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| Former Ambassador & Undersecretary of State Thomas R. Pickering |
One of the tremendous benefits of being at the premier school for diplomats on planet Earth is the chance to occasionally hear speeches from eminent diplomats on topics of international interest. I had that chance this week when former Ambassador Thomas Pickering came to speak at FSI about his recent work with the Century Foundation Report on the path forward toward peace in Afghanistan. Just last week, he wrote an op-ed on the Report in the New York Times. The full Report is available here.
Ambassador Pickering is one of American diplomacy's rock stars. He has held ambassadorial posts in five different countries and has served in the highest position of a career diplomat, Undersecretary for Political Affairs. The team assembled to work on this Report included a stable of other diplomatic rock stars from around the world. If, for no other reason than the credentials of the committee alone, the Report must be taken very seriously. The members spent the last year having confidential interviews with parties throughout the region and world. On the basis of these interviews, the Report concludes that now is the time to engage in a negotiation leading to peace in Afghanistan. In part, the Report concludes: "A neutral international facilitator is needed to begin explorations with all potential parties toward negotiation. The United Nations could appoint a facilitator. Or a facilitator could be a group, an international organization, a neutral state or a group of states. A settlement would require international guarantees, aid, peacekeeping and enforcement of the agreement."
This is a very important work, and could represent the start of a new phase toward ending this war that has already gone on far too long.
Personally, hearing Ambassador Pickering speak to a roomful of diplomats on the topic made me proud of my country and very pleased to be among those who are engaged in diplomacy and peace-making. Ours is a profession that relies on human capital of the most talented sort. America is well served by seasoned diplomats like Ambassador Pickering who continue to serve the world, even years after their active service in the State Department.
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