Showing Archived Posts

Holbrooke Death Marks Passing of Torch to New Generation

Posted December 15th, 2010 at 5:21 pm (UTC+0)
5 comments

When someone dies, especially someone of note, accolades pour in praising the deceased’s virtues and praising his or her legacy.  But of all the tributes that came in after the death U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke, one, for me, stood out. In a statement, CIA director Leon Panetta – who worked […]

Posted in Afghanistan, Pakistan

Holbrooke Death Leaves Hole in Afghan Policy

Posted December 14th, 2010 at 7:39 pm (UTC+0)
2 comments

The death of Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke came at a rather untimely moment.  The Obama Administration was putting the final touches on the strategic review of what is dubbed “Af-Pak” policy, and Holbrooke was a key participant in that. Holbrooke was known for an outsize ego and abrasive manner, and was […]

Posted in Afghanistan, Pakistan

WikiLeaks: one week down, ???? to go

Posted December 10th, 2010 at 8:15 pm (UTC+0)
5 comments

There is little doubt the WikiLeaks cables have been a headache for U.S. officials in general, and diplomats in particular.  To have private and very candid assessments of foreign leaders and reports on their activities aired in public is embarrassing.  It’s like knowing someone is talking about you behind your back, and then finding out […]

Tags: Posted in diplomacy, intelligence

Partying Down at the CIA

Posted December 6th, 2010 at 8:51 pm (UTC+0)
4 comments

The CIA held its annual holiday reception Friday. Who would have thought that they were a bunch of party animals? OK, it’s not exactly “Spies Gone Wild.” But the annual party is always a first-class event with lots of excellent food, good wine, and fascinating company – although some of the guests may be understandably […]

Posted in intelligence

Documents Show U.S. Coalition Building on Iran

Posted December 3rd, 2010 at 6:28 pm (UTC+0)
1 comment

There is little question that the latest batch of WikiLeaks documents, mainly from the State Department, make for fascinating reading. Examples abound:  Over the past nine years, Afghan President Hamid Karzai has seemingly morphed from being a rather happy fellow to a mercurial and paranoid one.   Russian President Dmitri Medvedev “plays Robin to (Vladimir) Putin’s […]

Tags: Posted in diplomacy, Iran

About

About this blog

Gary Thomas

Gary Thomas is VOA senior correspondent and news analyst. He has spent more than 30 years covering a wide range of stories on political developments, war, and civil unrest. From 1990 to 1994 he was VOA’s bureau chief in Islamabad, and has made numerous trips back to the region since then. He was also Southeast Asia bureau chief in Bangkok from 1996-2001. He is now based in Washington, providing background and analysis on issues of intelligence, security, and terrorism for VOA’s worldwide audience.

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