‘The General and the Ambassador’ discuss National Guard & U.S. National Security

In episode 77 of the podcast “The General and the Ambassador: A Conversation,” host Ambassador (Ret.) Deborah McCarthy is joined by Mississippi Adjutant General, General Janson Boyles, and former U.S. Ambassador to Uzbekistan, Pamela Spratlen. The three discuss the role of the U.S. national guard overseas, focusing on the State Partnership Program between the Mississippi National Guard and Uzbekistan.

General Boyles was initially appointed Adjutant General of Mississippi by Governor Phil Bryant on September 1, 2016, and reappointed Adjutant General of Mississippi on January 14, 2020, by Governor Tate Reeves. General Boyles serves as the Commanding General of both the Mississippi Army and Air National Guard. He is responsible for providing the state of Mississippi and the United States of America with a ready force of more than 12,000 Citizen Soldiers and Airmen, equipped, and trained to respond to any contingency, natural or manmade.

Ambassador Spratlen is a mentor, board member and public speaker who served 30 years in the U.S. Department of State as a diplomat. She retired as a Senior Foreign Service Officer in 2019. Spratlen’s leadership experience included 10 years in Central Asia, of which she served eight as U.S. Ambassador, first to Kyrgyzstan (2011-14) and then to Uzbekistan (2015-18). She also served as Deputy Chief of Mission (Deputy to the Ambassador) in Kazakhstan (2009-11) and in Washington as the Country Director/acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Central Asia (2006-07).

Podcast producer and host Ambassador (retired) Deborah McCarthy currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the CGSC Foundation and was the 2018 DACOR Visiting Professor of Diplomacy for the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. The DACOR Visiting Professor of Diplomacy Program is conducted in partnership with the Diplomatic and Consular Officers, Retired, Inc. (DACOR) organization located in Washington D.C., and the Command and General Staff College Foundation. Several times a year retired senior officials, usually Ambassadors with extensive diplomatic experience, visit Fort Leavenworth to interact with U.S. Army Command and General Staff College students and faculty, and provide a Department of State and Chief of Mission perspective to the curriculum. During their visit the DACOR Visiting Professors of Diplomacy also interact with area universities and civic organizations discussing policy, regional, and political expertise, as well as speaking about careers in the Foreign Service.

“The General and the Ambassador: A Conversation” podcast promotes interagency cooperation and is produced by the American Academy of Diplomacy.

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The National Guard & U.S. National Security, The General and the Ambassador