Encyclopedia Entries

Filter results

Filter by Alphabet

Reset

Showing 31–40 of 111 results

  • Term

    Convention

    An agreement between two or more states, often concerning matters of common interest such as commerce.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • Term

    Defection

    When an official gives up his or her allegiance to one state in preference for another, usually because of disagreement over government policy, often immigrating to or seeking asylum in the new state. Defecting generally indicates a desire to participate in opposition or political activity that is illegal or impossible in the original country, differentiating it from a simple change in citizenship.

  • Term

    Delegation

    A party or group sent to represent a state or another body at an international conference or gathering

  • Term

    Démarche

    A request or intercession with a foreign official, e.g., a request for support of a policy, or a protest about the host government‚Äôs policy or actions

  • Term

    Department of State

    The oldest and head agency in the President’s cabinet. The Secretary of State leads the Department of State in carrying out the President's foreign policies. The Department was initially founded as the Department of Foreign Affairs in 1781 and then renamed in 1789 in the Constitution as the Department of State.

  • Term

    Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM)

    The second in command at an embassy who becomes the chargé d'affaires in the ambassador's absence

  • Term

    Desk Officer

    An officer in a regional bureau within the Department of State who is responsible for the oversight of relations with a particular foreign country or group of countries