The Politics of Diplomacy (Hardcover)

~ James A. Baker III (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Former Secretary of State Baker's memoirs offer an engaging and candid behind-the-scenes look at the conduct of U.S. foreign policy during one of the most tumultuous periods in recent history. The dramatic political convulsions of his tenure?the Tiananmen Square massacre, breakup of the Soviet Union, collapse of the Berlin wall, German reunification, and Iraqi invasion of Kuwait?form the backdrop for Baker's intriguing account of his forays into the vicissitudes of international diplomacy, a tale laced with personal anecdotes and intimate portraits of major world figures. Confusing chronological arrangement and sometimes tedious details may put off some readers, but those who persevere will be well rewarded. Comparable to his predecessor George P. Schultz's Turmoil and Triumph (Scribner's, 1993), Baker's book is a valuable contribution to the literature on contemporary U.S. foreign relations. A welcome addition to both popular and academic collections.
-?David Ettinger, George Washington Univ., Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description

The Secretary of State in the Bush Administration recounts his efforts at diplomacy during the extraordinary events of his time in office, from the fall of the U.S.S.R. to the Israeli-Palestinian peace accord. 150,000 first printing. $150,000 ad/promo. First serial, Newsweek.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 687 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Adult (September 26, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399140875
• ISBN-13: 978-0399140877
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 2.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #251,030 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good biography, ok for history, February 27, 2001

By	M. Vandover (Montgomery Village, MD United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Politics of Diplomacy (Audio Cassette)

This book is a fascinating look at James Baker's tenure as Secretary of State. Baker writes a massive book seperated by area of work; ie one chapter on Eastern Europe, one on the Persian Gulf War, etc.; which causes a little confusion in terms of the timeline, but it is easily sorted out. The one massive flaw is that he makes virtually no mention of Vice President Quayle and some others in the foreign policy process and absolutely lionizes himself. While I realize that this is a memoir, and as such is meant to build up the author, but this seems to go a bit over the edge. IF you want to find out how Baker thought and worked, this is an incredible book. If you are looking for history, read this with many other books.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Politics of Diplomacy: Revolution, War and Peace, 1989-1992, July 26, 2001

By	Daniel Pipes, Middle East Forum, Philadelphia (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

Soon after becoming secretary of state, George P. Shultz noted that  unless you do something about it, in the job of secretary of state you will spend 100 percent of your time on the Middle East.  Every Secretary of State becomes a Middle East expert very rapidly, whether he wants to or not, he also stated. . These observations remain valid today, when Warren Christopher has virtually become Secretary of State for the Middle East. Baker had a similar experience. Page one of his memoirs tells of Saddam Husayns invasion of Kuwait, the single most dangerous moment of Bakers three-years-plus as secretary of state. Of the books thirty-four chapters, fully fifteen concentrate on the Middle East, primarily the Kuwait war and the Arab-Israeli peace process.

Famously discreet when in office, Baker unbuttons a bit in the retelling. He captures the atmosphere of his endless travels (he went to sleep on the eve of his Geneva meeting with Tariq Aziz, just before the outbreak of hostilities, as the chants from antiwar protesters echoed quietly up to our block of rooms) and the vagaries of dealing with Middle Eastern leaders (Asad treated his complaints about Syrian terrorism the way one might react to an eccentric uncle at family gatheringsas an unavoidable nuisance to be endured politely). Baker also provides some new information; for example, in March 1991, he raised to Yitzhak Shamir the possibility of stationing U.S. troops on the Golan Heights.

Middle East Quarterly, June 1996

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing ..., February 20, 2007

By	David Dutch (Philadelphia, PA USA) - See all my reviews

I guess I am the scrooge of the reviewers of The Politics of Diplomacy by James A. Baker III.

Given the positive things I have read about Secretary James Baker, I expected this book to be interesting, insightful and educational. I found the book to be as interesting as reading a phone book, with sentences aggrandizing Secretary Baker thrown in along the way.

I can't believe that in his 12 years of high-level public service for Presidents Reagan and Bush, that Mr. James Baker was consistently the most crafty, astute, worldly and knowledgeable of the leaders of the world, which is the impression I was left with after reading this book.

I did find one interesting tidbit in the book, however, which was that from the time George H. W. Bush was President Reagan's Vice President, Vice President Bush wanted to overthrow President Noriega of Panama.

After he was elected President in 1988, President Bush had the opportunity to overthrow President Noriega, which he appeared to do by mishandling negotiations with President Noriega and provoking President Noriega into a belligerent state. This example of toppling a sovereign state for personal, rather than national interest, reasons was copied by President George H. W. Bush's son, the current President Bush, who seemed to follow the same playbook with Iraq with different results, sadly.

I haven't yet given up on Secretary James Baker; I plan to read his new book, Work Hard, Study...and Keep Out of Politics! Adventures and Lessons from an Unexpected Public Life. I hope the book contains some insights about Mr. Baker's decision-making as well as insights about other personalities he met along the way. If the book is 480 pages of self-aggrandizement, I may have to reach for the Alka-Seltzer to keep my dinner from spilling out onto the floor.