THE MIDDLE EAST: AN UPDATE
A Political-Economic Conflict Seminar
September 23-25, 2008
February 24-26, 2009
April 14-16, 2009
Capitol Hill Club
Washington, DC
The political and strategic landscape of the Middle East in 2008 remains marked by conflict in Iraq, Afghanistan and on the Israel-Palestine front. Hezbollah, Hamas and a resurgent Taliban are still potent threats to stability. But since the 2007 troop surge, Al Qaeda in Iraq has been on the defensive, and is losing ground in many parts of the country. How long this lasts could determine Iraq's immediate fate and what part the American military will play in its future.
The United States faces continuing challenges from an assertive and aggressive Iran. In its waning months the Bush Administration will be faced with unrest in Pakistan, intensified fighting in Afghanistan and continuing hostilities in Gaza and the West Bank. How will U.S. strategic policy change after the next presidential election? And what will America's Middle East role be in the years ahead?
This annual Middle East Political Economic Conflict Seminar will examine these and other questions, focusing on American options in the Middle East, as well as the future prospects for peace, democracy and stability in this volatile part of the world.
- Oil, Jihad and the Great Powers
- U.S. Security Interests in the Middle East
- The Future of Political Islam
- The Drive for Middle-East Democracy: The End of the Road?
- Iran: Internal Problems and Regional Ambitions
- The Dubai Phenomenon: Virtual or Real?
- Iran and a Nuclear Middle East
- Dealing with Hamas and Hezbollah
- Turkish-American Relations: The Time Bomb in Northern Iraq
- Syria and the United States: Shifting Relations and the Risks of Miscalculation
- Jordan, Kuwait and Yemen: The Other Stories
- Reporting on the Middle East: Are Americans Getting the Real Story?
- The Struggle for the Soul of Islam
- United States and Saudi Arabia: A Precarious Future
- Afghanistan: Opium Politics and the Return of the Taliban
- Unrest in Pakistan
- How Al-Qaeda is Mutating in the Muslim World and the West
- Russia and the Middle East: A Return to Soviet-Era Tactics
The seminar will be held at the Capitol Hill Club, 300 First Street, SE, Washington, DC. Continental breakfast and registration will start at 7:30 a.m. The seminar will begin at 8:00 a.m. and conclude at approximately 4:00 p.m. each day. A luncheon workshop with speaker is included each day. An on-site coordinator will be provided to attend to workshop logistics.
No video, power point or audio-visual aids are utilized in the presentations. These programs are informal and strictly "off-the-record."
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Seminars Topics
Program Moderator
Additional Information
Registration
FOREIGN POLICY SEMINARS
Africa: The Reshaping of a Continent
The Middle East: An Update Terrorism and Transnational Crime Europe, Russia and China: Eurasia and the Changing Balance of Power
Latin America: Coping with Contradictions
South Asia: Rising Powers and Failing States
TESTIMONIALS
Well-chosen and placed speakers; especially value seasoned perspectives of those native to area; nicely paced, thoughtful, provocative and instructive – Middle East Seminar, unsigned, Department of Defense
On a daily basis, my focus is very narrow so its refreshing to discuss the world’s pressing issues as a “macro” level. It helps tie issues together and keeps the mind stimulated. Thanks? Europe Seminar, M. Ross, Department of Defense
This is a very informative and well rounded seminar. I learned very much from it and I appreciated all the speakers. The range of speakers definitely enlightened the audience. Thank you and well done. Far East Seminar, R. Fung, Department of Defense