Practices
Conflict Diamonds
The Department of State, through the Office of Threat Finance Countermeasures, helps to coordinate the U.S. commitments to the Kimberley Process. Through its commitment to upholding the…
Encyclopedia Entries
Showing all 20 results
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Term
Consul
A consular officer of high rank, often at the First Secretary level, within an embassy
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Term
Consul-general
A consular officer of the highest rank; senior official at the consulate general
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Term
Consulate
An office that is part of an embassy or established by one nation in an important city of another nation for the purpose of supporting and protecting its citizens traveling or residing there. In addition, these offices are charged with performing other important duties such as issuing visas (where this is required) to host country nationals wishing to travel to the country the consulate represents. All consulates, whether located in the capital city or in other communities, are administratively under the ambassador and the embassy.
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Term
Consulate General
A larger consulate with greater importance that is presided over by a consul-general.
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Term
Containment
The basic strategy of containing Soviet power during the Cold War. This policy would ‚"promote tendencies which must eventually find their outlet in either the break-up or the gradual mellowing of Soviet power." George, Kennan, an American diplomat for the Department of State in the mid-1950s, is credited for conceiving this idea.
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Convention
An agreement between two or more states, often concerning matters of common interest such as commerce.
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Term
Country desk
The Department of State has an office for each country with whom the U.S. shares diplomatic relations. These offices are often called country desks, and if a large country is involved, the desk is likely to be staffed by a large number of officers. A smaller country may require a one-officer desk only.
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Term
Country team
An interagency group made up of the heads of each State Department section in the embassy and the heads of the other U.S. government agencies represented at post. The country team meeting represents a regular occasion for the sharing of information among sections and agencies, and an opportunity to coordinate activities.
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Term
Credentials
The name for letters given to an ambassador by his/her chief of state, and addressed to the chief of state of the host country. They are delivered to the latter by the ambassador in a formal credentials ceremony, which generally takes place shortly after his/her arrival at a new post. Until this ceremony has taken place s/he is not formally recognized by the host country and cannot officially act as an ambassador. The letters are termed "letters of credence" because they request the receiving chief of state to give "full credence" to what the ambassador will say of behalf of his/her government.