diplomacy red in tooth and claw
On my favorite list, someone observed:
It’s embarrassing when Iraq continually makes our professional, Fletcher/Kennedy schooled career diplomats look like bloody fools.
Kevin Maguire responded:
How surprising is this, really? To attain their positions, the Iraqi diplomats have had to be good at getting results in a political system where poor diplomacy gets you killed.
Our diplomats have honed their skills in an environment where lack of skills gets an extra 3% tariff on California wine entering Spain.