About as Juicy as Diplomacy Gets
International diplomacy got really interesting this week as celebrities, UN resolutions, Cold War espionage and diamonds splashed news headlines around the world.
A court room sketch of the spies
1. Running a close second place in the news cycle, only behind the Gulf oil spill relief effort, the US completed an intriguing round-up and swap with Moscow of 10 Russian spies living in America. Very swiftly after their capture, the 10 were traded for 4 individuals tied to western intelligence gathering efforts who sat in Russian jails. Facebook profiles, romantic encounters and disbelief from those who knew the deep-cover agents reignited Cold War nostalgia with a modern twist and increased online readership across many news outlets. Politico.com actually appears to have hit its monthly high right after the story broke. (source: Quantcast)
2. The island of Cyprus’ normally bland and now 36 year old smoldering civil war also got a celebrity spark this week, when Jennifer Lopez decided to cancel a concert in the Northern Turkish Republic of Cyprus due to public pressure. She was due to perform on July 24 for the opening of the Cratos Premium Hotel and Casino in Kyrenia, a beach resort town on the northern side of the island.
The beautiful harbor of Kyrenia, Cyprus won't be the newest exotic concert location for JLo
A statement posted on her website read, “Jennifer Lopez would never knowingly support any state, country, institution or regime that was associated with any form of human rights abuse…After a full review of the relevant circumstances in Cyprus, it was the decision of her advisors to withdraw from the appearance. This was a team decision that reflects our sensitivity to the political realities of the region.”
The conflict has spawned UN resolutions, peacekeeping missions and international court cases since the island split violently into a Greek-speaking south and Turkish-speaking north after a 1974 invasion by Turkey. In 1983, Turkish Cypriots declared the north’s independence, but Turkey is the only country that has recognized the region’s status. Meanwhile, the internationally recognized southern Greek Cypriot side of the island joined the European Union in 2004, further growing the economic development inequalities between the two sides. Remarkably, some saw J Lo’s planned performance as an endorsement of the breakaway state’s legitimacy – a bit of a stretch if you ask me. However, a week on the island in 2005 certainly taught me how seriously Cypriots, both southern and northern, take seemingly little things like this.
3. Lastly, the British supermodel Naomi Campbell announced through her PR firm this week that she will testify as a witness in the war crimes tribunal of Charles Taylor. Taylor, the former leader of Liberia, was captured while on the run by UN peacekeepers in Nigeria in March 2006. He is accused of mass murder, rape and mutilation, including financial support for rebels in Sierra Leone civil war that cut off the limbs of their civilian victims. Taylor, 62, is also accused of destabilizing Liberia and several neighboring countries while amassing a personal fortune from illicit trade in diamonds, guns and timber.
Charles Taylor, the former leader of Liberia, was captured while on the run by UN peacekeepers in Nigeria in March 2006. UN Photo/Mathew Elavanalthoduka
Campbell is being ordered to testify because, according to another celebrity, Mia Farrow, she accepted an enormous rough-cut diamond from Taylor when the two met at a house party hosted by Nelson Mandela in 1997. Farrow, who was also at the party, says Campbell told her about the gift soon after it was presented to her. The supermodel had previously avoided questions on the matter and said she did not want to be involved in the war crimes trial at The Hague, Netherlands. However, after the court issued a subpoena on July 1, ordering her appearance, she faced a prison term of up to seven years, a fine of about $500, or both, if she failed to appear.
International diplomacy probably won’t get this sensational again for a while.
