待價而沽的使節

思 存／選注

Embassies for Sale

國際政壇新聞層出不窮，“石油換食品”、“故事換金錢”，迄今都已不算新鮮。“競選贊助換來當大使的機會”，這個你能想到嗎?

Beginning in the 15th century， as the great historian Garrett Mattingly2 told us in his book Renaissance Diplomacy， it became the habit of governments to send a permanent mission－an ambassador－to countries with which they had peaceful relations. In turn， those countries would send their own permanent mission to the Court of St. James in London， or to the Sublime Porte in Constantinople， or wherever.3 Thus was born the modem system of international diplomacy.