The Diplomat · Season 2

The season begins with the attack on the British aircraft carrier HMS Courageous in the Persian Gulf, resulting in the deaths of 41 sailors. Career diplomat Kate Wyler is reassigned as the US ambassador to the UK, and upon her arrival in London, she meets with British Foreign Secretary Austin Dennison and Prime Minister Nicol Trowbridge. As tensions rise between the US and Iran, Kate's husband Hal is drugged and taken by unknown assailants, only to be released after a phone call with the deputy foreign minister of Iran, Rasoul Shahin, who claims Iran is not responsible for the attack. Kate discovers that Hal had tipped off Shahin about his presence in London, and she later learns that Hal had floated her name for the vice presidency in an attempt to save their marriage. Despite this, Kate convinces US President William Rayburn that Iran is not behind the attack, using Hal as her source. However, she soon finds out that Trowbridge lied about the condition of the carrier to get the Americans involved. As Kate navigates the complex diplomatic situation, she formulates a plan with her team to send a hidden signal to Iranian intelligence, which ultimately reveals that Roman Lenkov, the head of a Russian mercenary group, was responsible for the attack. The Iranian ambassador provides this information before collapsing and dying, and Kate later meets with the Russian ambassador to gather more information about Lenkov. The season culminates with Kate delivering the information about Lenkov to Rayburn, who authorizes an operation with the British to arrest him. Meanwhile, Kate's personal life becomes increasingly complicated, as she has sex with Hal despite their marital issues and learns about his infidelity with Dennison's sister Cecilia. The season ends with Kate having provided Trowbridge with a list of Russian targets and Rayburn's operation to arrest Lenkov underway, setting the stage for further diplomatic developments.