The Rendition (45 page)

NVGs—Night-vision goggles.

One-Star—A Brigadier General. General officers are often referred to informally by the number of stars indicating their rank.

POTUS—Acronym for the president of the United States.

Pristina—The capital of Kosovo, located in the northeast part of the country, not far from the Goljak Mountains.

Radio Free Europe—A broadcast facility situated until 1995 in Munich's English Garden, originally funded by the CIA to counter Communist propaganda in the countries of Eastern Europe. After moving to Prague, RFE has also begun broadcasting programs to the Middle East, Central Asia, and Russia.

RIAS (Radio in the American Sector)—A West Berlin-based German-language radio station that broadcast news and information to the people of East Germany throughout the Cold War.

S-Bahn—The Munich subway and surface rail system.

Schwabing—A Munich neighborhood of mostly old buildings located near the university, home to many students and young people.

SEA-hut—A temporary five-room wooden structure with a metal roof. Originally designed for military use in Southeast Asia. SEA-huts can house six people per room.

Skopje—The capital of Macedonia, located on the Vardar River.

SOCOM—United States Special Operations Command, headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, synchronizes and directs the activities of Special Operations Forces around the world.

Srebrenica (Silver City)—The Bosnian city outside of which, in July
1995, eight thousand male Muslims were rounded up and killed by the VRS, a Serbian paramilitary unit. A memorial ceremony is held there every year.

Stasi (Staatsicherheitsdienst)
—The East German secret police and espionage agency.

SOF stamp—A stamp in a passport that indicates the holder is subject to the Status of Forces treaty between the United States and Germany.

Space A—The available seating on a military aircraft after personnel flying with orders have been accommodated.

S-2—A unit's security office.

Task Force Dagger—A 5th Special Forces Group operation begun in 2001 tasked with making contact with Northern Alliance commanders and enlisting their support to drive the Taliban out of Afghanistan.

TDY—A temporary duty assignment.

Teufelsberg—One of the National Security Agency's listening stations, which was built on a mountain of rubble in West Berlin. It was one of a network of stations that until the end of the Cold War overheard transmissions in the East Bloc countries.

UNMIK—The United Nations Interim Administration in Kosovo, which in 1999 was appointed by the UN Security Council to administer Kosovo on a temporary basis. The soldiers wore easily recognizable blue uniforms.

Viktualienmarkt—The old Munich food market, which is now occupied by food stores and cafes.

Volkspolizei—
The East German police force.

VOPO
—A shortening of
Volkspolizei.

Warsaw Pact—An alliance of Eastern European nations organized in 1955 as a counterweight to NATO.