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A flock of diplomats saw Pittsburgh at its best

Pittsburgh hosted this week some 33 ambassadors and chiefs of mission of foreign countries to the United States. The Washingtonbased diplomats journeyed here on a program organized by the Department of State to take them beyond the Beltway, to places in the interior of the country that they might otherwise not see.

Pittsburgh put on the dog to welcome the group, putting forward not only places like The Andy Warhol Museum and Carnegie Mellon University but also Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto. Mr. Peduto presented a rich historical, economic and cultural picture of the city consistent with the group’s theme in coming here — innovation. He also made it a point to invite each of them back individually, to look more deeply into partnerships between their countries and entities in southwestern Pennsylvania.

For the diplomats, who under this “Experience America” program have visited over the years cities and states from Alaska to New Orleans, these trips provide an opportunity not only to escape the sometimes noxious atmosphere of Washington but also to get a better idea of Americans’ ideas about politics, culture, entrepreneurship and innovation. At its best, the program should increase business and cultural and educational exchanges.

Representatives included those of Albania, oil-rich Angola, the minerals-rich Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Philippines and troubled South Sudan. Many ambassadors had their own targets for contact in Pittsburgh. Absent professional foreign consulates in Pittsburgh, we have a selection of honorary consuls and a certain number of interested foreign visitors. Let us hope that the Experience America group will bring us more.