The Sosh Podcast is a co-production of the Sosh Research Lab and WKDT at West Point. Our Department motto is “Humani nihil alienum,” meaning “nothing human is alien to us,” and with this podcast, we’ll endeavor to increase our understanding of what’s going on in the world through the lenses of political science and economics.
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The Sosh Podcast is a co-production of the Sosh Research Lab and WKDT at West Point. Our Department motto is “Humani nihil alienum,” meaning “nothing human is alien to us,” and with this podcast, we’ll endeavor to increase our understanding of what’s going on in the world through the lenses of political science and economics.
In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Anne Bennett and MAJ Thomas Dyrenforth to discuss the dynamics of civil-military cooperation and implementing foreign policy at U.S. diplomatic missions around the world. Dr. Bennett talks about her experience as a State Department Foreign Service Officer in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe. Additionally, MAJ Dyrenforth discusses his service as an Army Foreign Area Officer and military attaché in Africa.
Dr. Anne Bennett is a Foreign Service Officer from the Department of State and is a Visiting Faculty member in International Relations at the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. Dr. Bennett holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Michigan and a B. A. in Economics and Political Science from Bucknell University.
Major Thomas Dyrenforth is a U.S. Army Foreign Area Officer currently serving in AFRICOM. He is a graduate of the United States Military Academy and holds a Masters in International Policy and Practice from the Elliott School at George Washington University. Major Dyrenforth served as an instructor of military science at West Point and was the Assistant Army Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Links:
More information on becoming a U.S. Foreign Service Officer: https://careers.state.gov/work/foreign-service/officer/
More information on becoming an Army Foreign Area Officer: https://www.army.mil/standto/archive/2019/07/12/index.html
MAJ Dyrenforth’s recent publications on building cooperation abroad:
“Building Enduring Partnerships in Africa: How The IMET Program Helps The United States Counter China In Africa,” Small Wars Journal, July 2020.
“Do We Need to Work with Despots? The Question of Nondemocratic Leaders and Us Foreign Policy,” Modern War Institute, May 2020.
“Strengthening U.S. Strategic Influence: How to Make IMET the Most Powerful Tool in the Security Cooperation Toolkit,” FAO Journal of International Affairs, January 2020.”
Reach out to us by emailing SOSHresearchlab@westpoint.edu.
The views expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers, and should not be seen as reflective of the official positions of the US Military Academy, the United States Army, the Department of Defense, the Department of State, or any other government entity.
The Sosh Podcast
The Sosh Podcast is a co-production of the Sosh Research Lab and WKDT at West Point. Our Department motto is “Humani nihil alienum,” meaning “nothing human is alien to us,” and with this podcast, we’ll endeavor to increase our understanding of what’s going on in the world through the lenses of political science and economics.
