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'Bladder diplomacy' at Iran talks: other negotiations that tested leaders' stamina 'Bladder diplomacy' at Iran talks: other negotiations that tested leaders' stamina
(35 minutes later)
Eight days of talks on Iran’s nuclear programme in Lausanne have been a grinding reminder that international diplomacy can be a high-pressure business: stretching negotiators’ nerves and testing their stamina while forcing them maintain poker faces to the very end. Eight days of talks on Iran’s nuclear programme in Lausanne have been a grinding reminder that international diplomacy can be a high-pressure business: stretching negotiators’ nerves and testing their stamina while forcing them to maintain poker faces to the very end.
With an announcement expected on Thursday evening, John Kerry has already set a record: the longest stay by a US secretary of state negotiating a single issue for 37 years. The Iranian marathon has even been compared to the Versailles peace conference in 1919, though many different issues were under discussion then. Officials joke that they measure the duration of negotiations by how many shirts they will need.With an announcement expected on Thursday evening, John Kerry has already set a record: the longest stay by a US secretary of state negotiating a single issue for 37 years. The Iranian marathon has even been compared to the Versailles peace conference in 1919, though many different issues were under discussion then. Officials joke that they measure the duration of negotiations by how many shirts they will need.
Camp David 1978 and 2000Camp David 1978 and 2000
In September 1978 Jimmy Carter brought Egypt’s Anwar Sadat and Israel’s Menachem Begin together for 13 days in the Maryland presidential retreat, where the leaders stayed in rustic log cabins. Agreement paved the way for a bilateral peace treaty the following year but failed to help the Palestinians. A 14-day Camp David summit in July 2000 ended without agreement and was followed by a new Palestinian uprising. US-Middle East peace-making is always tough. Secretary of State James Baker coined the phrase “bladder diplomacy” to describe the ability of Syria’s president Hafez al-Assad to talk for hours without a toilet break. Visitors to Damascus were briefed to go easy on the constant offerings of coffee, tea and lemonade. In September 1978 Jimmy Carter brought Egypt’s Anwar Sadat and Israel’s Menachem Begin together for 13 days in the Maryland presidential retreat, where the leaders stayed in rustic log cabins. Agreement paved the way for a bilateral peace treaty the following year but failed to help the Palestinians. A 14-day Camp David summit in July 2000 ended without agreement and was followed by a new Palestinian uprising. US-Middle East peacemaking is always tough. Secretary of State James Baker coined the phrase “bladder diplomacy” to describe the ability of Syria’s president Hafez al-Assad to talk for hours without a toilet break. Visitors to Damascus were briefed to go easy on the constant offerings of coffee, tea and lemonade.
Dayton 1995Dayton 1995
The 21 days of talks that ended the war in Bosnia took placed on a windswept US air base in Ohio. It followed months of shuttle diplomacy by Richard Holbrooke, the lead US official, who was known as “the Bulldozer” or “Raging Bull”. The protagonists held “proximity talks” and Holbrooke sipped mid-morning pear brandy with Slobodan Milosevic, the Yugoslav president blamed for starting the conflict. “We were expecting to spend a few days in seclusion and were then surprised to find that after three weeks we had still not reached a conclusion,” one European diplomat recalled. Failure loomed and bags were packed the day before the final breakthrough.The 21 days of talks that ended the war in Bosnia took placed on a windswept US air base in Ohio. It followed months of shuttle diplomacy by Richard Holbrooke, the lead US official, who was known as “the Bulldozer” or “Raging Bull”. The protagonists held “proximity talks” and Holbrooke sipped mid-morning pear brandy with Slobodan Milosevic, the Yugoslav president blamed for starting the conflict. “We were expecting to spend a few days in seclusion and were then surprised to find that after three weeks we had still not reached a conclusion,” one European diplomat recalled. Failure loomed and bags were packed the day before the final breakthrough.
Potsdam 1945Potsdam 1945
Harry Truman, Joseph Stalin and Winston Churchill spent 16 days (17 July to 2 August) in the Cecilienhof palace near Berlin arguing over the shape of post-war Europe. The atmosphere was acrimonious, presaging the cold war. The British leader was in a bullish mood after falling out with Stalin at the Yalta conference a few months earlier. But Stalin was cheerful, and his “eyes twinkled with mirth and good humour”, Churchill wrote. Truman, new to the White House, and “sick of babying the Soviets”, was nervous. The US president told Stalin of an unspecified “powerful new weapon”. The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima days later. Harry Truman, Joseph Stalin and Winston Churchill (replaced halfway through by Clement Attlee, who won the 1945 general election) spent 16 days (17 July to 2 August) in the Cecilienhof palace near Berlin arguing over the shape of post-war Europe. The atmosphere was acrimonious, presaging the cold war. The British leader was in a bullish mood after falling out with Stalin at the Yalta conference a few months earlier. But Stalin was cheerful, and his “eyes twinkled with mirth and good humour”, Churchill wrote. Truman, new to the White House, and “sick of babying the Soviets”, was nervous. The US president told Stalin of an unspecified “powerful new weapon”. The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima days later.
Maastricht 1991Maastricht 1991
Talks on a new European treaty brought the continent’s leaders to this landmark Dutch summit for two tense days in December 1991. Sir John Kerr, Britain’s ambassador in Brussels, broke protocol and hid under the table at the leaders-only final session, whispering advice and passing notes to John Major, the British prime minister. “European Union summits tended to be tense and exhausting ordeals, and often rather undemocratic,” Major wrote later. “They had the odd light moment, but I cannot pretend that I enjoyed them, or the shenanigans and horse-trading that was so often a feature.”Talks on a new European treaty brought the continent’s leaders to this landmark Dutch summit for two tense days in December 1991. Sir John Kerr, Britain’s ambassador in Brussels, broke protocol and hid under the table at the leaders-only final session, whispering advice and passing notes to John Major, the British prime minister. “European Union summits tended to be tense and exhausting ordeals, and often rather undemocratic,” Major wrote later. “They had the odd light moment, but I cannot pretend that I enjoyed them, or the shenanigans and horse-trading that was so often a feature.”
Minsk 2015Minsk 2015
Vladimir Putin’s talks with the leaders of Ukraine, France and Germany in Minsk in February were the longest negotiations the Russian president had ever held. The Kremlin said met for Putin, François Hollande, Angela Merkel and Petro Poroshenko lasted 16 hours, running through the night. They had almost no breaks. After 14 hours of negotiations, they took time off for wider consultations. “It was not the best night in my life,” Putin said afterwards. “However ... despite all difficulties in the negotiating process, we managed to agree on the main issues.” Vladimir Putin’s talks with the leaders of Ukraine, France and Germany in Minsk in February were the longest negotiations the Russian president had ever held. The Kremlin said Putin, François Hollande, Angela Merkel and Petro Poroshenko met for 16 hours, running through the night. They had almost no breaks. After 14 hours of negotiations, they took time off for wider consultations. “It was not the best night in my life,” Putin said afterwards. “However … despite all difficulties in the negotiating process, we managed to agree on the main issues.”