Vignettes from 39 Years of Diplomacy: The Foreign Service Behind the Curtain (Sponsored By Milton and Marjorie Ruben)

In his 35-year career in the foreign service, Gene Cretz has served in some of the most challenging countries in the world: India, China, Egypt, Syria, Israel and Libya.  In China, Mr. Cretz was present at the gathering of the Falungong in Tiananmen Square in a protest that caught Chinese leadership by surprise in 1998.  In Libya, where he served as America's first ambassador since the restoration of relations in 2006, his reporting on the regime of Muammar Gaddafi led to a warning from the government there that he should leave the country or be a target of possible assassination.   In Egypt, Israel and Syria, he served as a senior American official to governments led by Hosni Mubarak, Benjamin Netanyahu and Bashar al-Assad and he will offer candid assessments of these key figures.  Mr. Cretz will also discuss how and why diplomats remain critical in a world increasingly dominated by direct leadership interactions and non-traditional ways of doing business, including cyber intrusions and zoom meetings.  Of greater interest to the audience may be vignettes relating to this body of experience.  Come peer behind the curtain with perspectives on personnel in the State Department and working with Congress overseas.