Back Channel

American Diplomacy in a Disordered World

Burns William J.

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Over the course of more than three decades as an American diplomat, William J. Burns played a central role in the most consequential diplomatic episodes of his time – from the bloodless end of the Cold War to the collapse of relations with Putin's Russia, from post-9/11 tumult in the Middle East to the secret nuclear talks with Iran.

Burns draws on a treasure trove of newly declassified cables and memos to offer rare insight into US diplomacy in action. He illuminates the back channels of his profession, and its value in a world that resembles neither the zero-sum Cold War of his early career, nor the "unipolar moment" of American primacy that followed.

"The Back Channel" recounts with vivid detail and incisive analysis the seminal moments of a legendary career and makes an eloquent and impassioned argument for diplomacy in an increasingly volatile world.

About the Author

Ambassador William J. Burns is known as America's "secret diplomatic weapon". Serving five presidents and ten secretaries of state, he has been central to the past four decades' most consequential foreign policy episodes. Now retired from the US Foreign Service, he is President of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

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