Originally Posted by
oxenos
Interesting to see that a Colonel Clutterbuck was also on the panel. Read a book by him years ago on the Malayan "Emergency". He emphasised the importance of keeping the local villagers on side with the hearts and minds campaign, a point which was lost on the Americans in Vietnam.
The UK had, of course, considerable experience in 'Foreign Relations" through the days of Empire [good or ill]. In the nicest possible way, the USA was, and indeed largely is, totally ignorant in that field.
Isolationism and Engagement are uneasy bed-fellows.