Blog

Indian Deputy Consul General Khobragade and the ensuing media discussion have had a ripple effect with some readers of my book, who’re now curious about consular immunity and astutely note that a discussion of this is not a part of ...

When Emilio Estefan, husband of super-star Gloria, was appointed Special Ambassador for Miami, someone asked me if cities also have consuls. The short answer is that this would make no sense. The honorary, unpaid position of “ambassador” in the context of ...

General Vice Consul to the Consulate of (named country) is a self-designated title I recently ran across although this could be one of the many in usage by some foreign countries posting or appointing consuls somewhere in the United States. ...

Cultural faux pas (social blunders involving people of different cultural backgrounds) happen with consuls and diplomats, just like in any cross-cultural situations. Most of the time they are inadvertent, such as when we don’t know that a particular form of ...

There are honorary consuls and honorary consuls general, and the former Vice President served as honorary consul general of Norway in Minnesota from 2008-2010. Since I’ve long argued that correct terminology is the basis for any dialogue, I was quite gratified ...

Usually when a consular official retires, his past position might not be interesting to the community where he served but in the case of Walter Mondale it is, and here is why: This former U.S. presidential candidate, commonly known as ...

Consuls are often overlooked as natural allies with the economic and cultural communities in which they function. They are the natural bridges between the countries they represent and the states and cities that seek to expand globally. Even when a ...

Consuls and universities are natural partners in the search for global success for everyone involved. Long-established study-abroad programs have already made local consuls a natural resource for these purposes but expanded collaboration with the foreign consuls among us can reach ...

I have heard of “mobile consulates” before but I think one on wings portrays really well how some countries handle the problem with servicing their citizens. A “consulate on wings” is a wonderfully descriptive term for when a consulate takes it ...

The Consular Corps of Miami has a much longer history than most people believed. Long-time members of the corps used to say it dated “back to the 60s” but my research quickly took me back to the 50s. A little more ...