"Ambassadors at Sea"
The High and Low Adventures of a Diplomat
Lessons in Hardball Diplomacy
by US Ambassador Henry E. Cotto Jr.
Guess who is coming for dinner?...
In mid-March of 1975 Iranian ambassador Ardeshir Zahedi wanted to discuss the Shah’s forthcoming visit, set for May. We had been to many of Ardeshir’s lavish parties, where champagne and caviar were scarfed down like hot dogs and soda pop at a baseball game. We considered him a friend, and I anticipated no problems with the proposed trip. I was surprised, therefore, when over lunch at the Hay Adams Hotel, he started us off by saying, in effect, "Here’s how it’s going to be." I had no problems until he said, "We will have a dinner at the embassy on the second evening, and the president will come."
At that point, I demurred, President Ford has a firm policy of not attending dinners given by visiting heads of state; he won’t be able to be there. Vice President Rockefeller will represent him." Ardeshir lifted a heavy black eyebrow and said, "Well, we might as well leave, because there will be no state visit by the Shah," and he pushed back his chair as if to go.
"Whoa," I said, beating in inglorious retreat. "Let me talk to Brent Scowcroft at the White House and explain your position." At that, we finished our coffee and talked of other things.
When he departed, I bolted across Lafayette Square to the White House and told Brent what had happened. He was annoyed; the demands on the president’s time are huge and one more party was not what he needed. Furthermore, it would set a precedent; if we did it for Iran, it would be hard to resist doing it for other countries. (Like a wolf in the wilds, precedent constantly stalks diplomacy).
In the end, as I knew they would, Scowcroft and Kissinger caved in and the president agreed to attend. Our fallback policy became, in effect, if the country is big enough or rich enough, the president will attend. Otherwise, forget it. Life’s not fair.
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Review from Amazon.com
Hardcover - 384 pages 1st univer
edition (November 1998)
Univ of Texas Pr; ISBN: 029271212X ;
Dimensions (in inches): 1.13 x 9.31 x 6.40
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 132,552
Book
Description
In 1969, Henry Catto was selling insurance in San Antonio, Texas. Just
twenty years later, he presented his credentials as ambassador to the Court of St. James's
to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, at Buckingham Palace. In this engaging memoir, he
retraces his journey from Texas outsider to Washington insider, providing a fascinating
look at the glamour, day-to-day work, and even occasional danger that come with being a
high-level representative of the United States government.
Catto's posts brought him into contact with the world's most powerful leaders and left him with a wealth of stories, which he recounts amusingly in these pages. He was the official host for Queen Elizabeth's visit to America during the Bicentennial year-and one of Jos Napoleon Duarte's protectors after his failed 1972 coup attempt in El Salvador. Catto accompanied Richard Nixon on his historic trip to Russia, sparred with Bill Moyers and the producers of "60 Minutes" as Caspar Weinberger's spokesman at the Pentagon, and hosted George Bush's planning meeting with Margaret Thatcher at the beginning of the Persian Gulf War. In telling these and other stories, he offers behind-the-scenes glimpses into how political power really works in Washington, London, and other world capitals.
Henry E. Catto Jr. was deputy U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States and ambassador to El Salvador, the United Nations Office in Geneva, and Great Britain, as well as U.S. Chief of Protocol, Assistant Secretary of Defense, and Director of the U.S. Information Agency.
