilbron at a hotel in Panama City on April 10, 2015, in the framework of the VII Summit of the Americas. The deal to buy 61 Boeing 737 aircraft is the largest commercial transaction between a Panamanian and a U.S. company.

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funny thing happened on the way to American Pharoah becoming racing’s first Triple Crown winner in 37 years. Diplomacy broke out at the historic “Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown,” the 140th running of the XpressBet.com Preakness Stakes®. The race, traditionally held on the third Saturday of May, takes place at Baltimore’s Pimlico Race Course and follows the Kentucky Derby. Its outcome determines whether there will be a potential Triple Crown winner entering the Belmont Stakes, held three weeks later. The Maryland Jockey Club, founded in 1743, before the American Revolutionary War, and chartered as the oldest sporting organization in North America, selected the Embassy of Canada as the host nation for the 2015 International Pavilion at the Preakness. Win the Kentucky Derby, and a horse begins a grueling three-races-in-five-weeks grind that tests the best of three-year-old thoroughbreds. Win the Preakness 44

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Keegan Bursaw/Embassy of Canada

Ambassador Gary Doer receives the international salute from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and U.S. Park Police.

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Denmark, Japan and Peru. Introduced to the series of events that celebrate the Preakness Stakes and all involved in it in 2010, the International Pavilion is a venue designed to attract leaders of business, government, culture and diplomacy. The host country and its ambassador are welcome to share their country’s heritage, attractions, cuisine, culture, and trade and investment opportunities with invited guests in a context that is simultaneously designed to be attractive, informative, entertaining and relaxing. Given the long-standing relationship between Canada and the United States, this year’s pavilion was designed to reinforce camaraderie and encourage even deeper cooperation. The eight-horse field for the Preakness also had a bit of Canadian flavor with two Canadian-bred horses, Danzig Moon

Ambassador Doer fist pumps with exercise trainer Jorge Alvarez, the gentleman who spends more time atop American Pharoah than Victor Espinoza, at the official saddling trackside. 46

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Keegan Bursaw/Embassy of Canada

on top of the Derby and suddenly a horse is a legitimate contender for the Triple Crown. In announcing the decision, Maryland Jockey Club President enthused, “We are honored to have the Embassy of Canada as partners for this landmark event. Through a showcase of Canada’s heritage, culture and business strengths, we are confident that our guests will come away from Preakness Day with a renewed appreciation of the special relationship that we share with our neighbors to the north.” Accepting the honor of hosting this International Pavilion, a spokesperson for the Canadian Embassy observed that, “As a friend, neighbor, partner and ally of the United States, we look forward to highlighting our unique relationship with the U.S. and the State of Maryland.” In previous years the International Pavilion has been hosted by Spain, Mexico,

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Vancouver Olympics Gold Medalist Lindsey Vonn meets Ambassador Doer in the Under Armour Chalet hosted by Kevin Plank.

And that is precisely what the International Pavilion at the Preakness Stakes does. It is a boost to the local economy, a sporting event that attracts global attention, a street festival of fashion and entertainment. It is a place where the world can celebrate the sheer beauty of thoroughbred racing, experience the thrill of a stretch-run to the finish line and share in a history-making moment along the road to the Triple Crown. Not the stuff of the Nobel Peace Prize, perhaps, but surely a human part of the ground on which international peace and prosperity must be laid. And that’s not bad for an old-fashioned horse race and a $2 bet, eh? n Unfortunately, on June 14, 2015, Danzig Moon suffered a compound fracture while racing the Plate Trial Stakes in Canada. The horse was humanely euthanized.

Keegan Bursaw/Embassy of Canada

and Tale of Verve, entering the starting gate. Danzig Moon, trained by leading Canadian trainers Mark and Norman Casse and bred by former Canadian Football League tackle and Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame member Brad Graham, finished fifth in a field of 18 thoroughbreds at the Kentucky Derby but had a disappointing sixth place finish at the Preakness. Despite Danzig Moon’s stronger racing record, it was long-shot Tale of Verve, owned and bred by Canadian diamond magnate Charles Fipke, that managed a surprising second place challenge to American Pharoah. The Preakness isn’t just a showcase for thoroughbred horses. It’s also a showplace for pageantry, fashion and celebrity. High on the celebrity list was Olympic gold medalist Lindsey Vonn, guest of Under Armour based in Baltimore and founded by Maryland native Kevin Plank who is also a horse breeder and the owner of Sagamore Racing. Pageantry continued as the entire crowd was treated to a rare sighting of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The U.S. Park Police provided horses to the RCMP for this ceremonial law enforcement lap by the two federal police forces. Through it all, indefatigable and ever enthusiastic international host Gary Doer, Canada’s Ambassador to the United States, was at the center of things. He presided over a celebration of Canadian-American friendship that brought together Preakness-goers from leading business executives to state and local government officials, and from diplomats and U.S. government officials to celebrities from the worlds of sports and entertainment. Ambassador Doer repeatedly characterizes the relationship between Canada and the United States as a “partnership for economic prosperity and North American security.” The Preakness Stakes may not be at the top of that formidable agenda, but from time to time it is good to bring the high-flown concerns of the global economy, international security, climate change and diplomatic negotiation down to the local level.

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By Roland Flamini

ritish royals continue to appear on the Washington landscape at regular intervals this year. First it was Prince William, then Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. With the cherry blossoms in late Spring came the charming and erudite Princess Michael of Kent promoting her latest book. Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz, 70, is the Bohemianborn wife of Queen Elizabeth II’s first cousin Prince Michael, younger brother of the Duke of Kent. She is the author of several works of history and historical fiction. “Agnes Sorel: Mistress of Beauty” is the second book of her Anjou Trilogy, which chronicles the successive rise to power of three women in the royal court of France in the 15th century. Speaking at a lunch in her honor at Washington’s Metropolitan Club, Princess Michael describes the loves, intrigues, follies and villainies 50

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of her heroines in the somewhat misnamed Age of Chivalry, bathing her fascinated audience in a drizzle of meticulously researched period detail. Yet she doesn’t consider herself a historian. “I tell stories,” she says in a conversation at a subsequent reception. “What I write is factually true, but I invent dialogue. Pure history may quote from letters, but that’s not dialogue. I write what I think someone said.” She writes in English (which she speaks with no accent, but with a slight lisp) because at home in Austria, and then with her Hungarian-born mother Countess Marianne Szapáry, in — of all places — Australia, “We had all these languages floating around.” The family even played multi-lingual Scrabble in which words could be spelled in English, German, French or Italian. The fun part is the research, but she is not

Photos by Joey Oliver of Diplomatic Connections

Her Royal Highness Princess Michael of Kent

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Her Royal Highness Princess Michael of Kent

one of those writers who agonize over their prose. “I’ve never had any difficulty writing. My mother made me do a typing course and I write blind at 80 words a minute on the computer,” she says. In a rather ironic way, she owes her writing career to marrying a royal. She had come to London from Vienna to train as an interior designer, and after various internships had launched her own company. But when she married Prince Michael in 1978, Buckingham Palace (referred to as BP in royal circles) told her it was not seemly for a member of the royal family to be in that business, and she would 52

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have to stop. “That was a long time ago, and things have changed,” she explains, “but in those days, ‘trade’ wasn’t a proper occupation [for a royal].” As minor royals, Princess Michael and her husband receive no financial help from the so-called Civil List; or, as the official website of the British monarchy, puts it, “Prince Michael receives no public money, but undertakes a range of public duties. He has his own private consultancy business which helps Prince and Princess Michael to fund and carry out charitable and other duties.” For Princess Michael merely being tall, blonde and deco-

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Roland Flamini, Diplomatic Connections, in conversation with HRH Princess Michael of Kent

rative was not an option, so she decided to channel her intellect, her languages and her interest in history into writing, on the theory that BP was hardly likely to object to authorship as an occupation. The books have led to a lucrative secondary occupation lecturing at universities, museums and such gatherings as the Metropolitan Club lunch. The princess writes about the scandals and intrigues of the French court with such relish it was put to her that the world of gossip writing had lost a good columnist. “No, that would offend and hurt,” she protests. “I would never want to hurt anybody.” That’s one reason, she adds, why she has written “about every century except the 20th, which I won’t touch. I won’t write about people who are still alive.” So she remains at the receiving end of gossip, a lot of it uncomplimentary. If the barbs of the British media bother her, she is not admitting to it. “Margaret Thatcher advised me never to read anything written about me, and I don’t,” she says. And yet, in Queen Elizabeth II’s garden of broken marriages, Prince Michael and his wife have proved among the sturdier plants — the couple have been married 37 years. When he wed Marie Christine von Reibnitz in Vienna in 1978, Prince Michael lost his place in the royal line of succes54

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sion because his bride was a Catholic and the Act of Settlement of 1701 specifically barred members of the royal family from marrying Catholics. However, in 2013, the 300-year-old statute was amended to allow royals to marry Catholics with an exception made for the heir to the throne. “So my husband was back in the line of succession,” says Princess Michael. But in the interim the line had acquired several new members from later generations. “When we were married, my husband was eighth in line. Now he is forty-second,” she adds. The princess was more interested in talking about another side of her lineage. American genealogists have just told her she is related to a large number of Americans, including George Washington, President Franklin Roosevelt and the poet T.S. Eliot. “When my husband makes speeches in America he starts off with, ‘I was born on the Fourth of July and FDR was my godfather,’” observes Princess Michael. “I can’t wait to tell him, he may be your godfather, but he’s my twelfth cousin, and not yours.” But these days, she has closer and more recent U.S. connections. Her son Frederick, 36, is an investment banker living in Los Angeles. Her 34-year-old daughter Gabriella graduated from Brown and is a journalist in the U.K. n

or 60 years, a traditional glass chandelier acquired by former French Ambassador to Washington Maurice Couve de Murville graced the main staircase of the embassy residence at 2221 Kalorama Road. But when the residence was reopened earlier this year following a 26-month interior renovation, Couve’s chandelier was gone. In its place was a trendy light fixture consisting of three large shining hoops artfully illuminated from a plaque in the ceiling. Ambassador Gérard Araud, the residence’s 20th occupant, bought the Regency Chain Light created by the New York designer Carrie Livingston and had it installed when he moved into the house. A political commentator could have a field day working out the symbolic meaning of that change as it relates to French diplomatic style; but on another level it’s one of several signs that the restoration has added a modern flavor to the quintessentially French elegance of the residence’s public rooms. In part, the changes reflect the artistic taste of Ambassador Araud, who took up 56

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A portrait of Gilbert du Motien, Marquis de Lafayette, hero of the American War of Independence and icon of French-American relations is prominently displayed beside the main staircase. The work is a copy of the original by Joseph-Desire Court (1797 – 1865) in the palace of Versailles.

Photos by Paula Morrison of Diplomatic Connections

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The spacious Empire Salon reflects French styles of the Restoration Period (1815 – 1830) and the Second Empire of Napoleon III. The carpet is from Felletin, neighboring town to Aubusson, and includes images of bees, Napoleon’s emblem. Wall fabrics were specially made for the embassy by the textile firm of Maison La Manach of Tours, manufacturers of printed and woven fabrics since 1829, as are the red and gold chair coverings. In 2013, Manach was acquired by Pierre Frey. On page 58, the painting flanking the gilt mirror is by Pierre Bonnard, Coin de Table, painted in 1935 at Le Cannet. Also, a work by French contemporary abstract painter Monique Frydman, 1990. The bronze and glass chandelier is from the Restoration Period, and was supplied by the Mobilier National.

his post in Washington just in time to add his personal touch to the project. Hence, it was goodbye to Couve’s chandelier and the tapestry on the stairway, which has given way to a contemporary hanging by James Brown, an American artist who lives and works in France. Araud also ordered a color change in the “salle à manger” (dining room) from green walls to a more neutral pale yellow, with sand-colored cornices and Roman shades replacing the heavy drapes. The effect was to highlight the six cartoons by Nicolas Coypel and Claude Audran III for the Gobelin tapestry series “Portières des Dieux” (“Portals of the Gods”) in the early 18th century. Parisian-born American architect Jules Henri de Sibour built the 27,000-square-foot, 19-bedroom, vaguely Tudorstyle mansion in 1910 for a Philadelphia business tycoon. The renovation work started under Araud’s predecessor François Delattre. In 2012, Delattre and his wife Sophie l’Helias

Delattre moved out to a rented house on Foxhall Road — and into the residence moved a team of specialists from Paris supplied by the Mobilier national, the French government department which restores and supplies furniture, Aubusson carpets, Gobelin tapestries and works of art to embellish French embassies worldwide and other official buildings. Over the two years, with some of the work contracted out to Washington firms, French cabinetmakers, restorers, and painters reupholstered chairs and sofas on-site, gave fresh life to furniture and repainted walls — the latter generally in the neutral tones currently much in favor by interior designers. For example, in the “Salon Empire,” wall coverings in the Second Empire style of imperial red silk have given way to neutral off-white, but the square-backed fauteuils and sofas retain the red upholstery. The dazzling, massive carpet with its big N (for Napoleon) and bee motif (the Napoleonic emblem) is still in place. So is the painting by Pierre Bonnard,

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Wood-paneled salon (salon des boiseries) with French windows opening onto the residenceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s spacious terrace and garden. Above: The bust on the inlaid Louis XV-style commode made in the 19th century is of Benjamin Franklin, another prominent figure in French-American relations. Page 61, the small portrait on the left of the fireplace is of Maria Theresa, Princess of the Two Sicilies by the French painter Jean Alaux (1786 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 1864). The Heriz carpet was restored in the workshops of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York. 60

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“Coin de Table,” from the series painted at Le Cannet around 1935. The makeover cost $4 million, with a lot of it going on repairing the leaking roof and eccentric plumbing, improving the heating system and upgrading the kitchen. Embassy officials said it was the most comprehensive restoration project since the French government bought the building in 1936. In the early 1930s, Paul Claudel, France’s ambassador to Washington (yes, the illustrious poet, playwright, author of “Partage de Midi,” etc. was also a diplomat), urged the government in Paris to acquire a permanent diplomatic residence in D.C. The result was the acquisition of the so-called William Watson Lawrence House for the purpose. The first occupant was Andre Lefebvre de la Boulaye, who completed his term in the new residence. His successor, George Bonnet, moved in directly on arrival. Bonnet was a politician and former government minister who had earlier been harshly critical of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and who spoke no English. Things got a lot better after that and later occupants have all been English-speaking, cultivated men and capable diplomats, up to and including Gérard Araud. One dividend that any foreign chief of mission in Washington can count on is good housing, but it’s not just his or her residence. Like the ambassa-

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dor, the building represents a foreign country — actually is foreign territory — and is the main setting for the embassy’s outreach activity. Thus about 10,000 guests visit the French residence every year to attend receptions, dinners and other events in the five spacious formal salons on the ground level. The ambassador’s private apartment is one floor up, along with guest rooms for the steady stream of visiting officials from Paris (“I’m in charge of a bed and breakfast,” Araud comments more or less jokingly) plus some offices. In the basement is the large, state-of-the-art kitchen, with its staff of 10.

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Page 62: The vestibule. The posthumous portrait (or copy of earlier work) of Rochambeau is attributed to Philippe Lariviére (1798 – 1876). The bronze Empire sconces come from the storerooms of the Mobilier National.; Botton left: a corner of the sun-filled music room (there’s a piano out of the frame), with its light-colored ‘Fifties furniture and bright furnishings.; Pag 63: The entrance hall: the striking painting is by Simon Hantai, prominent Hungarian-born but Paris-based abstract painter who until his death in 2008 was a leading figure in the European art world. Also, a further glimpse of the wood paneled salon, with the Charles Wilson Peale portrait of George Washington visible on the right. Flanking the portrait — a pair of Louis XVI style chairs upholstered in a Metaphone fabric called Abysses Acier.

Scattered around the place are reminders of France’s historic links with the United States. In the wood-paneled reception room there’s a copy of a well-known portrait of George Washington attributed to Charles Willson Peale, of which a full-length version (“Portrait of George Washington at the Battle of Princeton, January 3.1777”) is at the National Museum of the Palace of Versailles, and — somewhat to Ambassador Araud’s regret — a large portrait of the Comte de Lafayette by the grand staircase and a marble bust of Lafayette elsewhere.

Araud says the French regard Lafayette as more of a spin merchant than a soldier, and says he capitalized on his personal friendship with Washington to exaggerate his role in the American Revolution. The real soldier was the Comte de Rochambeau, whose smaller portrait hangs in the entrance hall. It was Rochambeau, a seasoned field officer, who had the military experience (and the troops and equipment) to carry out the siege of Yorktown that finally convinced the English to give up. n

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Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania H.E. Mr. Linas Linkevicius visiting California on May 31 and June 1 to open a Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Los Angeles. Right: During his visit, Minister Linkevicius participated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the premises of the newly established Consulate General located at 11766 Wilshire Boulevard, West Los Angeles, California. 68

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arly this summer, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas LinkeviË&#x2021;cius officially opened a new Lithuanian Consulate General for the Republic of Lithuania in Los Angeles, California. He combined his trip to the West Coast with time at the United Nations in New York City, where Lithuania served as President of the Security Council during the month of May. This is Lithuaniaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first Consulate General on the West Coast, and it is intended not only to serve California but also the entire West Coast of the United States from San Diego to Alaska. In addition, the Los Angeles Consulate General will serve the states of Arizona, Utah, Nevada and Hawaii. New Consul General Darius Gaidys took up his Los Angeles post on June 1, 2015. This will be Lithuaniaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fourth formal diplomatic presence in the United States following the establishment of the

embassy in Washington, D.C., and Consulates General in New York and Chicago. The formalization of a Lithuanian presence on the West Coast will enhance the delivery of consular services and help promote cooperation with the regional Lithuanian community. It will also serve to promote tourism and cultural exchanges and contribute significantly to the promotion of trade and investment opportunities. Outside of Washington, D.C., the locus of federal government in the United States, and New York City, the home of multinational diplomacy centered around the United Nations, Los Angeles has become a key site for international representation. With more than 60 Consulates General functioning there, Los Angeles ranks behind only New York and Hong Kong in the world for the number of countries that have established consulates within its boundaries. Los Angeles has become an international crossroads bringing together

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North and South America with Asia-Pacific. In addition, Los Angeles is home to a significant Lithuanian-American community, estimated at 100,000, and a prominent Jewish community that sees its heritage in the once vibrant Lithuanian Jewish community that thrived before the Holocaust. During his West Coast stop, Foreign Minister Linkeviˇcius met with the European Consuls General in Los Angeles to discuss issues of common concern and report on the work of the United Nations Security Council under Lithuania’s presidency. He also made time in his schedule to meet with members of the American Jewish Committee in Los Angeles and noted that he felt “at home” because many of them had Lithuanian roots. With this group he discussed Lithuania’s many achievements in the 25 years since regaining independence in 1990 and engaged in a wide-ranging question and answer session that touched on everything from business opportunities to energy issues to Middle East politics. The opening of the Consulate General was celebrated by a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new offices on Wilshire Boulevard and with a gala reception at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. The Reagan Library site was chosen because of President Reagan’s role in confronting the Soviet Union leading up to Lithuania’s declaration of independence. Foreign Minister Linkeviˇcius expressed his thanks for the assistance of the United States in gaining Lithuania’s freedom and noted his country’s successful transformation to democracy and economic prosperity. Lithuanian Ambassador to the United States Žygimantas Pavilionis expressed pleasure at seeing his “brainchild” open for business. This new location, he noted, will help to raise Lithuania’s profile across the United States, increase cultural and diplomatic cooperation, and encourage new business and investment opportunities. New Consul General Darius Gaidys expressed his hope that the new Lithuanian Consulate will effectively serve the Lithuanian community far into the future. Lithuania has long been represented by an Honorary ˇ Consul in Los Angeles. Vytautas Cekanauskas, an American 70

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citizen of Lithuanian origin, served as Honorary Consul of Lithuania in Los Angeles for more than 30 years after the position was established in 1977 by the Chief of the Lithuanian Diplomatic Service (in exile). He continued in office to see Lithuania declare its independence in 1990 following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of Soviet occupation of his country. He proudly served Lithuania’s new government up until his death. ˇ Following her father’s death, Daiva CekanauskasNavarrette was appointed Lithuania’s Honorary Consul for California. Trained in economics and international business at UCLA, she is a securities trader and investment adviser. She remains in a similar position as Honorary Consul in Santa Barbara, California, following the opening of the new Consulate General. In many ways, the opening of a new Consulate General is routine diplomatic business. But, in this case, the opening of the Los Angeles Consulate General is a reminder of Lithuania’s unique history as a captive Baltic state, along with Latvia and Estonia, under Imperial Russian, Nazi German and later Soviet domination. Lithuanians remember the Interwar Period, from 1919 – 1940, as a brief era of independence and economic prosperity. They do not want their current 25 years of independence, democracy and economic growth to be similarly short-lived. The opening of the new Consulate General offered a poignant moment with Foreign Minister Linkeviˇcius, Ambassador Pavilionus, and Consul General Gaidys gathered around a sign depicting the Great Seal of Lithuania — a knight in armor astride his horse ready to protect his heritage and his country’s identity. That imagery remembers Lithuania’s past, but it is also a cautionary tale about protecting Lithuania’s current independence. Lithuania is deeply concerned about Russia’s revisionist approach to history under President Putin, whose current assertiveness seems to regard the post-1991 world order of a reunified Germany and sovereign democracies in Eastern Europe as essentially unsatisfactory. As Foreign Minister Linkeviˇcius noted in a recent op-ed piece, “The Russian peo-

ple are not our enemies.” But even as Europe and the United States seek reengagement with Russia, cautions Linkeviˇcius, “There are some major differences with Europe’s situation today. The ideological divide during the Cold War was real. Today it is just a Kremlin construct, invented by modern Russia to cover failures of reform. It is not a serious alternative to Western liberal democracy.” Consular diplomacy is often seen as the workaday stuff, the routine bureaucratic necessities of international relations. Lithuania’s opening of its new Consulate General in Los Angeles suggests that nothing could be farther from the truth. It is simultaneously an important extension of Lithuania’s political and economic diplomacy in the United States and one small point of light reminding the United States, NATO and the European Union that, in Foreign Minister Linkeviˇcius’ words, “We do not and will not accept outdated thinking about spheres of influence and a zero-sum mentality [regarding European security]. We should not falter on NATO’s open door policy and our ultimate goal of a Europe whole, free and at peace.” From small gestures such as the opening of a new Consulate General, important policy initiatives grow. n

Minister Linkevicius had a very intense agenda with numerous meetings, including one with the American Jewish Council in Los Angeles.

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Monica Frim says, “Ship ahoy!” as she boards the m/s Paul Gauguin in Tahiti for a luxury cruise of the Society Islands, an archipelago in French Polynesia. Excursions to the islands and lagoons of Huahine, Bora Bora, Moorea and Tahiti take her to sacred sites, bird’s eye lookouts, coral gardens, and underwater adventures with stingrays and sharks.

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by Monica Frim Photography by Dr. John Frim and Monica Frim

nyone who has ever fantasized about an idyllic island will experience a sense of déjà vu in French Polynesia. While hundreds of islands lie scattered on a map like tossed rice at a wedding, a handful of them have become so fabled in stories, songs and paintings that you can taste their ripeness and smell the bounty of their seas and gardens just from hearsay and renown. And when you finally arrive and see for yourself the sky-scraping mountains bursting out of satiny lagoons like razor-backed dragons with emerald tiaras, the scene is

everything you ever imagined a South Seas paradise to be complete with sandy “motus” — flat, palm-fringed coral islets that encircle the rugged volcanic islands like pearls in a necklace.

A Purpose-Built Ship Bora Bora, Moorea and Tahiti are the mainstay stops on the cruise circuit that also includes other islands in the Society Islands group, one of five archipelagos that make up French Polynesia. Although many people refer to the Society Islands

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collectively as Tahiti, Tahiti is actually the island that most often serves as the gateway to other islands. Numerous cruise lines ply the waters, but not all ships are created equal — some are simply too large to anchor in the shallow, reef-laden lagoons. The m/s Paul Gauguin is a luxury cruise ship designed specifically for the shallow lagoons of the South Pacific. Named after the 19th century Post-Impressionist artist (and not so noble savage of Tahiti), the ship has a capacity of only 332 passengers and some 200 crew, which gives it the lowest passenger-to-crew ratio of any luxury liner. All suites and staterooms have ocean views, ample storage space, a minibar stocked daily with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks at no additional cost, and most come with a private balcony. As expected, a cruise of this caliber does not come cheap. The attentive service and convenience of having everything — including all meals, tips and alcoholic beverages, even air travel from the West Coast to Papeete on Air Tahiti Nui — included in the price sweetens the package.

Flight to Paradise With Air Tahiti Nui, the Pacific island immersion begins well before you’re even airborne. From the moment you step on board, the thick,

Tiny islets known as motus surround the island of Bora Bora.

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A floating bar and welcoming serenade at Motu Mahana, Paul Gauguin Cruises’ private island in Taha’a, Society Islands.

Fresh coconut cocktails

The Tahitian gardenia or tiaré is the national flower of French Polynesia

tropical scent of tiaré, the white gardenia that is Tahiti’s national flower, wafts throughout the predominantly sea- and sky-colored cabin. You see one… then another… and another — pinwheels of creamy petals pinned seductively behind the ears of flight attendants with satiny black hair pulled into a bun. Iridescent black pearls — Tahiti’s most exquisite jewelry — stud their earlobes with black-tinged greenish-blue orbs. Already you feel as if you’re in the tropics. But it’s the friendly all-inclusive service that sets Air Tahiti Nui apart from its no-frills North American counterparts. There are no additional fees for luggage, meals, drinks or headphones. All passengers, not just those in business class, get toiletry bags with socks and other amenities. It’s still a long flight — 8 1/2 hours from Los Angeles to Papeete. If it weren’t for the typical airplane seats, getting there would be almost as good as being there.

Islands With Personality The Society Islands consist mostly of soaring volcanic peaks surrounded by barrier reefs that protect them from the brunt of the pummeling surf. But for all their similar landforms, the islands have distinguishing strong suits. Bora Bora’s incredible lagoon is a favorite for water-based activities. Moorea’s rugged interior mountains, ribboned with hiking trails and waterfalls, D I P L O M A T I C C O N N E C T I O N S B U S I N E S S E D I T I O N | J U LY - A U G U S T 2 0 1 5

Matira Point on the island of Bora Bora

Preparing coconut cocktails on Motu Mahana

hold sway for land-based activities. Tahiti has a noisy, trafficchoked six-lane highway running through its most populous city (Papeete), yet Tahaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;a remains a quiet backwater known mostly for vanilla plantations and a girdle of sandy, white motus. Huahine is perhaps the newest island to develop a tourist following, yet the most diverse in terms of culture.

Huahine We approached Huahine, the first island on our cruise itinerary, in the nacreous luster of early morning when its 76

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volcanic hillsides spread like thick black tentacles atop a tinny sea. Then, like a Polaroid print developing before our eyes, the colors sharpened into mountains of green, the various shades overlapping like leaves in a salad, while the surrounding lagoon bled with all the blues of a Pantone color guide. Huahine is arguably the most authentic island of the archipelago, shaped by myths and legends that still linger. Its marae (stone temples) and stone fish traps are the best-preserved archaeological sites in all of the Society Islands, and its sacred blue-eyed eels are still venerated by villagers who feed them

Ă&#x2030;glise de la Sainte Famille (Church of the Holy Family) on the island of Moorea

Parish Church of St. Pierre Celestin de Vaitape on the island of Bora Bora

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Bora Bora But if Huahine prevails in culture and tradition, Bora Bora comes closest to the stereotypical vision of an idyllic South Seas paradise. It has been written about in endless purple prose, yet no cliché can adequately describe that first glimpse from a ship when Otemanu and Pahia, Bora Bora’s highest peaks, rise like pincers out of a luminescent lagoon. Dappled sunlight and puffy clouds dance textured shadows over the mountains and sprinkle the surrounding lagoon in jewel-like shades of blue: aquamarine, sapphire, beryl, cobalt and turquoise depending on the depth of the water. Bora Bora really is as beautiful as they say. It was on Bora Bora that Marlon Brando fell in love dur-

ing the filming of the 1961 movie, “Mutiny on the Bounty,” then married Tarita Teriipaia, his 19-year-old co-star. While the marriage didn’t last, Bora Bora’s renown as, arguably, the most romantic island in the world did. “South Pacific,” the musical that Rodgers and Hammerstein based loosely on James Michener’s novel “Tales of the South Pacific,” also furthered the island’s romantic image, although its fictional Bali Hai was not in Bora Bora, as some people believe, but in Moorea. No matter. Bora Bora’s famous Bloody Mary’s Restaurant & Bar still manages to capitalize on the film and musical by displaying the names of some 230 celebrities who have dined or performed there on two walls of fame at the entrance to the thatched roof, sandy-floored restaurant. I have always maintained that travels to exotic places should be opportunities for new experiences. Although Bora Bora’s wide barrier reef provides a variety of snorkeling and boating excursions that include close-up experiences with sharks, stingrays and coral gardens, it was a company called Aquabike Adventure that literally propelled me into a new undertaking. Sitting on an underwater scooter, my husband John and I descended into the glassy depths of the lagoon. The seafloor rose as the sky closed like a bubble of molten

You don’t need to be a certified diver or even a swimmer to drive an underwater scooter with Aquabike Adventure on the island of Bora Bora. 78

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bits of fish as their reward for having brought clean water to the village. Although the island is a latecomer to the jet-setter bandwagon, its white sandy beaches and surrounding lagoon make for snorkeling and diving experiences that rival those on other islands. And it’s one of the best places to pick up Polynesian souvenirs such as black pearls (at the island’s only pearl farm), “pareos” (a wraparound cloth that can be worn in many configurations) and “tifaifai” (appliquéd quilts).

On the island of Bora Bora, the names of Bloody Mary’s celebrity guests are featured on two “walls of fame” at the entrance to the bar and restaurant

glass over our heads — as if an inverted bowl had trapped us, from the shoulders up, in its air bubble. Down we went: four… six… eight… 10 feet… yet our heads stayed dry. We could breathe normally and talk to each other as easily as if we had been riding on land thanks to dive tanks that provided a continuous airflow. Above us the lagoon splintered into mesmerizing patterns of refracted blue sunlight. Below, banks of corals shaped like florets, brains and spongy knobs lived a symbiotic life with clams, crustaceans and fish. John steered the Aquabike through coral canyons guided by the mimed directions of a SCUBA diver out front. I occasionally stuck my hand out the side so the diver could hand me an array of items: a starfish, an empty clam with both shells still joined and bread to feed the fish. Hundreds of black- and white-striped sergeant majors swarmed like prisoners on a rampage, pulling at the mushy bread with nips that tickled my fingers. When there was nothing left in my hand, they moved en masse to the front window to which the diver had attached more bread. The curtain of fish was almost impenetrable. We could barely see where we were going. Back on land we launched into a circle-island tour, from the main city of Vaitape past stands of taro and breadfruit and hotel resorts tucked into tiny inlets. We passed maraes, somewhat less imposing than the ones on Huahine, a river that trickled over concrete stairs, Matira Beach and several lookouts that provided expansive views of the motus with their ubiquitous over-water bungalows. Mount Otemanu loomed like a sentinel over every part of the island. At one point, our Marquesan guide, Teva, veered from the paved road, bouncing the Land Rover over bumps and troughs in the hillside. My teeth practically rattled like castanets. In this thick tropical jungle, the ruts in the road could have swallowed

a small truck. We stopped at a plateau with views in one direction of Motu Toopua and Motu Tevairoa at either end of a string of tiny uninhabited motus that, from this height, looked like a necklace of black pearls on a patterned blue shawl. And there, in the middle of the lagoon was our ship, the Paul Gauguin, floating like a tiny white gel capsule in a bowl of Blue Curaçao. In the opposite direction, the views over Vaitape and the Teavanui Pass were just as dramatic. But Teva had brought us here to show us something that didn’t quite match the universal Swimming with stingrays tame enough to pet on the island of Moorea

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Overwater bungalows on Motu Toopua, Bora Bora

image of paradise â&#x20AC;&#x201D; two cannons (out of eight on the island left over from World War II when the United States developed Bora Bora as a military supply base) poked through the foliage out over the lagoon. Interestingly they had never been fired in battle.

Moorea Paradise means different things to different people, which is why Moorea competes with Bora Bora as a favored port of call among cruise ships and with Tahiti as a place to live. Many people who work in Tahiti live on the island of Moorea. Incredibly, it can take less time to get to Papeete by ferry than by car. Moreover, life on Moorea is quieter. For tourists, Mooreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s serrated peaks rival those of Bora Bora but are somewhat more accessible. A good, paved road takes you past three maraes to the famed Belve80

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Papeete, capital of Tahiti

dere on the ridge of a caldera 1,000 feet below the summit of Mount Tohivea. From this lookout the sweeping views over Mount Rotui flanked by Cook’s Bay and Opunohu Bay on either side are breathtaking. While Moorea’s green pinnacles and deep-dish valleys appeal to the senses, the island’s heaving lagoon hints of adventure. Snorkelling with sharks and stingrays was just the ticket to stir the serotonin without spiking the adrenaline. As we rode the motorboat that would take us to the snorkel site, the sun was turning the water’s burnished sheen from zinc to layers of blue. The term “50 shades of blue” came to mind as yellow-green shorelines turned to strips of turquoise, aquamarine, sapphire and lapis lazuli — glistening in the sunshine like the precious and semi-precious jewels their colors evoked. In places the change in color was as abrupt as a crisply folded sheet of paper. Elsewhere the hues mingled and swirled like magnifications of blue agate marbles. I was attracted to the sea as much as I was afraid of it. I had seen stingrays before, even touched them, but always with some apprehension. I could never think of sharks

exclusive of the movie “Jaws.” It took me a few minutes to realize that these rays, though big as table tops, were playful as kittens and just as soft. I half expected them to purr as they rubbed against my legs and shoulders like cats claiming ownership. I felt a bit more trepidation snorkeling face to face with the sharks. Although I had been assured that reef sharks don’t bite, I questioned whether the sharks knew that.

Tahitian Wrap-Up Back on board the Paul Gauguin, I gathered my memories of islands and entertainment. Wriggling coastlines, viney jungle trails, gardens perfumed with the syrupy scent of red ginger and white-petal edtiaré, melony sunbeams, claw-like peaks, sugary sand, rainbow-hued fish and flowery coral gardens swirled with snippets of shipboard pastimes. I recalled the sumptuous meals in the ship’s three restaurants; lectures by the likes of environmentalist Jean-Michel Cousteau, anthropologist Mark Eddowes and international art dealer Laurance Rudzinoff; evening entertainment by Polynesian song and dance troupes, international musical luminaries

Overwater bungalows of the Sofitel Resort on the island of Moorea

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Courtesy of Frank Lloyd Trust. Photographer: Tim Long

Polynesian entertainers aboard the m/s Paul Gauguin

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and the ship’s very own “Gauguins” and “Gauguines” — Polynesian entertainers who also serve as greeters and instructors for various Tahitian crafts and demonstrations throughout the cruise. I packed them into the chambers of my mind, much like my cruise wear into my suitcase. We’d be leaving our shipboard home the next morning and I needed my memories accessible. I needn’t have worried. Tahiti, the grand matriarch of the Society Islands, perfectly summed up the next day all I had seen and experienced. While exploring the grounds of the InterContinental Tahiti Resort & Spa, I discovered the resort was a microcosm of French Polynesia with miniature pineapple and vanilla plantations, an herb garden, a turtle pond, a lagoonarium for guests to snorkel among corals and tropical fish, even a small man-made coral island for two. Tahiti wasn’t so much a destination — although the cruise included a wonderful historical tour of Papeete’s environs — as a reprieve: a place to process the vacation, allow it to percolate and seep into your psyche before returning home. n

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Diplomatic Connections wishes to thank ... Paul Gauguin Cruises for their sponsorship. Paul Gauguin Cruises operates the m/s Paul Gauguin, a luxury cruise ship designed specifically for the shallow waters of the South Pacific. Since its maiden voyage in 1998, the m/s Paul Gauguin has been the longest continually operating cruise ship in the South Pacific. Known for its attentive service, informality and all-inclusive pricing, Paul Gauguin Cruises is the ultimate choice for discerning travelers to Tahiti and the Society Islands as well as other South Pacific destinations.

For more information, contact Paul Gauguin Cruises at 800-848-6172 or www.pgcruises.com

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Cleveland Clinic Executive Health Program When you have a busy life it’s easy to put yourself lowest on your list of priorities. After all, your family, your employees and your community all depend on you. Your time is at a premium. But it’s important to make time to care for yourself and to care for your health. Optimal health is not only the key to a meaningful life; it makes it easier to juggle all that you do. Cleveland Clinic healthcare professionals have combined world-class medical and wellness services into the most comprehensive, streamlined Executive Health Physical Examination available. We have transformed the traditional executive physical from a data-gathering exam into an integrated, head-to-toe evaluation by some of the world’s top medical staff. We have taken it a step further by also making available experts in nutrition, fitness, and personal and executive coaching. We not only give you the results of your health evaluation, we provide you with the resources to improve them. To learn more or request an appointment: 1.800.553.5056 ext. 45707 (US toll-free) +1.216.444.5707 (International) clevelandclinic.org/executivehealth

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