PHOTO OPPORTUNITY:  Former U.S. Ambassador W. Nathaniel Howell will
lead a discussion on the future of diplomacy Thursday, March 6. For
details on the public event, see below.

	NEW INSTITUTE INSTRUCTS KUWAITIS IN ART OF DIPLOMACY

	CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., March 5 -- The University of Virginia
has begun an institute to help Kuwaiti diplomats make an impact in the
Persian Gulf region. 
	Nine junior diplomats arrived at U.Va. in February to begin a
Kuwait Diplomacy Institute, a joint program developed by the
University's Arabian Peninsula and Gulf Studies Program and the
Division of Continuing Education. The diplomats, who will stay at
U.Va. through December, receive instruction in English as a second
language and specialized workshops in diplomacy, foreign affairs and
global issues. 
	Continuing education officials and W. Nathaniel Howell, former
U.S. ambassador to Kuwait who now heads U.Va.'s Arabian Peninsula and
Gulf Studies Program (APAG), proposed the training institute to the
Kuwait Embassy in 1996. Howell, well-known for his refusal to
surrender the U.S. embassy in Kuwait to the Iraqi army, is director of
instruction for the new institute.
	"Diplomacy is an important part of the first line of defense
for a small, but strategically significant nation such as Kuwait,"
Howell said. 
	The diplomats will gain a comprehensive understanding of such
global issues as nuclear non-proliferation, ethnic conflict and
national security law.  The program includes class instruction at
U.Va., trips to Washington for sessions on American foreign policy, an
exercise with the critical incidents unit at the FBI Academy, and a
conference on Russia in late March. 
	Participants will also attend a discussion on "The Future of
Diplomacy" Thursday, March 6, from 1 to 3 p.m. in the Rotunda's Dome
Room. Moderated by Howell, the panel will include Lawrence
Eagleburger, former Secretary of State during the Bush administration;
David Newson, former Deputy Under Secretary of State with the Carter
administration; and David Jordan, U.S. ambassador to Peru. Sponsored
by the Division of Continuing Education and APAG, the event is free
and open to the public. 
	Institute students are attending a course on international
organizations taught in English by Marion Ross, director of English as
a second language instruction at U.Va. "English has become the
language of diplomacy.  Our approaches focuses on how English will be
used in their careers," said Ross.
	Program organizers believe the institute will give
participants the resources they need to become effective diplomats.
"We will use a broad brush to paint a picture of the world that a
diplomat will encounter," said Jim Baker, associate director of the
institute and a program specialist in continuing education.
	###
March 4, 1997
	NOTE TO REPORTERS:  Institute participants attend classes 2-5
p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays and 10 a.m. to noon on Fridays in
Zehmer Hall.  To interview or photograph participants in class, call
Jim Baker at (804) 982-5283. 

	FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Baker, Nathaniel Howell at (804)
924-3773 or Marion Ross at (804) 924-6824.  Television reporters
should call our TV News Office at (804) 924-7550.