Scarlett Gems
International Affairs Specialist -- U.S. Diplomat, Soldier, Lecturer
Earle Scarlett is a Jamaican born U.S. diplomat with global experience; diplomatic postings include: Cameroon, Brazil (twice), Philippines, Ex-Yugoslavia, Bosnia, and Charge' d'Affaires a.i. in Ireland. Postings at the State Department include: China and Somalia Desks. As Lecturer, he was a State Department Dean Rusk Fellow at the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University where he subsequently was examiner for Master’s theses in foreign affairs. In the U.S. State Department, he was Director of Training for Political Officers at the George Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center. Scarlett was also Advisor for International Affairs at Maxwell Air Force Base where he taught at the Air War College.
After a 30 year career in diplomacy he has taught and lectured at the following institutions: University of Bologna (2005-2010), Emory University (2004), University of Georgia, Columbia University, Georgia Technical University, and Lynn University. Before entering the Foreign Service he taught Political Science and International Relations at Loyola-Marymount University Los Angeles.
Scarlett was educated in Jamaica, US, France, and UK.
Articles
Sunday, January 28, 2018
Verbal effluence from the White House must not be countenanced
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
If Donald Trump were president
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Ireland and Public Diplomacy: "Still Here/Here Still"
Saturday, May 30, 2015
Pope Francis and President Obama: Almost Twins
The Pope's recent flourishes have rankled some leaders and congregants and pleased others. Condemning the Turks for alleged "genocide" against Armenians, brokering a US-Cuba accord, underscoring the Vatican's recognition of the State of Palestine, and beatifying Palestinian nuns are indicators of the pontiff's activism and unconventional approach to foreign policy.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/Pope-Francis-and-President-Obama--Almost-Twins_18990716
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
What motivates Obama? Principled pragmatism?
Sunday, December 14, 2014
Western Balkans and the Enigma of EU Accession
However, WB, individually or collectively, may consider other approaches beyond the means to accelerate EU accession. In the context of rapidly changing international relations and geo-politics, WB could envision alternatives that circumvent the hurdles they face for entry into European regional institutions, particularly EU and NATO.
Perhaps WB opine the criteria for their acceptance are dissimilar to those set for recent EU entrants. An underlying concern therefore is whether WB pursuit is Sisyphean and their goal of membership unattainable. Aware that EU’s present configuration is subject to changes, WB may assess that EU’s future character might not be conducive to their needs. History shows that the EU evolved from the Coal and Steel Community to EEC, and EC. Aware that EU in not static, aspirants may choose to evaluate whether the ongoing EU metamorphosis and expansion will meet their specific aspirations.
Given the economic rise and political clout of Asia, influential countries are focusing on that region. The EU is adjusting to this reality also in its current foreign and security policies. Its present loose union conceivably could be converted in the future to a federal or confederal configuration. Clearly, EU capitals would resist this shift as threats to their national sovereignty. Beyond that, these developments would be replete with complexities and manifold implications for geo-politics.
Nonetheless, in calculating their position in a mutating , albeit incremental, world order,
Having rejected what some WB countries considered a heavy-handed Belgrade domination
It is not far-fetched to consider nascent challenges to the Westphalian concept of the
Concomitantly, tolerance should be encouraged so that religious, ethnic differences are respected. Political parties formed on strict ethnic lines should be eschewed and supplanted by parties that transcend these primordial clusters. In the ex-Yugoslavia, Prime Minister Ante Markovic ‘s Reform Party espoused pragmatic policies but unfortunately did not win popular support.
Imbedded in these sclerotic traditional norms are seeds of conflict which entice foreign intervention ostensibly to protect inhabitants from untoward acts committed by nationalists. This situation raises questions regarding the appropriateness, magnitude, and duration of military intervention. Clearly, warranted intervention requires external powers to assess budgetary, strategic, and national security concerns with respect for universally accepted principles enshrined in domestic and international covenants. And of course foreign military intervention should be obliged to consider the implications of civilian casualties as well as the rights of sovereign states.
To the extent that the WB fail to implement domestic policies that conform to universally accepted democratic principles, the prospects of foreign intervention lurk . The underlying presumption is that EU membership conditionality will engend maturation and that NATO security umbrella will discourage chances of violent conflict. The challenge that WB leaders face is to manage conflict and display vision.
Education is a critical area for capacity building. Imperative is the preparation of the WB youth to meet the challenges of a competitive future and to promote a process of socialization that builds trust across ethnic and religious lines. And rewriting history must adhere to the canons of scientific inquiry and historiography.
With infrastructural advances, institutional efficiency, and social cohesion, WB will be in a better position to chart a future within or outside the ambit of the EU if indeed membership is deferred indefinitely. The asymmetry between current EU and NATO membership, emerging international realignments and trade relations, and the vast implications of globalization present a unique historical crossroads for WB to define and pursue their individual or collective interests.
In this scenario, WB leaders and their citizens would have an opportunity to weigh the costs and benefits of joining the EU, their own responsibilities as members, and their relative status and clout. On the other hand, WB could consider how they would fit in an apparently emerging new world order, not divided by ideology, as during the Cold War and the existence of the Non Aligned Movement, but by intricate levels of economic, financial, resource disparities, geographic power shifts, palpable global instability, and unruly nonstate actors.