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Dec 14th, 2010


Tributes Pour in for Richard Holbrooke

Longtime diplomat remembered as ‘giant’ of U.S. diplomacy

Video

Remembering a relentless diplomat (NBC Nightly News, Dec. 14, 2010) — Fifteen years ago Tuesday, a peace treaty negotiated by Ambassador Richard Holbrooke was signed, ending the war in Bosnia. NBC’s Brian Williams reports. (02:57)

NBC and The Associated Press via MSNBC.com
Dec. 14, 2010

WASHINGTON — Few U.S. diplomats had the breadth, depth or length of service of Richard Holbrooke, who wrote part of the Pentagon Papers, was the architect of the 1995 Bosnia peace accords and served as President Barack Obama’s special envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Holbrooke’s unexpected death Monday at 69, following surgery for a tear in his aorta, marked the end of a storied career. He served through defining eras in U.S. diplomacy, witnessing the end of European colonialism and the Cold War and the rise of international terrorism as the greatest threat to America.

Calling Holbrooke “a true giant of American foreign policy,” Obama paid homage to his crisis expert as “a truly unique figure who will be remembered for his tireless diplomacy, love of country and pursuit of peace.” Holbrooke deserves credit for much of the hard-won progress in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the president said. …

Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Holbrooke’s presence would be especially missed this week as the Obama administration finishes its review of the Afghan war, expected Thursday. Mullen said Holbrooke helped write and “deeply believed in” the war strategy. …

The Washington Post quoted family members as saying that as Holbrooke was sedated for surgery, his final words were to his surgeon: “You’ve got to stop this war in Afghanistan.” …

Full story

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Related reports on this site

Afghanistan Worn-Out Welcome (Nov. 21, 2010)

Afghanistan War Strategy Review (Oct. 3, 2009)

Afghanistan — Obama’s Vietnam? (Feb. 3, 2009)

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FROM THE ARCHIVES: One Year Ago — December 14, 2009

Missing Bush E-mails Recovered

Video

E-mail could fill holes in the Bush record (MSNBC “The Rachel Maddow Show,” Dec. 14, 2009) — Meredith Fuchs, general counsel for the National Security Archive explains how tens of millions of Bush administration e-mails once thought missing have been recovered. (05:50)

One year ago today, I reported that computer technicians found 22 million missing White House e-mails from the administration of President George W. Bush. The Bush White House e-mail archiving problems became publicly known in 2006, when federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald disclosed the irregularities during his criminal investigation of the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame.

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FROM THE ARCHIVES: Two Years Ago — December 14, 2008

Iraq Rebuilding ‘$100B Failure’


Max Becherer / Polaris — NYT

Two years ago today, on Dec. 14, 2008, I reported that a federal draft report depicted the U.S.-led reconstruction of Iraq as a $100 billion failure doomed by bureaucratic infighting, ignorance of basic elements of Iraqi society, and waves of violence. The report, “Hard Lessons: The Iraq Reconstruction Experience,” was compiled by the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, led by Stuart Bowen Jr., a Republican lawyer.





One Response to “Richard Holbrooke Dead at 69”
  1. Immelman for Congress » Blog Archive » Afghanistan — Obama’s Vietnam? Says:

    […] Richard Holbrooke Dead at 69 (Dec. 14, 2010) […]

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