It’s Time to Listen
In 2023, Canada’s Foreign Service came under the microscope. From responding to crises in Sudan, Gaza, and Israel to managing the rapid deterioration of relations with India, to addressing a ballooning inventory of visa applications, there was no shortage of attention on the work of Canada’s diplomatic service. In addition, two detailed reports touching on […]
The Challenges of the Foreign Service
As I write this message at the beginning of the last week in January 2024, I continue to look ahead to another complex and unpredictable year. My colleague Zal Karkaria, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, provides his take in a feature piece, a view with which I find little, if anything, to argue about. As he writes, the […]
Interesting Times
Canada’s Foreign Service Officers continue to live and work in “interesting” times. Events such as the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and its terrible aftermath, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and tensions with India have created additional challenges in doing their important work for Canada and Canadians. A fractious zeitgeist that characterizes empathy and […]
Book ’em, Danno!
Ace logician Ludwig Liebnitz strode into the hall, flanked by his Centre colleague, Felix Africa. A banner hanging from the ceiling proclaimed the first presentation of the Quicksand Awards “for books that suck you in and then take you down,” presented to…
Book ’em, Danno!
Ace logician Ludwig Liebnitz strode into the hall, flanked by his Centre colleague, Felix Africa. A banner hanging from the ceiling proclaimed the first presentation of the Quicksand Awards “for books that suck you in and then take you down,” presented to…
Walking to Remember
IT WAS 2006, AND MY FRIEND and I had been travelling around eastern and southern Africa for a few months. Blessed by the naiveté of youth and moments of excellent luck, we had managed to make it to the end of our…
De la tragédie de Miami à l’équilibre et la renaissance
À Miami, le 30 mars 2015, mon fils de 18 ans, Jean, a été tué alors qu’il effectuait une tentative de vol de marijuana. Un autre adolescent, Joshua, est aussi mort dans l’échange de coup de feu. Près de la scène, mon second fils Marc, âgé d’à peine 15 ans, a été arrêté et inculpé […]
Framing a Canadian Strategy in the Asia-Pacific
In 2019, Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau stood beside Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe in Ottawa and called for greater Canadian-Japanese cooperation in the “Indo-Pacific.” Hailed in the Canadian media at the time as a sign of Canadian middle-power diplomacy, Trudeau’s comments left many in government and academic circles scratching their heads. Had Canada adopted […]
A Tribute to Ian Shugart
Tribute to Ian Shugart delivered by Senator Boehm on November 2, 2023 Honourable colleagues, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today on behalf of the Independent Senators Group to pay tribute to our late colleague, the Honourable Ian Shugart, who left us far too soon. Ian was many things: an excellent colleague, […]
The Red Hotel
In The Red Hotel, journalist Alan Philps uses the celebrated Metropol Hotel in Moscow as the theme around which to centre the history of Soviet propaganda in the Second World War. He illustrates the unceasing efforts of journalists, diplomats, and Soviet dissidents living and working at the Metropol to reveal the truth about Stalin’s Russia […]
