Diplomatic Connections Mar/Apr 2016

Diplomatic

A Business, Diplomacy & Foreign Policy Publication

MARCH – APRIL 2016 • $7.95

BUSINESS • POLITICS • TRAVEL • ENTERTAINMENT • CONGRESS • MILITARY & DEFENSE

CONGRESSMAN BILL HUIZENGA

NATO

DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE HOLLAND ON THE HILL

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Letter From

the

Publisher

Ever wondered what it would be like to represent one of the world’s smallest countries in Washington? In this issue, Ambassador Hersey Kyota of Palau will give you a glimpse. He’s been in his role a formidable 18 years — and is also the newly-minted dean of the diplomatic corps. This insightful interview offers a candid look at what it means to be an ambassador from a tiny nation working hard to gain the attention of the U.S. and other global superpowers.

The Munich Security Conference was started in 1963 amidst the fear and uncertainly that spread worldwide during the Cold War. Today, the world’s foremost dialogue on security still deals with some of the same issues as 50 years ago (think nuclear weapons) but now also takes into account 21st century realities such as cyber attacks. Our piece covers the most recent Munich Security Conference, a timely read as our increasingly borderless world grapples with how to handle growing numbers of sophisticated threats.

As arguably one of the most famous mothers in the world, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, is using her royal position to shine a spotlight on the children’s mental health crisis in the UK while encouraging young people and their parents to discuss feelings openly. We highlight the Duchess’ work to erase the stigma of mental health challenges by opening a much-needed dialogue relevant not just in Great Britain but the world-at-large.

One of the most wonderful aspects of the Washington diplomatic community is how it recognizes soul-stirring and inspiring humanitarian work. In February, the Embassy of the Netherlands presented the Anne Frank Award and Anne Frank Special Recognition Award to two individuals working to unravel human trafficking. Read our article to learn who the awardees are and how they are helping to break a practice that exploits over 4 million people worldwide.

In this issue we examine the UN’s report “Too Important to Fail: Addressing the Humanitarian Financial Gap,” which lays out the difficulties in funding solutions for multiple “mega-crises.” Launched in Dubai’s International Humanitarian City, the report underlines how the predicament of inadequate funding is leaving millions without necessary humanitarian assistance.

This edition’s travel feature sees our passport getting stamped in the Cook Islands. As one of Polynesia’s most inviting destinations, travelers searching for an authentic experience will delight in finding that the islands are not an over-run tourist destination brimming with cookie-cutter resorts. Far from it. Our writer Monica Frim uncovers captivating sea life, charismatic locals and a land where “rush-hour” simply does not exist. If you’re considering a tropical getaway where you can beat the last of the winter weather, read on to see why the Cook Islands will fit the bill.

UNICEF brought together the worlds of humanitarian advocacy with the glitz of Hollywood as it hosted the 6th Annual UNICEF Biennial Ball in Beverly Hills.

Swapping out the red carpet for a blue one inspired by the UNICEF logo, the event attracted some of the industry’s most glamorous stars including Selena Gomez, Nicole Kidman, Mariah Carey and Molly Sims.

Our next Diplomatic Appreciation Event is just weeks away. Join us at the gorgeous French Embassy on April 12th for an intimate evening where you can meet members of the Washington, D.C., diplomatic/international community while learning more about the exceptional services our sponsors offer you. Hope to see you there!

Warmest regards, Dawn Parker, Publisher Diplomatic Connections 12

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Diplomatic EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Dawn Parker ASSISTANTS TO THE EDITOR Ashley Gatewood Lauren Peace BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT EXECUTIVES Evan Strianese, Scott Goss DESIGN & CREATIVE Betty Watson CONTRIBUTING DESIGNER Larry Smith DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENTS and CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Roland Flamini, James Winship, PhD, Annelinde Hoogendam, Monica Frim

To contact an advertising executive CALL: 202.536.4810 EMAIL: info@diplomaticconnections.com DIPLOMATIC CONNECTIONS WEBSITE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT IMS (Inquiry Management Systems) 304 Park Avenue South, 11th Floor New York, NY 10010 Marc Highbloom, Vice President marc@ims.ca Maria D’Urso, Project Manager Mariad@ims.ca CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHY Christophe Avril; Dr. John Frim; Paula Morrision; Royal Netherlands Embassy

To order photos from the events go to: www.diplomaticconnections.com Send any name or address changes in writing to: Diplomatic Connections 4410 Massachusetts Avenue / #200 Washington, DC 20016 Diplomatic Connections Business Edition is published bi-monthly.

Diplomatic Connections does not endorse any of the goods or services offered herein this publication.

Copyright 2016 by Diplomatic Connections All rights reserved.

Cover photo credits: Duchess of Cambridge, Chris Jackson/Getty Images; Congressman Huizenga, Royal Netherlands Embassy; NATO, Lukas Barth/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images; Holland on the Hill, Royal Netherlands Embassy; Noureen DeWulf, Axelle/BauerGriffin/FilmMagic; Angie Harmon, Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage; Johns Hopkins Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medicine

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H.E. HERSEY KYOTA AMBASSADOR OF THE REPUBLIC OF PALAU TO THE UNITED STATES

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DEAN OF THE WASHINGTON DIPLOMATIC

By Roland Flamini

A

mbassador Hersey Kyota of the Republic of Palau has been attending the State of the Union address along with other foreign chiefs of mission for the past 18 years. But in January, the arrival in the chamber of this diplomat from one of the smallest countries accredited to the United States was, for the first time, singled out for a special announcement by the deputy sergeant-at-arms.

What had changed? Ambassador Kyota is now dean of the Washington diplomatic corps.

The job goes to the longest-serving ambassador, and Ambassador Kyota presented his credentials in 1997.

He succeeded Ambassador Roble Olhaye of Djibouti, who died in the summer of 2014 after nine years in the post. These days, the duties mainly involve representing the Washington diplomatic corps at major functions like the State of the Union address. Olhaye’s tenure was nowhere near the record set by Guillermo Sevilla Sacasa, ambassador of Nicaragua, who was dean for 21 years from 1958 to 1979. Because the chiefs of mission of larger European countries tend to have a tenure of no more than four or five years, few of them remain in Washington long enough to fill the post. Thus, the last French ambassador to become dean was Paul Claudel, the Catholic playwright, in 1933, and there hasn’t been a German dean since 1903.

Palau, a Western Pacific nation consisting of a group of more than 200 volcanic and coral islands with a total population of 21,000, gained its independence from the United States in 1994. By special agreement, called a compact, the U.S. remains responsible for the security of the tiny island nation that has no military. Some 500 citizens of Palau serve in the U.S. Armed Forces, including two of Ambassador Kyota’s children. The ambassador heads a mission consisting of himself and one attaché. His wife, Lydia, “helps out,” as the ambassador puts it.

In an interview with Diplomatic Connections in his miniscule embassy a block away from the White House, Ambassador Kyota talked about modern Palau. He spoke of how the tourist paradise is threatened by global warming, which is flooding some of the low-lying islands, and the dilemma of becoming too popular with visitors from mainland China (Palau is one of the few countries that recognizes Taiwan). Other issues touched upon span his efforts to secure financial aid given by the U.S. government but held up in Congress for years, the challenge faced by a small country trying to gain the attention of the world’s superpower and what it means to be dean of the diplomatic corps.

Diplomatic Connections: You have been the ambassador of Palau in Washington since 1997. Are you your country’s first ambassador to the United States?

Ambassador Kyota: Actually, yes I am.

Diplomatic Connections: Palau is described on your embassy website as an independent country “in free association with the United States.” What does that mean?

Ambassador Kyota: It means that Palau is independent. We are responsible for our foreign affairs. Palau is a member of the UN, but we have a compact of free association with the United States permitting the U.S. to establish bases and to use our territorial waters in return for economic assistance.

Diplomatic Connections: And are there U.S. bases in Palau?

Picture of Ambassador Kyota’s son, Fumio Kyota, who is a Staff Sergeant in the United States Army.

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Picture of Ambassador Kyota’s daughter, Vanessa Kyota, who is a Technical Sergeant in the United States Air Force.

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Ambassador Kyota: No. The U.S. maintains a civic action team.

Diplomatic Connections: How did Palau gain independence from the United States?

The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images

CORPS, LONGEST-SERVING AMBASSADOR

Palau President Tommy Remengesau (2nd L) and his wife Debbie Remengesau (1st L) are welcomed by Japanese Emperor Akihito (2nd R) and his wife Empress Michiko (1st R) prior to their meeting at the Imperial Palace on May 20, 2015 in Tokyo, Japan. President Remengesau was in Japan to attend the Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting hosted in the city of Iwaki, Fukushima, Japan. Although Palau is no longer a Japanese territory, there is a mutually beneficial geo-political strategy in maintaining an allied relationship.

Ambassador Kyota: We had a referendum to choose our political status. We had three options: closer ties with the United States, independence or a commonwealth of Pacific Islands, like the Commonwealth of the Mariana Islands. We chose independence with free association with the United States. We negotiated this document called the Compact of Free Association and then we voted on that.

Diplomatic Connections: But wasn’t there some delay in your evolution towards sovereignty, in other words reaching agreement with the U.S., compared to, for example, your neighbors the Marshall Islands and Micronesia?

Ambassador Kyota: We had seven successive referendums [over a decade] to approve the Compact of Free Association with the U.S., and each time it failed to reach the 75 percent required by our constitution. The sticking point was a provision in our constitution prohibiting nuclear

power, nuclear weapons and nuclear waste, which the U.S. wanted changed, but the people didn’t. Eventually we realized that 75 percent was beyond our reach. So we amended our constitution to allow nuclear-powered ships and submarines to call at our ports, but the rest of the prohibition remained.

Diplomatic Connections: And that cleared the way for independence and free association with the United States…

Ambassador Kyota: Yes. Diplomatic Connections: What role does the U.S. play in Palau today?

Ambassador Kyota: The compact covers everything from A to Z. For instance, we’re a small country. We have no military, so security and defense are the responsibility of the United States.

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PALAU Diplomatic Connections: You have no military?

Ambassador Kyota: No, but our sons and daughters are serving in the U.S. military as volunteers. It’s rather hard to get an exact number, but I would estimate about 400 – 500, which per capita tops every state in the U.S. Some of them have been killed in Afghanistan and Iraq. My two oldest children are in the U.S. military. My son is in the U.S. Army and my daughter in the Air Force.

Diplomatic Connections: What kind of financial assistance does Palau receive from the United States?

Ambassador Kyota: On October 4, 1994, Palau became independent. Our agreement called for a review every 15 years. So in 2009, the U.S. and Palau sat down and carried out this review, and negotiated a new financial plan to provide further assistance until 2023. That agreement was submitted to the U.S. Congress for approval in 2010, and it’s still there. I’ve tried everything to move it forward. I met the people at the State Department and Congress. They still haven’t come around to approving it.

Diplomatic Connections: Firstly, how much is it, and when it does go into effect will it not be retroactive?

Ambassador Kyota: It’s a drop in the bucket — around $150 million and it’s supposed to be over 15 years, so there are eight or nine more years left. Retroactive? That still remains to be seen. It’s not clear from their [the U.S.] side, but I’m pushing for that. It was not our choice to have it delayed.

We did our part. Some members of Congress agreed with me that this is a treaty obligation of the United States, but so far nothing.

Diplomatic Connections: So it hasn’t started yet.

Ambassador Kyota: It hasn’t started yet, but we’re fortunate because our economy is doing very well. When the first compact was signed, a trust fund was given to us, and we haven’t started drawing from it yet.

Diplomatic Connections: In your 18 years here, you’ve seen three presidents: Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and President Obama. How has doing business in Washington changed for you over this period?

Ambassador Kyota: Basically, it hasn’t really changed a whole lot, but we’re a small country and the United States 24

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has its hands full with dealing with larger countries with major issues. Over the years I’ve established some contacts and I can network. Now that I am dean of the diplomatic corps, I have more access. When I request a meeting I get a quicker response than before. But again, it hasn’t really changed. As a small country, you don’t count a whole lot.

On one occasion I had an appointment with an assistant secretary at the State Department, and he was late for the meeting. When he arrived, he jokingly said, “If you start building a nuclear submarine we’ll pay more attention to you.” He was joking, but there’s some truth in what he said.

Diplomatic Connections: Can you talk about being dean of the diplomatic corps — what your duties are, how it affects your bi-lateral work and so on?

Ambassador Kyota: I had met my predecessor Ambassador Roble Olhaye of Djibouti and was sorry to hear of his passing, and I take this opportunity to offer my condolences to his embassy. When I received the note from the State Department, I researched my responsibilities. In an unfriendly country if an ambassador has issues with the government, the dean would step in and act on his or her behalf. But in a friendly country like the United States, there’s much less to do. I’ve been to some functions.

For example, when the pope came, I represented the diplomatic corps in the welcoming group. And then when I attend the State of the Union address now I get to be publicly announced. I receive courtesy calls from newly arrived ambassadors, who ask me advice. I tell them I’ll be here if you need anything, and I can assist.

Diplomatic Connections: Presumably, it has increased your workload, and yet you are still a staff of one?

Ambassador Kyota: It has. I spoke to our president and minister of foreign affairs because being dean has added work.

Diplomatic Connections: Have you so far had to deal with any serious situation where you had to make the final decision?

Ambassador Kyota: Not so far. I’ve not been asked to speak on behalf of the diplomatic corps. You know, the diplomatic corps in Washington is very different from the UN where

ambassadors from different countries meet frequently — in committee, at the General Assembly and so on. Over here, we tend to be more regional. For example, I spend a lot of time with the other Pacific Island representatives.

Diplomatic Connections: Your country has been occupied by several foreign nations. How does history explain this?

Ambassador Kyota: There was Spain, Germany, Japan and after the war, the United States. The islands’ strategic importance had something to do with it. Spain brought the missionaries. Spain sold Palau to Germany — not just Palau, but the rest of the islands in the region. The League of Nations gave Palau to Japan.

Diplomatic Connections: Which you play.

Ambassador Kyota: I used to be an avid baseball player, but no longer. I’m still a baseball fan, but now I play golf.

Can you include that I would do anything to play golf with President Obama? As dean, I think I have a shot.

Diplomatic Connections: Talk about the Palau economy.

Diplomatic Connections: Is there any trace, cultural or otherwise, of the German occupation?

Ambassador Kyota: Our bread and butter is tourism, and there’s tuna fishing but we’re changing that. Our president has proposed a marine sanctuary. We were the first country to declare our waters a shark sanctuary and banning the killing of sharks. Most of the tourists come to Palau for the SCUBA diving, and sharks are part of that. Now we’re expanding to eco-tourism in the jungle and bird watching, and so on.

Ambassador Kyota: The Germans possessed this island for such a short period of time, and according to tradition the Germans were the first to establish agriculture in Palau.

Diplomatic Connections: What is your relationship with your neighbors in the region? For example, are The Philippines “Big Brother” around here?

Diplomatic Connections: And now Palau has a parliamentary system with a president, but also something called “traditional government.” Could you spell out your country’s government?

Ambassador Kyota: We have a good relationship with The Philipines and with Australia, New Zealand and Japan.

Ambassador Kyota: We have a bi-cameral legislature, and a president elected by the people. Then there’s the traditional government. There are 16 villages in Palau. We now call them states, and each state has a traditional leader. Since they controlled the country for so long, it’s only fair to give them a role. They’re what we call the council of traditional chiefs, which is an advisory body to the president on traditions and culture.

Diplomatic Connections: What about China?

Ambassador Kyota: We do not have diplomatic relations with China. We’re one of the few countries in the world that recognizes Taiwan. The Taiwanese have an embassy in Palau and we have one in Taipei.

Diplomatic Connections: Do you get any complaints from Beijing about that?

Diplomatic Connections: Palau consists of more than 200 islands. Is that a challenge to administer?

Ambassador Kyota: Actually not. In fact, in the past two years we’ve had an influx of mainland Chinese tourists, and they are now the largest national tourist group coming to Palau.

Ambassador Kyota: There are only nine larger islands that are inhabited.

Diplomatic Connections: From your point of view is this a good thing?

Diplomatic Connections: The second language, after Palau, is English or Spanish?

Ambassador Kyota: Under the constitution, Palau has two official languages, Palau and English. The laws are written in English. The older generation in their 80s also speak Japanese. The Japanese were there until after the Second World War. They established schools, taught trades — and brought baseball.

Ambassador Kyota: Well, yes and no. We were not prepared to receive this influx of tourism all at the same time. Palau was overwhelmed, and our president created a task force to look into how we can manage the tourism industry better. You’ll be surprised, but I think we are one of the few countries in the world that tried to discourage tourists from coming to Palau. continued on page 30

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Reinhard Dirscherl/ullstein bild via Getty Images

Divers at upper entrance of Blue Hole Cave, Micronesia, Palau.

Diver in Blue Hole Cave, Micronesia, Palau.

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Skin Diver meets Saltwater Crocodile, Crocodylus porosus, Micronesia, Palau.

Diver discovers armed munition from World War II at Japanese Warship Helmet Wreck, Micronesia, Palau.

Diver in Chandelier Dripstone Cave, Micronesia, Palau.

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PALAU

Skin Diving with colorful fishes, Micronesia, Palau.

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Reinhard Dirscherl/ullstein bild via Getty Images

Divers observe Grey Reef Shark, Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos, Blue Corner, Micronesia, Palau.

Sea Fan and diver, Melithaea, Peleliu Wall, Micronesia, Palau.

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Diplomatic Connections: How did you do that?

Ambassador Kyota: We don’t have regular flights from China, but we have charters from Hong Kong. So they go to Hong Kong and they come to us. Our government reduced the number of charter flights in order to control the flow of tourists.

Diplomatic Connections: In other words, the number of Chinese tourists was too great for your infrastructure to cope with.

Ambassador Kyota: Yes. The Chinese are leasing properties left and right, and their presence in Palau is being felt.

We had to do something about it. Seriously do something about it. We had seen what happened to our brothers and sisters in the South Pacific, [The Kingdom of] Tonga and the Solomon [Islands]. The Chinese have changed the landscape of those countries in terms of business.

Diplomatic Connections: Has your strategy produced the desired result?

Ambassador Kyota: Well, they’re there and you have to cope.

Diplomatic Connections: Are they investing in the country?

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Oceania, Palau, Koror, Airai State, Tourists walking on footbridge in Ngardmau Forest.

Ambassador Kyota: I hear that they’re leasing homes and land and even opening their own shops to cater for the Chinese tourists. We have a law in our books that specifies jobs and positions that are reserved for locals. You know, 20,000 people is not a whole lot of people, and if you have 5,000 businessmen from China settling in, they can take over the country very quickly.

Diplomatic Connections: So is that one of your major concerns at the moment?

Ambassador Kyota: It could be if we don’t put controls in place, and I’m happy that our president and the leadership are seeing that.

Diplomatic Connections: Has your president visited Washington?

Ambassador Kyota: He was here in June, and he was a guest speaker at CSIS about security in our region. He was educated here in the United States.

Diplomatic Connections: As are you, no?

Ambassador Kyota: In 1970 I came to a junior college in Upper Michigan and two years later I transferred to a private university in San Diego, the United States International University, where I finished my schooling.

JTB Photo/UIG via Getty Images

Oceania, Palau, Koror, Airai State, View of monorail in Ngardmau Forest.

In Palau I went into politics, and I was a member of the Senate for one-and-a-half terms. Prior, I was clerk of the House of Delegates, which is our House of Representatives.

Diplomatic Connections: How many political parties are there in Palau?

Ambassador Kyota: We don’t have political parties in Palau.

We used to have a party system in the 1970s, but now we have caucuses.

Diplomatic Connections: What happened to the political parties?

Ambassador Kyota: They petered out.

Diplomatic Connections: What other problems are worrying your government?

Ambassador Kyota: The important thing that’s in everybody’s mind is global warming. We have seen rises in the sea level

that are the highest in 22 years. The sea is overrunning low-lying islands and destroying crops and flooding homes.

We had our own El Niño a few years ago and the result was coral damage. In a tourist destination famous for its SCUBA diving, this is a serious loss. Fortunately, Palau consists of volcanic islands so there are also high points, but some of the outer islands are atolls and they’ll disappear below the water if the industrialized nations don’t bring the temperature down.

Diplomatic Connections: Was your country represented at the recent Paris conference on climate change?

Ambassador Kyota: Our president was there, and Palau was among the leaders in the negotiations that produced the agreement to cut carbon emissions n

Jacques DeMarthon/AFP/Getty Images

Palau President Tommy Remengesau delivers a speech at the COP 21 United Nations conference concerning climate change, on November 30, 2015 at Le Bourget, on the outskirts of the French capital Paris. More than 150 world leaders met under heightened security, for the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21/CMP11), also known as ‘Paris 2015’ from November 30 to December 11.

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Alexandra Beier - Pool/Getty Images

The International Syrian Support Group (ISSG) is pictured ahead of the International Munich Security Conference on February 11, 2016 in Munich, Germany. ISSG met in Munich to further discuss a peaceful solution on the topic of the Syrian war.

MUNICH SECURITY CONFERENCE:

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DISCUSSIONS AMONG THE HIGHEST RANKS OF POLICYMAKERS

By James A. Winship, Ph.D.

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Alexandra Beier - Pool/Getty Images Lennart Preiss/Getty Images

(L-R) Wolfgang Ischinger, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference; Mohammad Javad Zarif, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iran; and Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, speak at the 2016 Munich Security Conference on February 12, 2016 in Munich, Germany. The annual event brings together government representatives and security experts from across the globe and this year the conflict in Syria was the main issue under discussion.

I

t was Ambassador Ivo Daalder, now president of the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations and then-U.S. permanent representative to NATO (2009 – 2013), who first referred to the Munich Security Conference as “the Oscars for policy wonks.” His point was not that golden statuettes were awarded but that the Munich Security Conference had become a fixture of national security discussion among the highest ranks of policymakers from across the globe.

The Munich Security Conference began its institutional life in 1963 in the shadow of the Berlin Wall and the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Its roots lie deep in the transatlantic security relationship and the NATO

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alliance, but the conference is no relic of its Cold War past. Instead, says Wolfgang Ischinger, chairman of the Conference, “Munich is, and will continue to be, an important independent venue for policymakers and experts for open and constructive discussions about the most pressing security issues of the day — and of the future.”

Ischinger describes the Conference as an “unregulated marketplace of ideas,” where proposals are floated, diplomatic initiatives are tested and the groundwork for critical decisions in response to crises can be laid.

Since there is no need to agree on a final communiqué, participants are free to voice their views and explore their divergent opinions. He adds that the conference “offers protected space for informal meetings between

representatives from governments who might not be on the best of terms but who may wish to meet informally, behind the scenes.”

“Boundless Crises, Reckless Spoilers and Helpless Guardians” The preparatory 2016 Munich Security Report pessimistically observes that international and regional security orders are “at significant risk of disintegrating.”

“Today’s conflicts,” laments Conference Chairman Ischinger, “are characterized by a scale and gravity unprecedented since the end of the Cold War. Traditional guardians of order are more and more overwhelmed, while others have not stepped up — or have acted as spoilers instead. Managing crises that have increasingly become boundless and borderless remains an enormous challenge and is likely to get more complicated in the future.”

Strikingly, the world is discovering that domestic political issues have international dimensions, and international turmoil has domestic consequences. Borders, once the very definition of the national security state, are increasingly porous and penetrable. continued on page 39

Lukas Barth/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

NATO Supreme Allied Commander, U.S. Air Force General Philip Breedlove speaks to the media during a press conference as the 2016 Munich Security Conference on February 13, 2016 in Munich, Germany.

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Thomas Kienzle/AFP/Getty Images

(L-R) William Lacy Swing, Director General of International Organization for Migration; Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni; Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders; Foreign Minister of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu; Peter Altmeier, German chief of staff at the Chancellery; and moderator Christiane Amanpour attend a panel discussion at the 52nd Munich Security Conference (MSC) in Munich, southern Germany, on February 12, 2016.

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continued from page 35

And, yet, at the same time borders are making a comeback. The shape of the map of nation-states has been caught up in a series of conflicts. Powers such as the Russian Federation and China seek to reconsider and expand boundaries, whether through renewed historic territorial claims or the unilateral assertion of sovereign authority by establishing “presence” on artificially expanded oceanic islets. States traditionally at the heart of the liberal international order are building walls against the influx of refugees and multiple security threats.

Diplomacy is marked by seeming achievement in the Paris Climate Accords and the Iran Nuclear Agreement but marred by failure to follow through to assure that agreements in principle become agreements in place. Major powers are pulling back from the costs of intervention while renewing powers seek to revise the international order and find their place within it.

“The Future of Warfare: Race With the Machines” Perhaps the most thought-provoking sessions at the Munich Security Conference deal with broad underlying issues that push the boundaries of global security discussions.

These include human security and refugee flows, health security and global pandemics, climate security and the consequences of global warming, and the future of warfare as it expands to include cyberspace and robotic weapons.

A new wave of technological innovation, artificial intelligence (AI) experts noted, is rapidly reshaping not only the weaponry deployed on the battlefield but also the very shape of the battlefield itself. Increasingly, we live amid “the Internet of Things.” Electrical grids, water and energy supplies and other utility distribution systems are heavily computer controlled with limited security in place. The appliances of our lives — cars, public transit, refrigerators and medical devices — are implanted with computer chips that can potentially be interfered with. Technology simultaneously empowers governments and adversaries, individual users and hackers.

There was also discussion of what the cyber-battlefield of the future might look like. The notion of “killer robots” — remotely controlled, able to track and identify targets and destroy them — has spawned an ironic acronym, LAWS (Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems). Such weapons constitute “a third revolution in warfare, after gunpowder and nuclear arms.” The nightmare scenario, experts fear,

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Lennart Preiss/Getty Images

(L-R) Political Director of the French Foreign Ministry Nicolas de Riviere, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin pose before their meeting at the 2016 Munich Security Conference on February 13, 2016 in Munich, Germany. The annual event brings together government representatives and security experts from across the globe and this year the conflict in Syria was the main issue under discussion.

is that “if any major military power pushes ahead with [AI] weapons development, a global arms race is virtually inevitable and the endpoint of this technology trajectory is obvious — autonomous weapons will become the Kalashnikovs of tomorrow.”

Only half joking, moderator Espen Barth Eide, former Foreign Minister of Norway, cautioned that, “We may look back to the good old days when all we had to worry about was nuclear weapons.” The need, note several experts, is to ensure that policy keeps up with the speed of technological advancement.

“Messier and More Difficult to Manage” Because of its officially unofficial nature, the Munich Security Conference does not pull its punches. It explores not only potential avenues for strengthening global security but also the darker, more frightening alleyways of security concern.

The result is a sobering snapshot of the world at the beginning of 2016. But sobriety is also cause for hope.

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Just as the 2016 Oscars were forced to confront the lack of diversity in Hollywood and the motion picture industry, the 2016 Munich Security Conference confronted a series of challenges to the very concept of global security.

“We are entering a period of growing risk, rising uncertainty and fundamental transformation — the beginning of a less stable international era,” conference organizers admitted. “Responsible leaders must work together to reconstruct the international order, strengthen institutional arrangements and stem spreading chaos.”

Core principles of sovereignty, power and national interest shaped order and stability in the past. These principles have not disappeared but they must adjust to a turbulent global stage where non-state actors play larger roles, transboundary issues threaten human existence, traditional weapons become both more available and more deadly, and non-traditional weapons challenge existing definitions of security and deterrence. The looking glass worlds of national security and international diplomacy are awhirl in a dizzying kaleidoscope of change.

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DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE

Chris Jackson - WPA Pool/Getty Images

REACHES OUT ON BEHALF OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, chats with children from the ‘Real Truth’ video blog that features on the Huffington Post website (Solei Neil-Brown, Kiera Mullins, Haydan Pearce, Joshua Hogan) at Kensington Palace on February 17, 2016 in London, England.

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Chris Jackson - WPA Pool/Getty Images

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, talks to James Martin (Executive Editor Huff Post UK) and Steven Hull (Editor-in-Chief Huff Post UK) on the Huffington Post landing page in the ‘News Room’ at Kensington Palace on February 17, 2016 in London, England. The Duchess of Cambridge is supporting the launch of the Huffington Post UK’s initiative ‘Young Minds Matter’ and, for one day, was guest editing the Huffington Post UK from Kensington Palace.

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SHE MAYBE THE DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE WITHIN BRITISH ROYAL CIRCLES, but Kate Middleton somehow finds time in the midst of being a wife and mother within the royal line of succession to fulfill her royal duties in an extraordinarily personal and compassionate way.

Though she and Prince William are careful to protect their family time with Prince George and Princess Charlotte, in her official role the Duchess of Cambridge has energetically reached out to the public on behalf of children and young people.

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Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, attends a Place2Be Headteacher Conference in London, England.

Recently Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Cambridge, served as guest editor for the Huffington Post supporting that publication’s “Young Minds Matter” digital initiative intended to promote a global conversation to “discuss the problems, causes and most importantly solutions to the UK’s mental health crisis among children.”

“The mental health of our children,” writes the Duchess, “must be seen as every bit as important as their physical health. For too long we have been embarrassed to admit when our children need emotional or psychiatric help, worried that the stigma associated with these problems would be detrimental to their futures.”

Speaking as a mother and making the mental health issue very personal, the Duchess continued, “Like most parents today, William and I would not hesitate to seek help for our children if they needed it. We hope to encourage George and Charlotte to speak about their feelings, and to give them the tools and sensitivity to be supportive peers to their friends as they get older. We

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Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Royal Patron of Place2Be, visits St Catherine’s Primary School on February 24, 2016 in Edinburgh, Scotland.

know there is no shame in a young child struggling with their emotions or suffering mental illness.”

The Duchess also serves as royal patron of the children’s mental health charity “Place2Be,” which provides counseling for children in schools. She recently released a video message of support for Children’s Mental Health Week in the United Kingdom. “This Children’s Mental Health Week,” she tells viewers, “we want to support schools to prioritize the emotional well-being of their students, alongside academic success.”

The video takes the form of a three-way conversation between Kate Middleton, four students from Salusbury Park Primary School in Queen’s Park, northwest London, and the viewing audience. As the children talk with the Duchess, one boy notes, “Place2Be has helped me quite a lot. If it wasn’t in school, I don’t think I’d be able to cope as much.”

Turning to camera, the Duchess observes, “While we cannot always change a child’s circumstances, we can give them the tools to cope and to thrive.”

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Demonstrating that her commitment to young people is not limited to mental health concerns, the Duchess of Cambridge recently made her first appearance as Honorary Air Commandant of the Royal Air Force Air Cadets, a post she has taken over from her father-in-law Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh after his 63 years of serving as Air Commodore-in-Chief of the Air Cadets.

The day began with a service at RAF Church St. Clement Danes, London and then proceeded to a reception held at the nearby Royal Courts of Justice. Throughout the day’s ceremonies, the Duchess of Cambridge wore a striking RAF brooch of diamonds and rubies. It has become RAF Air Cadet tradition that the outstanding male Air Cadet has received the honor of wearing a dress sword and the outstanding female Air Cadet has received the honor of wearing the brooch. This tradition continued until last year when it was decided female cadets should receive the continued on page 51

Jamie Simonds/Place2Be via Getty Images

Andrew Milligan - WPA Pool/Getty Images

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, takes part in a tennis workshop with Andy Murray’s mother Judy at Craigmount High School in Edinburgh on February 24, 2016 in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, poses for a photo with (L-R) Nimra, 10; Ryan, 10; Bailey-Rae, 7; and Connor, 11 ~ from Salusbury Primary School in Queen’s Park, London, during filming of a video message for Children’s Mental Health week. Catherine is the royal patron of the children’s mental health charity Place2Be and in her message she highlights the importance of giving youngsters the ‘tools to cope, and to thrive’ as they encounter life’s challenges.

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Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Air Commodore Dawn McCafferty arrive to the service of the 75th Anniversary of the RAF Air Cadets at St. Clement Danes Church on February 7, 2016 in London, England.

The Duchess allotted extra time to properly acknowledge and shake the hands of the cadets.

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dress sword as do their male counterparts. With that, the Air Cadets decided to gift the brooch to the Duchess of Cambridge following her appointment as Honorary Air Commandant of the organization.

The Duchess of Cambridge expressed her delight at this opportunity to develop a new link in her affiliation with the RAF family. “I believe that the Air Cadets,” she stated, “bring genuine benefit to our young people and indeed wider society. The Cadets offer countless opportunities to develop leadership, teamwork skills and community spirit as well as selfconfidence borne of testing boundaries in a safe but exciting environment.”

She also revealed that Prince George has a passion for airplanes. Air Cadet recruiters have taken note and are counting down to the young Prince’s twelfth birthday, at which point he will be able to join the organization n

Chris Jackson/Getty Images

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RAF BROOCH Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge attends the 75th Anniversary of the RAF Air Cadets at St. Clement Danes Church on February 7, 2016 in London, England.

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CATHERINE, DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE, AND PRINCE WILLIAM

Peter Byrne - WPA Pool/Getty Images

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, attend a reception following the ceremony marking the end of RAF Search and Rescue (SAR) Force operations during a visit to RAF Valley on February 18, 2016 in Anglesey, Wales.

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Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, attend a ceremony marking the end of RAF Search and Rescue (SAR) Force operations during a visit to RAF Valley on February 18, 2016 in Anglesey, Wales.

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Nicholas Kristof, Cindy McCain Honored with Anne Frank Awards A HOLLAND ON THE HILL INITIATIVE

By Annelinde Hoogendam

Cindy McCain, Ambassador Henne Schuwer and Nicholas Kristof

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist NICHOLAS KRISTOF and human rights advocate CINDY MCCAIN were presented with the 2015 Anne Frank Award and the Anne Frank Special Recognition Award, respectively, for their work fighting human trafficking and human rights violations.

H.E. Henne Schuwer, Ambassador of the Netherlands to the United States

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Ambassador Schuwer presents the Anne Frank Award to Nicholas Kristof.

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he awards were presented February 25 in the member’s room of the Library of Congress

by Ambassador Henne Schuwer of the Royal Netherlands Embassy.

Kristof, a journalist with The New York Times since 1984, has written extensively on human rights issues. He uses the power of the written word to raise awareness for human trafficking victims by linking human trafficking to modern slavery. Kristof’s reporting exposes this horrifying exploitation and calls us to help its victims and punish those responsible.

During his acceptance speech, he was adamant about the role of the United States to combat human trafficking.

“Everywhere you go, the story is so similar. There’s no doubt that the scale of the problem is sometimes worse in other countries and that the brutalities of the atrocities

are sometimes worse in other countries. But we have an enormous problem here at home,” Mr. Kristof said. “And we don’t have the moral authority to tell other countries to clean up their act until we make some greater effort here at home. It can be invisible, but when you look, it’s right there.’’

Cindy McCain, co-chair of The McCain Institute’s Human Trafficking Advisory Council, received the Anne Frank Special Recognition Award for her commitment to educate the public on human trafficking and advocate to end this pervasive issue.

Mrs. McCain, working with Senators Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), has lobbied Congress to give the states incentives to adopt laws that emphasize prosecuting leaders of sex-trafficking rings, rather than the victims.

Congressman Bill Huizenga

“We’re in a perfect storm right now. We’re now talking about this issue. It’s become part of our language, our everyday language,” Mrs. McCain said. “Awareness and education, those are our tools. That’s how we’re going to win this.”

The numbers don’t lie. The International Labor Organization states there are more than 4.5 million people trapped in forced sexual exploitation around the world. In the United States alone, 20 percent of the 11,800 runaways reported last year were likely sex trafficking victims, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

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Moderator Katrina Lantos Swett, Nicholas Kristof, Cindy McCain and Ambassador Henne Schuwer

But as Mrs. McCain said, “One child who had the trafficking experience is too many. One is too many.”

Introducing the award to Mr. Kristof were Andrea Powell, executive director and co-founder of FAIR Girls, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that prevents the exploitation of girls worldwide with empowerment and education, and Nicole, a survivor of human trafficking and advocate with FAIR Girls.

They spoke of the bad days that human trafficking survivors face, and the great help of allies like Mr. Kristof.

“I have seen in the past few years since joining FAIR Girls that the tide of public knowledge about sex trafficking is shifting,” Nicole said. “Mr. Kristof is a part of this positive change in a big way. This is why as a survivor, I cannot think of anyone more deserving the Anne Frank Award presented by the Embassy of the Netherlands.”

Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI), co-chair of the Dutch Caucus, opened the ceremony by explaining the importance of the relationship between the Netherlands and the United States.

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Ambassador Schuwer also spoke of the importance of the awards and the continued bond between the Netherlands and the United States. Peter Rapaport spoke on behalf of the Anne Frank Center USA, and Congressman Derek Kilmer (D-WA), co-chair of the Dutch Caucus, closed the ceremony.

Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett of the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice was the master of ceremonies.

The Congressional Dutch Caucus, the Anne Frank Center USA, the Anne Frank House Amsterdam, and the Royal Netherlands Embassy created the Anne Frank Award in 2014 to honor the legacy of Anne Frank and keep alive the lessons her life teaches us about tolerance and the importance of defending human rights. The award, part of the Holland on the Hill initiative, recognizes an American or an organization working to confront intolerance, anti-Semitism, racism, or discrimination while upholding the principles of freedom and equal rights to promote the effective functioning of an open, pluralistic and democratic society n

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BUILDING

“BRIDGES OF COLLABORATION”

Stringer/AFP/Getty Images

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon presents a UN report on funding for humanitarian aid on January 17, 2016, in the Emirate of Dubai.

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FUNDING

UN HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS IN AN AGE OF “MEGA-CRISES”

Saleh Al-Obeidi/AFP/Getty Images

EU commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Kristalina Georgieva (L) stands next to a mother with her child at the Alima Centre, a care facility for children suffering from malnutrition during a two-day visit in Ndjamena.

Str/AFP/Getty Images

Yemeni workers unload medical aid boxes into a truck from a boat carrying 460 tonnes of Emirati relief aid that docked in the port of the city of Aden. The shipment, including medical and food supplies, is one of several from the United Arab Emirates.

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Marwan Naamani/AFP/Getty Images

HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, prime minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and ruler of Dubai (R) addresses an audience during the launch event of his humanitarian enterprise ‘Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives’ in Dubai. The endeavor will target over 130 million people in the coming ten years focusing its programs on spreading knowledge, combating poverty, empowering communities and innovation for the future in the Arab region.

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nited Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon recently traveled to Dubai for the launch of a new report released by the Secretary-General’s HighLevel Panel on Humanitarian Financing. The High-Level Panel was co-chaired by HE Kristalina Georgieva of Bulgaria, vice-president of the European Commission for Budgetary and Human Resources Affairs, and HRH Sultan Nazrin Shah, Ruler of Perak, Malaysia.

Entitled “Too Important to Fail: Addressing the Humanitarian Financing Gap,” the report is intended as a working paper to help shape priorities in preparation for the UN-sponsored World Humanitarian Summit to be held in Istanbul in May 2016. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon described the report as “critical to our global mission of leaving no one behind, which is a main theme of the Sustainable Development Goals.”

The report was launched at Dubai’s International Humanitarian City (IHC), established in 2003 by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum as an international

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logistics hub for humanitarian aid with nine UN agencies and nearly 50 NGOs and commercial entities as members.

Taking advantage of Dubai’s strategic location, within eight hours by air of two-thirds of the world’s population, and its expertise in transport and logistics, the IHC helps deliver assistance in the midst of humanitarian crises and provides extensive opportunities for networking and training.

“Globally,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon observed, “the world is shattering records we would never wish to break. Since the UN was founded, the world has the most ever people in need of humanitarian assistance and the highest ever amount of funding appeals. We also face the biggest ever appeal shortfalls. Last year nearly half the UN’s appeals were unmet.” Mr. Ban Ki-moon was quick to add that, “The humanitarian challenge is more than a financial issue. It is a matter of our common future. It is a matter of global solidarity.”

Report co-chair Georgieva noted that the High-Level Panel’s “starting point was the stark facts and figures: 125

million people in need; a record $25 billion a year going to aid them; but, in spite of that, the needs continue to outpace resources.” That funding gap is currently estimated at more than $15 billion annually. The report also warns that the cost of humanitarian assistance is expected to rise to $50 billion by 2030.

The report points to three key elements needed to move toward closing the humanitarian aid funding gap: mobilizing additional funds, particularly from the private sector; shrinking the need for aid through prevention and quicker solution of the crises that provoke humanitarian needs; and improving the efficiency of assistance to reflect the needs of people rather than the needs of organizations.

Additionally, the report suggests that humanitarian aid should follow people in need and not be limited by international boundaries. It also calls for a “grand bargain” between aid donors and recipient organizations to make the aid delivery process more transparent and efficient.

Perhaps more controversially, the report also calls upon governments to consider a small voluntary “social levy” earmarked for humanitarian assistance to be placed on airline tickets and event tickets for soccer games and concerts.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also used the occasion to commend the United Arab Emirates for its contributions to humanitarian assistance efforts. “The UAE,” he acknowledged, “has topped the list of donor countries in the world compared to its national income. Through its humanitarian missions and innovative initiatives, the country has proven its capacity to take up international causes that make a difference to people around the world.”

Accepting the Secretary-General’s commendation on behalf of UAE President HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice president and prime minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai, extended appreciation to Mr. Ban Ki-moon for his efforts to address this critical international issue. They also expressed thanks to the UN for its decision to launch the report in their country.

“To bridge the gap in humanitarian aid,” noted Sheikh Mohammed, “it is necessary to consolidate international efforts, improve the efficiency of humanitarian work, involve the private sector and establish good governance in the countries that need help.”

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Join Monica Frim in the heart of the South Pacific, as she snorkels in never ending lagoons and circumnavigates the islands of Aitutaki and Rarotonga. Here time is merely a mindset— unless you have to get back to a cruise ship.

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A PACIFIC PARADISE OF IMMENSE LAGOONS AND TINY ISLANDS

BY MONICA FRIM PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOHN FRIM AND MONICA FRIM

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here we were, halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand wading gingerly through knee-deep water, sidestepping fat, grey sea cucumbers on the lagoon’s sandy floor. We were eight temporary castaways from a South

Pacific cruise inching towards a smudge of white sand topped with a ruffle of green palm fronds that shimmered in the Pacific sun and teased our imagination with archetypal promises of an isolated island paradise. Moments earlier we had been snorkeling among candy-colored fish, hovering over blue-lipped clams big as bathtubs, and floating like driftwood among tawny coral formations only slightly less imposing than mountains. Now Honeymoon Island beckoned—an emblematic coral-and-seashell-topped sandbar at the southwestern edge of Aitutaki Lagoon in the archipelago known as the Cook Islands.

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A red-billed tropicbird, known for its long red streaming tail, nests in the sand on Honeymoon Island.

Ootu Beach

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UIG/Getty Images

The Cook Islands are some of the most far-flung islands Tourism nips tamely on these blissfully isolated islands. on the planet, 2,000 miles from the nearest continent and There’s none of the Coppertoned hordes that jostle for scattered over 850,000 square miles of South Pacific Ocean. towel space on overcrowded beaches such as those of the Fifteen palm-fringed islands make up the group, each boiler-plate resorts in more fashionable locations. Even surrounded by its own reef and lagoon. Dozens of sandbars Rarotonga and Aitutaki, the Cook Islands’ most visited and uninhabited islets called motus sprinkle the lagoons destinations, fall woefully short of tropical resort clichés. like petals on a pond.

There are no high-rise hotels, no traffic lights, and on Settled in the 800s AD by Polynesians from the Aitutaki, no dogs—they are forbidden by decree. (Don’t ask.

Society Islands, the Cook Islands remained fairly sheltered I heard at least four different reasons for this unusual law, from European expansionism for many centuries. A few none proven de facto.)

Spanish ships sailed by in the 1600s, but it was the British What Aitutaki does have is an exceptionally large navigator, Captain James Cook who first mapped a sampling triangular lagoon with more shades of blue than there are of outlying islands in the late 1700s. jewels: aquamarine, turquoise, Somehow he missed the largest, lapis lazuli, sapphire, tourmaline, Rarotonga, as well as Aitutaki, the azurite… the list is as endless as latter discovered by Captain William the praises of the travel writers Bligh in 1789 only 17 days before who trumpet the island’s calm the mutiny against him. Incredibly, and quiet charms. Tony Wheeler, Rarotonga was not officially sighted founder of the Lonely Planet

by Europeans until the 19th century travel guide nominated Aitutaki when Captain John Dibbs happened “the world’s most beautiful by as he was transporting the island” in 2010. One Foot Island, Reverend John Williams of the one of many uninhabited motus London Missionary Society among in Aitutaki’s lagoon received World the islands. John Williams had Travel Awards for the best beach established his first missionary post in Australia and the Pacific region, on the island of Raiatea in today’s and Maina/Honeymoon Island French Polynesia in 1817, and then offers unsurpassed kitesurfing used his Tahitian converts to help for beginners on one side and James Cook, famous British navigator, explorer and cartographer him bring Christianity to the Cook advanced riders on the other. during a journey in the Pacific, Engraving.

Islands. His first successful target was Honeymoon Island was the island of Aitutaki in 1821. Rarotonga was a bonus. named after a Canadian couple that married there and In 1888 the Cook Islands became a British protectorate, is only accessible by boat and a heedful walk to shore. then transferred to New Zealand in 1901. Since 1965 they Like its neighboring sand cay, Maina, it is uninhabited have been a self-governing territory with their own prime save for hermit crabs and some unusual ground-nesting minister but in free association with New Zealand, meaning tropicbirds—a white tern-like seabird that sports a single that New Zealand still overseas defense and most foreign skinny red tail feather that echoes the elongated tail of a relations, but the islands’ high chiefs, known as ariki, stingray. It was worth our walk through sea cucumbers just command a modicum of control over internal concerns. to see the colonies of nesting birds, tame as trained dogs Cook Islanders have New Zealand passports, two official and undaunted by strangers—we could walk right up to languages—Maori and English-- and use two currencies. them in their nests.

The Cook Islands dollar is pegged to the New Zealand dollar We also learned something of sea cucumbers. These at par, but includes unique denominations such as three leathery denizens of the reef may look loathsome (by dollar notes, two dollar triangular coins, and dodecagonal North American standards) but serve a useful function in (twelve-sided) five dollar coins. Each coin depicts fauna, cleansing the lagoons by breaking down detritus. Moreover, flora or cultural items that are unique to the Cook Islands, many Cook Islanders consider them a culinary delicacy. which makes them great souvenirs for visitors.

They call them rori or by the more sophisticated name of D I P L O M AT 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 | M A R C H – A P R I L 2 0 1 6

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bêches de mer—maybe because they sound more palatable in French. Restaurants serve them fried in butter with herbs or marinated in coconut milk. Somewhat less refined is the practice of simply scooping one of these fat grey blobs from the ocean floor, squeezing it like a balloon until it explodes its spaghetti-like innards… directly into your mouth. The empty skin is then tossed back into the sea, where it will soon grow back its missing guts only to have the process repeated. I’m told the “spaghetti” is tasteless and bland.

While Aitutaki’s marine charms are its prime drawing card, the interior offers blissful walks among coconut palms, flamboyant hibiscus that change the colors of their flowers from yellow to red with the seasons, and fruit trees that are so plentiful that the locals toss their surplus to the pigs. It’s a small island—a teardrop of only seven square miles that can be traversed on foot in less than half an hour (or several hours, north to south). Its loftiest summit is an eroded volcanic hill called Maunga Pu (at 407 feet it falls considerably short of mountain status) that offers 360-degree views over jungle-covered slopes and plots of cassava and yams to the surrounding lagoon and coral motus. Numerous beachfront bungalows and lodges line Aitutaki’s west coast and offer beach privileges to anyone, even those not staying on the properties. But for the very whitest, sandiest beach, Ootu at the island’s north east hook wins hands down. Here the views of the aquamarine

lagoon with its necklace of snow-white motus outshine everything else on the island.

There is no public transportation, in fact not much vehicular traffic at all, on Aitutaki. Unmetered taxis are available but don’t roam the streets—you have to call them.

Most people tour the island by scooter or bicycle, called push bikes in island parlance, or avail themselves of shore excursions offered by cruise ships. You’ll need a license to rent a car or anything motorized in the Cook Islands, but if you can drive your vehicle to the police station in Arutanga, the sleepy port village that serves as Aitutaki’s main municipality, you’ll get one on the spot. Most resorts and guesthouses carry bikes of various vintages and conditions, so what you get can be a crapshoot. No worries. In the event of a breakdown, you can simply leave your scooter or push bike on the roadside—someone will pick it up and return it.

South of Aitutaki, the island of Rarotonga is better suited to vehicular traffic. It’s the largest of the Cook Islands and the only one with public buses. Two buses travel in either a clockwise or “anti-clockwise” direction around the entire island, which has a circumference of only 32 kilometers (20 miles). Signposts along the road indicate distances from the capital, Avarua, so it’s important to know the kilometer marking that corresponds to the attraction you are seeking. If you’re navigating your own way around the

The CICC (Cook Islands Christian Church) in Avarua was built of coral limestone in 1853. It replaced an earlier church that had been destroyed by a tropical cyclone.

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For information on Paul Gauguin Cruises, go to: www.pgcruises.com Due to Aitutaki’s shallow lagoon, even small cruise ships like the m/s Paul Gauguin must anchor in deep water outside of the reef.

island it’s also better to bring a driver’s license from Aitutaki.

Rarotonga charges about 10 times more and requires you to do a short driving test. Remember, the Cook Islands are a New Zealand realm: driving is on the left and the steering wheel is on the right.

An old-fashioned telephone on a tree adds a humorous touch to a scenic lookout. In the background Te Rua Manga, aka The Needle, rises above the jungle

TELEPHONE

We took a passive stance and opted for a guided tour in a 4WD open-top Land Rover Defender. It proved to be an adventuresome option that had us bouncing like the toy figures in a Lil’Movers™ school bus along rutted mountain paths with potholes big enough to swim in.

When someone shouted “Hey where are the seat belts?” our guide, Big Mac, yelled back, “Here we just hang on to each other.”

Rarotonga happens to be the Cook Islands’ most rugged—a 26- square-mile mass of jagged mountains and lush green valleys surrounded by a flat coastal plain that eases into silky white beaches lapped by a crystalline lagoon. The island’s jungle-wrapped center makes for some of the best hiking trails in the archipelago, sometimes with gimmicky props like the disconnected telephone that’s mounted on a tree at the lookout to Te Rua Manga—a skybound monolith also known as “The Needle”. Guides, whether leading intrepid hikers on treks across the island or herding cruise passengers in and out of safari vehicles, make a point of stopping here. The views are stupendous.

As we follow the bumpy trail back to where it connects with the main road, Big Mac points out various tropical fruit trees—guava, papaya, mango—and entertains us with bits of island wisdom. “We burn coconut as a mosquito repellent,” he says. It seems a non sequitur until we see puffs of white smoke rising like sea spray out of

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Papua (Wigmore’s) Waterfall

The lagoon between Muri Beach and a nearby motu is a safe, watery playground for children.

Performers from the Aikirata Dance Troupe of Rarotonga perform aboard the m/s Paul Gauguin.

the hillside. Its sweet scent lingers like memories of a fine wine before it’s lost among mainstream appurtenances like airport, college, hospital and the county’s only jail. Big Mac says the jail houses 20 or 30 prisoners—the total for an entire country!—most serving time for petty theft. As part of their rehabilitation they make beautiful ukuleles and sell them to the public.

I meet my first mosquito at Papua (Wigmore’s) Waterfall and, lacking burnt coconut fiber or any other form of repellent, give it a pat on the back. Within seconds I’m attacked by a squadron of minikin dive-bombers. The bushy setting, about a mile off the main road, seems to be as attractive to bitsy biters as the island’s southern beaches are to sun-starved foreigners. Fortunately the mosquitos don’t cross territories. Big Mac lets us flounder briefly under the onslaught before he once again rounds up the troops with a weighty “Let’s go. Into the truck! Ladies first.”

Respect is important in Cook Island society says Big Mac. “Women are always first on the truck, first to receive fruit, and first to push the truck if we get stuck!”

Our next stop at Muri Beach leaves us gazing in awe at a magical scene reminiscent of Aitutaki’s Ootu Beach.

Muri Beach is arguably Rarotonga’s best with smooth, clear shallows and four sandy motus that float like meringues atop a giant blue cocktail.

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The two islands have many similarities. Both are laid-back and unhurried, although the people of Aitutaki think of Rarotonga with its pair of buses and smattering of cars somewhat akin to a Kansas farmer contemplating New York during rush hour. Imagine then, the mindsets of the unworldly inhabitants on the remoter islands. Some of those islands received telephones only a few years ago.

It’s a funny thing about the Cook Islands. The very ocean that unites them also keeps them apart. Like gemstones in separate drawers of a jewelry box, the islands lie in two groups, northern and southern. Each has its own customs and some (like Pukapuka) even a different language. Then there’s Palmerston Island where English, not Maori, is the native language since all but three of the islanders are descended from a single English carpenter who claimed it his own.

I had crammed as much as I could into my short stop on Aitutaki and Rarotonga and caught but a glimpse of the serenity and quiet contentment for which the Cook Islands are known. My only regret is that I didn’t go to jail.

It would have been nice to buy a ukulele… but my cruise ship beckoned n

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Arriving at the th 6 Biennial

Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images for U.S. Fund for UNICEF

Ball in Beverly Hills, California

UNICEF GWA Honoree David Beckham speaks onstage during the Sixth Biennial UNICEF Ball honoring David Beckham and C. L. Max Nikias presented by Louis Vuitton in Beverly Hills, California.

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STARS ALIGN ON THE BLUE CARPET To HONOR

S

etting aside the red carpet tradition of celebrity affairs, Los Angeles recently rolled out the United Nations blue carpet for the biennial UNICEF Ball. Hundreds of celebrities, philanthropists and community leaders came together to celebrate

and extend the work of UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund, as it seeks to highlight the vulnerabilities of underprivileged children, protect their rights, improve their health, and expand their educational opportunities The black tie ball was held in Beverly Hills and emceed

compassion. “Only compassion,” he observed, “allows us

by Angie Harmon, “Rizzoli & Isles” actress and a UNICEF

to be fully human. It is compassion that connects to another

Ambassador. Headlining entertainment at the ball were

person’s pain. It is compassion that compels to action. It is

“The Company Men” and Grammy Award-winning vocalist

compassion that gives reason to hope. This is why UNICEF’s

Mariah Carey, who gave special

commitment is one of the heart, to

performances of songs “Always Be

“Only compassion allows us to be fully human. It

bring about a world in which every

My Baby,” “We Belong Together” and

is compassion that connects to another person’s

child can thrive.”

her signature song “Hero,” included

pain. It is compassion that compels to action. It is

in the set to honor UNICEF and the children it seeks to help.

Among the special guests at the ball

compassion that gives reason to hope. This is why UNICEF’s commitment is one of the heart, to bring

”

about a world in which every child can thrive.

was University of Southern California

Also honored at the ball was football (soccer) legend David Beckham, who received the Danny Kaye Humanitarian Leadership Award.

Celebrating the end of his first decade

President C.L. Max Nikias, who was honored with UNICEF’s

as a UNICEF Ambassador, Beckham also launched “7: The

“Spirit of Compassion” Award for his leadership of USC’s

David Beckham UNICEF Fund,” named for his football

efforts to shape the minds of a generation of students

jersey number and designated to protect and advocate for

“to be philanthropic, globally minded and informed of the

disadvantaged children around the world.

issues that are affecting the world’s children.”

“I know this town is obsessed with blockbuster

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Accepting the award on behalf of the entire USC

superheroes,” observed Elton John as he presented the

community, President Nikias spoke about the nature of

award to Beckham, “but tonight we’re honoring someone I

W W W. D I P L O M AT I C C O N N E C T I O N S . C O M

SUPPORT UNICEF

Donato Sardella/Getty Images for U.S. Fund for UNICEF

AND

(L-R) Honoree C. L. Max Nikias; UNICEF Chair Ghada Irani; President and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF Caryl Stern; and honoree David Beckham attend the Sixth Biennial UNICEF Ball honoring David Beckham and C. L. Max Nikias presented by Louis Vuitton in Beverly Hills, California.

know to be a bona fide hero.” Beckham acknowledged that

raising partnership “to support UNICEF’s efforts to help

he was humbled to receive the award, “but what is more

reach all children and especially to provide the essential

important is what comes from these events. This is where

interventions required to help protect and save children’s

money is raised, and this is where a light is shined on the

lives and to ensure the rights of all children, everywhere.”

most difficult circumstances that happen in our lifetime.”

Go to #MAKEAPROMISE for more information n Presenting sponsor for the event was Louis Vuitton international Fashion house, which has announced a fund

photos continue through to page 88

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Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images for U.S. Fund for UNICEF

Singer Mariah Carey

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Donato Sardella/Getty Images for U.S. Fund for UNICEF

Singer Mariah Carey performs onstage during the Sixth Biennial UNICEF Ball honoring David Beckham and C. L. Max Nikias presented by Louis Vuitton in Beverly Hills, California.

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UNICEF Biennial Ball in Beverly Hills, CA

Actress Angie Harmon

Actress Nicole Kidman 84

W W W. D I P L O M AT I C C O N N E C T I O N S . C O M

Harmon: Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage

Kidman: Amanda Edwards/WireImage

Sims: Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images for U.S. Fund for UNICEF

Model Molly Sims

Dewulf/Gomez: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic Rodriguez: Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage

Actress Noureen DeWulf

Actress/singer Selena Gomez

Actress Michelle Rodriguez D I P L O M AT 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 | M A R C H – A P R I L 2 0 1 6

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Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic

UNICEF Biennial Ball in Beverly Hills, CA

Actors Cara Santana and Jesse Metcalfe

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Actors Brooke Burke-Charvet and David Charvet

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Marono: Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage

Amanda Edwards/WireImage

UNICEF Biennial Ball in Beverly Hills, CA

Actresses Laura Marano (L) and Vanessa Marano

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W W W. D I P L O M AT I C C O N N E C T I O N S . C O M

UNICEF Chairs Alia Tutor and Ronald Tutor

“A Classic Redefined”

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W W W. D I P L O M AT I C C O N N E C T I O N S . C O M

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D E S T I N a T I o N 94

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