
05/07/2020
The View from the Bridge: Sailing in Formation with the State Department
"The National Defense University's annual celebration of Foreign Affairs Day to recognize the important partnership between NDU and the Department of State would have occurred today if not for the health and safety considerations of COVID-19. Instead, this link references my reflections on our 2018 celebration as they appeared in The Foreign Service Journal.
https://www.afsa.org/view-bridge-sailing-formation-state-department
NDU is known as "the Chairman's University," because it falls under the direction of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; but the State Department has always been our most important partner outside of the Department of Defense.
Ever since Ambassador George Kennan served as the first deputy commandant and international adviser at the National War College from 1946 to 1947, the State Department has made invaluable contributions to preparing our military and civilian students to become strategic thinkers and to serve as national security leaders. But although we share an important history, we share an equally important future.
The importance of our work together to promote peace and security around the world is expressed well in this observation from former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan: "Education is, quite simply, peace-building by another name. It is the most effective form of defense spending there is."