Diplomatic mission

I'm not really sure what happened to that money, but Conein did show up with forty-two thousand dollars in cash, and he was in their headquarters through the entire coup.

He was radioing a stream of, uh, almost, you know, minute-by-minute reports to the US Embassy, which was then forwarding it to Washington.

So everybody in Washington was aware of exactly what was happening.

At one point toward the end of the coup, right before Diem and Nhu-- and his brother, Nhu, surrendered, the generals asked Lu Conein for a plane, an air-- a US aircraft to get Diem out of the country.

Carney is expected to address the European Parliament on Thursday and lay out more of his vision for Canada's relationship with Europe.

And finally, an unusual diplomatic situation involving the US Embassy in London.

British police reportedly never got the chance to question an American embassy employee accused of possessing indecent images of children before he was flown back to the US in August.

The US Embassy says it alerted British law enforcement about the allegations and reassigned the employee back to the US while the investigation continues.

British authorities had reportedly been preparing to interview the employee before he left the country.

The investigation remains ongoing.

A US embassy worker accused of possessing indecent images of children has been flown out of the UK after being detained at his flat in London without being first questioned by British police.

Our correspondent, Vincent McAvinny, has the story.

The individual is understood to have worked at the US Embassy in Vauxhall, and though not a diplomat, he enjoyed the umbrella of diplomatic protection.

He was flown back to the United States on a commercial flight in August.

The US Embassy told the BBC the staff member had been reassigned to the US while inquiries continue.

A statement said the US government expected all personnel to adhere to the highest standards of conduct.

It's understood Home Office ministers and the Metropolitan Police are in close contact with the US Embassy as the investigations continue.

A UK government spokesperson said, "We expect all foreign diplomats to abide by our laws in the same way we expect all UK diplomats to do so when posted overseas."

Section 14.

First Foreign Missions.

This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.

Recording by Tom Hirsch.

So what happened?

Behrooz, Behrooz, Behrooz has access to go to US Embassy in the Dubai.

Mm.

He's already there.

And, and Arminstan.

Right.

Arminstan, uh, had the, uh, US Embassy, too.

I mean, always-

The only way you could communicate was through Thuraya satellite phones, which were the very early satellite phones.

A little over a year later, the US Embassy attacks in Africa happened, and then it was very clear that these guys could kill.

You know, they didn't care k- about killing large numbers of civilians.

Did you ever get that feeling from the man himself? I mean, you know, sometimes people look back and they embellish an experience.

It's a, you know, two, maybe a couple of dozen initially.

It's not like a giant enterprise.

And I mean, they, they're only sort of set up it for, for a little while when you have these catastrophic strikes against, uh, US Embassy, uh, property.

So August 1998, on the 7th of August, uh, which is incidentally the eighth anniversary of American troops entering Saudi Arabia, there is this massive truck bomb that devastates the American Embassy in Nairobi.

For the Lazarists of Montédier, 100 livres.

Seminary for Foreign Missions in Paris, 200 livres.

Congregation of the Holy Spirit, 150 livres.

Religious Establishments of the Holy Land, 100 livres.

The advice came straight home and was devoutly followed.

And to be just to the great powers something was done in Europe A conference was called It was agreed to send commissioners to Samoa and the decks had to be hastily cleared against their visit Doctor Stubel had attached the municipality of Apia and hoisted the German war flag over Milanu The American consul in a sudden access of good service had flown the stars and stripes over Samoan colours On either side these steps were solemnly retracted The Germans expressly disowned Tamasese and the islands fell into a period of suspense of some twelve months duration during which the seed of history was transferred to other countries and escapes my purview Here on the spot I select three incidents The arrival on the scene of a new actor The Visit Of The Hawaiian Embassy And The Riot On The Emperor's Birthday The rest shall be silence Only it must be borne in view that Tamasese all the while continued to strengthen himself in Lelumwenga and Laopepa sat inactive listening to the song of consuls Captain Brandeis The New Actor Was Brandeis A Bavarian captain of artillery of a romantic and adventurous character He had served with credit in war but soon wearied of garrison life resigned his battery Came To The States Found Employment As A Civil Engineer Visited Cuba Took a subcontract on the Panama Canal Caught The Fever And Came For The Sake Of The Sea Voyage To Australia He had that natural love for the tropics Which Lies So Often Latent In Persons Of A Northern Birth Difficulty and danger attracted him And when he was picked out for secret duty To Be The Hand Of Germany In Samoa There Is No Doubt But He Accepted The Post With Exhilaration It is doubtful if a better choice could have been made He had courage Integrity Ideas Of His Own And loved the employment The People And The Place Yet there was a fly in the ointment The double error of unnecessary stealth And The Inmixture Of A Trading Company In Political Affairs Has vitiated and in the end defeated much German policy And brandeis was introduced to the islands as a clerk and sent down to lelumuenga where he was soon drilling the troops and fortifying the position of the rebel king as An Agent Of The German Firm What This Mystification Cost In The End I Shall Tell In Another Place And even in the beginning it deceived no one Brandeis is a man of notable personal appearance He looks the part allotted him And The Military Clerk Was Soon The Centre Of Observation And Rumour Maliotoa wrote and complained of his presence to Becker who had succeeded dr stubel in the consulate Becker replied i have nothing to do with the gentleman brandeis be it well known that the gentleman brandeis has no appointment in our military character but resides peaceably assisting the government of lelumuwanga in their work for brandeis is a quiet sensible gentleman and he then promised to send the vice consul to get information of the captain's doings surely a supererogation of deceit the hawaiian embassy the prime minister of the hawaiian kingdom was at this period an adventurer of the name of gibson he claimed on the strength of a romantic story to be the heir of a great english house He had played a part in a revolt in Java, had languished in Dutch fetters, and had risen to be a trusted agent of Brigham Young, the Utah president.

It was in this character of a Mormon emissary that he first came to the islands of Hawaii where he collected a large sum of money for the Church of the Latter-day Saints.

At a given moment, he dropped his saintship and appeared as a Christian and the owner of a part of the island of Lanai.

The steps of the transformation are obscure; they seem at least to have been ill received at Salt Lake, and there is evidence to the effect he was followed to the islands by Mormon assassins.

His first attempt on politics was made under the auspices of what is called the Missionary Party, and the canvas conducted largely it is said with tears On the platform at prayer meetings, it resulted in defeat without any decency of delay He changed his colours abjured the errors of reform And with the support of the Catholics rose To the chief power In a very brief interval he Had thus run through the gamut Of religions in the South Seas Does not appear That he was any more particular In politics But he was careful to consult The character and prejudices Of the late King Kalakaua That amiable Far from unaccomplished but too convivial Sovereign had A continued use For money Gibson Was observant to keep him well supplied Kalakaua One of the most theoretical of men Was filled With visionary schemes For the protection And development of the Polynesian race Gibson fell in step with him Is even thought that he may Have shared in his illusions The king and minister At least conceived between them Scheme of Island Confederation Most obvious fault of which Was that it came Too late and the armed and fitted out cruiser Kamiloa nest egg of the future navy of Hawai Samoa the most important group still independent and one immediately threatened with aggression was chosen for the scene of action the honourable John E Bush half caste Hawaiian sailed December eighteen eighty seven for Apia as Minister Plenipotentiary accompanied by Secretary of Legation Henry F Poor and as soon as she was ready for sea the war ship followed in support the expedition was futile in its course almost tragic in result the Kamaloa was from the first a scene of disaster and dilapidation the stores were sold the crew revolted for a great part of a night she was in the hands of mutineers and the secretary lay bound upon the deck the mission installing itself at first with extravagance at Matautu was helped at last out of the island by the advances of a private citizen and they returned from dreams of Polynesian independence to find their own city in the hands of a clique of white shopkeepers and the Great Gibson once again in jail yet the farce had not been quite without effect it had encouraged the natives for the moment and it seems to have ruffled permanently the temper of the Germans so might a fly irritate Caesar the arrival of a mission from Hawaii would scarce affect the composure of the courts of Europe but in the eyes of Polynesians the little kingdom occupies a place apart it is there alone that men of their race enjoy most of the advantages and all the pomp of independence news of Hawaii and descriptions of Honolulu are grateful topics in all parts of the south seas and there is no better introduction than a photo in which the bearer shall be represented in company with Kalakawa Laopepa was besides sunk to the point at which an unfortunate begins to clutch at straws and he received the mission with delight letters were exchanged between him and Kalakawa a deed of confederation was signed seventeenth February eighteen eighty seven and the signature celebrated in the new house of the Hawaiian embassy with some original ceremonies Maliatoa Laopepa came attended by his ministry several hundred chiefs two guards and six policemen always decent he withdrew at an early hour By those that remained All decency appears to have Been forgotten High Chiefs Were seen to dance And the day found the House Carpeted with slumbering Grandees Who must be roused Doctored with coffee And sent home As a first chapter In the history of Polynesian Confederation It was hardly cheering And Laupeppa remarked To one of the Embassy With equal dignity and sense If you have come here To teach my people to drink I wish You had stayed away The Germans looked on From the first With natural irritation That a power Of the powerlessness of Hawaii Should thus profit By its undeniable footing In the family of nations And send embassies And make believe To have a navy And bark and snap At the heels Of the great German Empire But Becker Could not prevent The hunted Lau Peppa From taking refuge In any hole that offered And he could afford to smile At the fantastic orgy In the embassy It was another matter When the Hawaiians approached The intractable Mataafa Sitting still in his Atua government Like Achilles in his tent Helping neither side And As the Germans suspected Keeping the eggs warm For himself When the Kamiloa Steamed out of Arpier On this visit The German warship Adler Followed at her heels And Mata'afa was no sooner set down with the embassy than he was summoned and ordered on board by two German officers.

This step is one of those triumphs of temper which can only be admired; Mata'afa is entertaining the plenipotentiary of a sovereign power in treaty with his own king, and the captain of a German corvette orders him to quit his guests! But there was worse to come.

I gather that Tamasese was at the time in the sulks.

At

the U.S. Embassy.

At the U.S. Embassy? For Martin Indyk.

For Martin Indyk.

Yeah.

It was great.

I got permission from the ambassador at the time.

I didn't take any payment for it, but it was great because it also introduced me to a whole other group of people in Egypt who were not interested in what the U.S. embassy was up to, but they were interested.