Tag: Nigeria
Peace Picks February 10-14
1. Iran’s Tumultuous Revolution: 35 Years Later
Monday, February 10 | 11am – 12:30pm
6th Floor, Woodrow Wilson Center; 1300 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Presented by The Middle East Program of the Woodrow Wilson Center and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
PARTICIPANTS
Shaul Bakhash
Clarence J. Robinson: Professor of History, George Mason University
Mehdi Khalaji
Senior Fellow, Washington Institute for Near East Policy
John Limbert
Distinguished Professor of International Affairs, United States Naval Academy
Karim Sadjadpour
Senior Associate, Middle East Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Moderator:
Haleh Esfandiari
Director, Middle East Program, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
There will be a live webcast of this event.
2. Aghanistan Development Goals: 2014 and Beyond
Monday, February 10 | 12:15pm – 1:45pm
New America Foundation, 1899 L Street NW Suite 400
The drawdown of American troops in Afghanistan, together with the forming of a new Government of Afghanistan following the upcoming elections scheduled for this April, will present new challenges for the United States in how it can most effectively deliver assistance in Afghanistan.
What are the challenges and how will the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) approach them? How will USAID build on the successes it has achieved over the past ten years? Furthermore, as USAID assistance transitions to longer-term development with a focus on health, education, gender, and economic growth led by agriculture, how will the agency continue to conduct effective oversight and monitoring in an ever evolving environment to ensure that U.S. taxpayers’ funds are used effectively?
One of the people that can help address those concerns is Donald “Larry” Sampler Jr., who was recently sworn in as the Assistant to the Administrator for USAID’s Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs, officially taking over responsibility for two countries with the largest USAID budgets. Mr. Sampler will make remarks regarding these issues, which will be followed by a panel discussion to explore these and other questions further. For the discussion, Mr. Sampler will be joined by the U.S. State Department’s Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Jarrett Blanc, who works on international partnership, reconciliation, and political transition issues.
The New America Foundation is pleased to host this dialogue about the U.S. government’s development goals in Afghanistan both in 2014, a year of many transitions in the country, and beyond.
PARTICIPANTS
Donald “Larry” Sampler, Jr.
Assistant to the Administrator, Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs, U.S. Agency for International Development
Jarrett Blanc
Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, U.S. Department of State
Moderator:
Omar Samad
Senior Central Asia Fellow, New America Foundation
Former Afghan Ambassador to Canada and France
There will be a live webcast of this event here.
3. Champions for Justice: Bahrain’s Prisoners of Conscience
Hosted by Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain and Creative Peace Initiatives
Tuesday, February 11 | 11am – 1pm
Abramson Founders Room, SIS Building, American University; 4400 Massachusetts Ave NW
To RSVP, please e-mail events@adhrb.org
PARTICIPANTS
Moderator:
Dr. Jeff Bachman, SIS Professor and Director of Ethics, Peace, and Global Affairs Program
11 – 11:30am – Q&A segment featuring:
Matar Ebrahim Matar
Political activist, Former Opposition Leader and Member of the Bahraini Parliament
11:45 – 1pm – Panel featuring:
Joshh Colangelo-Bryan, Pro Bono Attorney for Imprisoned Human Rights Activist Nabeel Raja, Consultant for Human Rights Watch
Brian Dooley, Director of Human Rights Defenders Programs at Human Rights First
Dr. Shadi Mokhtari, SIS Professor focused on Human Rights, Middle East Politics, and Political Islam
4. Understanding the Continuing Violence in Iraq
Tuesday, February 11 | 12pm
Hayek Auditorium, Cato Institute; 1000 Massachusetts Ave NW
More than three years after the departure of U.S. combat troops from Iraq, a determined insurgency rages against the government led by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Violence has claimed thousands of lives. Some question whether the Iraqi government can maintain control of several major cities, including Fallujah, the scene of some of the toughest fighting during the eight-year-long U.S. war in Iraq. Some of Maliki’s critics accuse him of stoking the unrest by refusing to make concessions to minority groups in Iraq, in particular Iraq’s Sunni Arab community. Others say that the prime minister should firmly reassert his authority by going after violent extremism and deterring others from supporting the insurgency. The panelists will consider several questions, including: What explains the continuing violence in Iraq? Can Iraq’s disparate communities unite behind a strong central government? And what role, if any, should the United States play?
PARTICIPANTS
Douglas Ollivant, Senior National Security Fellow, the New America Foundation
Harith Hasan, Author of Imagining the Nation: Nationalism, Sectarianism and Socio-political Conflict in Iraq
Christopher Preble, Vice President for Defense and Foreign Policy Studies, Cato Institute
Moderated by
Justin Logan, Director of Foreign Policy Studies, Cato Institute.
Watch this event online at http://www.cato.org/live
Luncheon to follow this event.
5. Achieving Greater Inclusion in post-Arab Spring Countries
Tuesday, February 11 | 2pm – 3:30pm
Saul/Zilkha Rooms, Brookings Institution; 1775 Massachusetts Ave NW
The Arab Spring was about political and economic inclusiveness. Three years later, the outcomes of the revolutions have been mixed. In Morocco, the king responded by revising the constitution, carrying out free parliamentary elections and letting the winning party form a new government. In Tunisia, political parties debated on a new constitution for nearly three years and now a neutral government has been appointed to supervise elections. Meanwhile, in Egypt, the struggle between Islamists and secular-nationalists has turned violent, weakening economic growth and increasing unemployment.
On February 11, Global Economy and Development at Brookings will host a discussion on inclusive growth in the post-Arab Spring countries. The discussion will be based on a series of papers on the political economy of the Arab transitions and efforts to foster inclusive growth in the region. The papers are authored by Brookings scholars and their colleagues from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and present case studies from Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia.
PARTICIPANTS
Kemal Derviş
Vice President and Director, Global Economy and Development and The Edward M. Bernstein Scholar
Hafez Ghanem
Senior Fellow, Global Economy and Development
Daniela Gressani
Deputy Director, Middle East and Central Asia International Monetary Fund
Akihiko Koenuma
Director-General, Middle East and Europe Department Japan International Cooperation Agency
6. Inside Aleppo: New Tools for Understanding the Syrian Conflict
Thursday, February 13 | 8:30am – 9:30am
American Security Project, 1100 New York Ave NW
REGISTER by Wednesday, February 12th
The American Security Project will host Dr. David Kilcullen and Mr. Nate Rosenblatt of Caerus Associates who will provide a briefing on findings from what may be the most detailed, publicly available assessment of the ongoing conflict in Syria to date.
Findings will be based on four months of in-depth, time-series research from within Aleppo, Syria’s largest, most diverse, and most economically relevant city. Today, Aleppo is one of the most divided cities in the country. Tomorrow, its future may resemble that of other, large, non-capital cities in post-conflict Middle Eastern states such as Libya’s Benghazi or Iraq’s Mosul.
The presentation will examine research findings that suggest that while the national picture in Syria looks bleak, important insights gained at the city-level can help policymakers and scholars think of new ways of examining the trajectory of Syria’s conflict. In addition to findings specific to Syria, the presenters will be joined by Mr. Matt McNabb of First Mile Geo, who will discuss how innovative technologies can be leveraged for collecting, visualizing, and analyzing high-fidelity data from the first mile of conflict affected parts of the world.
Moderated by Stephen A. Cheney, Brigadier General USMC (Ret.)
Breakfast snacks and refreshments will be served at 8:00am
7. Soft Power in Countering Extremism from the Horn of Africa to the Western Sahel
Thursday, February 13 | 9am – 11am
Lindner Commons (Room 602), The Elliot School of International Affairs; 1957 E Sreett NW
The rise of radical Islamism and its ideological force have migrated from Somalia in the early 1990s westward through the northern part of Africa known as the Sahel. Crises related to religious extremism, including jihadism and the application of Shar’ia law, have spread rapidly from Somalia to Kenya and across the Sahel to Nigeria, Mali and Algeria with evidence of propagating radicalizing even diaspora populations living in the West.
The panelists, all experts in the role of communication and soft power in countering radicalization, will discuss and debate the strategic influence of Western powers, in particular the US and the UK, in changing the narrative toward stability, tolerance, and democratization.
About the Panelists
Sir Robert Fry is chairman of Albany Associates and former Deputy Commanding General of Coalition Forces in Iraq of the Royal Marines. He is involved in a number of boards and advisory roles to companies in the security and banking sectors throughout Europe, North America, and the Middle East. Currently, he is a visiting professor at Reading University and a visiting fellow at Oxford University.
Simon Haselock is co-founder and chief operating officer of Albany Associates. From 1995-96, he served as the NATO spokesman in Sarajevo and later as Media Commissioner in Kosovo. He went on to lead the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for Media Development in Iraq.
Alberto Fernandez is the coordinator of the Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications at the U.S. State Department. Previously, he served as U.S. ambassador to Equatorial Guinea and chargé d’affaires to Sudan. His other posts include senior level public diplomacy positions at the embassies in Afghanistan, Jordan, and Syria. A veteran of the U.S. Army, Fernandez speaks fluent Spanish and Arabic through his training at the Defense Language Institute.
Todd Haskell is the director for Press and Public Diplomacy in the Bureau of African Affairs at the State Department. Previously, he served as a Public Affairs Officer in Santo Domingo, Johannesburg, and Ouagadougou. Other overseas assignments include Pakistan, the Philippines, Israel, and Mexico. He is a graduate of Georgetown University.
8. A Mixed Picture: the Political and Economic Future of the Arab Transitions
Thursday, February 13 | 3:30pm – 5pm
12th Floor, Atlantic Council; 1030 15th Street NW
The last few tumultuous years in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and Yemen present a complex picture of progress and setbacks. Three years after Egyptians successfully toppled a thirty-year old dictatorship, there are fears of a return to military-backed rule. In contrast to the bleaker picture from Cairo, Tunisians have successfully navigated political deadlock and approved a new constitution. Yemenis have concluded an inclusive National Dialogue process, and Libyans are gearing up to elect a constitution-drafting body and initiate their own national dialogue. While there are significant challenges ahead and security issues are paramount, citizens of all four countries are unlikely to continue to tolerate the corruption, mismanagement, and exclusion that characterized the pre-revolution era. Given this dynamic, what are we likely to see in the next few years?
Lina Khatib will describe key political trends that will shape the next phase of these transitions and Mohsin Khan will discuss the economic state of affairs and how these economies will fare moving forward. Placing the Arab awakening within the global context, Ellen Laipson will compare the Arab transitions to other previous cases of political and social upheaval.
This event also marks the release of two major Hariri Center publications: Mohsin Khan‘s Issue Brief, “The Economic Consequences of the Arab Spring,” and a report on “The State of the Arab Transitions” by Mirette F. Mabrouk and Stefanie Hausheer.
PARTICIPANTS
Lina Khatib
Director
Carnegie Middle East Center
Ellen Laipson
President and CEO
Stimson Center
Mohsin Khan
Senior Fellow, Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East
Atlantic Council
Moderated by
Mirette F. Mabrouk
Deputy Director for Regional Programs, Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East
Atlantic Council
Please use the West Tower elevators when you arrive.
The event will be followed by a wine & cheese reception.
A live webcast of the event can be seen here.
The 2013 vintage in the peace vineyard
2013 has been a so-so vintage in the peace vineyard.
The Balkans saw improved relations between Serbia and Kosovo, progress by both towards the European Union and Croatian membership. Albania managed a peaceful alternation in power. But Bosnia and Macedonia remain enmired in long-running constitutional and nominal difficulties, respectively. Slovenia, already a NATO and EU member, ran into financial problems, as did Cyprus. Turkey‘s long-serving and still politically dominant prime minister managed to get himself into trouble over a shopping center and corruption.
The former Soviet space has likewise seen contradictory developments: Moldova‘s courageous push towards the EU, Ukraine‘s ongoing, nonviolent rebellion against tighter ties to Russia, and terrorist challenges to the Sochi Winter Olympics. Read more
The world according to CFR
The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) survey of prevention priorities for 2014 is out today. Crowdsourced, it is pretty much the definition of elite conventional wisdom. Pundits of all stripes contribute.
The top tier includes contingencies with high impact and moderate likelihood (intensification of the Syrian civil war, a cyberattack on critical US infrastructure, attacks on the Iranian nuclear program or evidence of nuclear weapons intent, a mass casualty terrorist attack on the US or an ally, or a severe North Korean crisis) as well as those with moderate impact and high likelihood (in a word “instability” in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Iraq or Jordan). None merited the designation high impact and high likelihood, though many of us might have suggested Syria, Iraq and Pakistan for that category. Read more
Peace picks, December 16-20
DC is beginning to slow down as the holiday season is fast approaching, but there are still some great events this week. We won’t likely publish another edition until January 5, as the year-end doldrums will likely last until then:
1. The Middle Kingdom Looks East, West, North, and South: China’s Strategies on its Periphery
Monday, December 16 | 9:00am – 10:30am
Woodrow Wilson Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Fifth Floor
China’s recent declaration of an air defense identification zone in the East China Sea and its territorial claims over 80% of the South China Sea are focusing renewed American attention on Chinese strategy. To understand China’s policies, deployments, and ambitions in the Western Pacific, we must analyze China’s attitudes toward all of its 14 border States and Pacific neighbors, and toward its near and more distant seas.
The Kissinger Institute’s 2013 series of public programs will conclude with a talk by renowned author Edward Luttwak, who will lead a discussion of China’s strategy throughout its periphery, with an emphasis on the Diaoyu/Senkakus and other regional disputes.
Hezbollah in Syria is at risk
Hezbollah’s intervention in Syria has captured media attention and expert analysis around the world. On Tuesday, the Center for Transatlantic Relations (CTR) at Johns Hopkins SAIS and the Fondation pour la Recherche Stratégique (FRS) organized Hezbollah After Assad, featuring Bilal Saab, executive director and head of research at the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis (INEGMA) North America and Jean-Luc Marret, a Senior Fellow at FRS and CTR and associate professor and senior lecturer in multiple French universities. Ambassador Andras Simonyi, the Managing Director of CTR, facilitated the discussion.
Bilal Saab reminded that a conflict between Sunnis and Shiites in the Middle East is something that Hezbollah has warned against since its own founding. Such a conflict would not only distract Hezbollah from fighting Israel, but could also alienate the Shiite support base for the organization. Despite knowing this, Hezbollah has acted in a way that increases the likelihood of such a conflict. What explains Hezbollah’s involvement in Syria?
Peace Picks April 29-May 3
Too many good events in DC this week:
1. The Media & Iran’s Nuclear Program: An analysis of US and UK coverage, 2009-2012, Monday, April 29 / 9:00am – 10:30am, Woodrow Wilson Center
Venue: Woodrow Wilson Center 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20004 5th Floor Conference Room
Speakers: Jonas Siegel, Saranaz Barforoush, John Steinbruner, Susan Moeller, Reza Marashi, Walter Pincus
How does news coverage of Iran’s nuclear program affect public understanding and policy outcomes? News media traditionally play an important role in communicating about foreign policy is this the case with coverage of Irans nuclear program? How specifically are news media framing the relevant issues? To answer these questions, researchers from the Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland (CISSM) undertook a topical analysis of English-language newspaper coverage from 2009 through 2012, a period in which there was considerable public discussion about how the United States and others could and should resolve the dispute.
Register for the event here:
(http://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/rsvp?eid=27221&pid=112)
2. Iran-Azerbaijan Relations and Strategic Competition in the Caucasus, Monday, April 29 / 9:00am – 11:30am, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Venue: Center for Strategic and International Studies, 1800 K Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20006 Basement Level Conference Rooms A & B
Speakers: Andrew C. Kuchins, Farhad Mammadov, Asim Mollazade, Heydar Mirza, Alex Vatanka, Sergey Markedonov and more
Despite common cultural and religious heritage, relations between Iran and Azerbaijan remain tumultuous. Issues ranging from the status Iran’s ethnic Azeri minority to the frozen conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh to relations with Israel all complicate bilateral ties between Baku and Tehran. Iran-Azerbaijan relations also shape larger geopolitical questions related to the strategic balance in the Caucasus and the role of major regional powers Turkey and Russia. With tensions over Iran’s nuclear program again in the spotlight, the CSIS Russia and Eurasia Program is hosting a discussion about the current dynamics of Iran-Azerbaijan relations and their regional and international implications.
Register for the event here:
(http://csis.org/event/iran-azerbaijan-relations-and-strategic-competition-caucasus)
3. Why the United States Should Err on the Side of Too Many (Not Too Few) Nuclear Weapons, Monday, April 29 / 12:00pm – 1:30pm, Elliott School of International Affairs
Venue: Elliott School of International Affairs, 1957 E Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20052 Lindner Family Commons
Speakers: Matt Kroenig, Assistant Professor of Government, Georgetown University
Enthusiasm for nuclear reductions is driven by three beliefs about arsenal size widely held by experts in Washington: First, a secure, second-strike capability is sufficient for deterrence and nuclear warheads in excess of this requirement can be cut with little loss to our national security. Second, proliferation to rogue states and terrorist networks is a greater threat than nuclear war with great powers, and reductions can advance our nonproliferation objectives in Iran and elsewhere. Third, we have spent hundreds of billions of dollars on nuclear weapons since 1945 and, in a time of budget austerity, reductions will result in cost savings. There is just one problem: all three beliefs are incorrect. A more pragmatic assessment suggests that the United States should not engage in additional nuclear reductions and should instead make the necessary investments to maintain a robust nuclear infrastructure for decades to come.
Register for the event here:
(https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dDYwNmFlbk41QjZlZ1pySHUxNklHZFE6MA#gid=0)
4. Political Islam and the Struggle for Democracy in Egypt, Monday, April 29 / 6:30pm – 8:00pm, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies
Venue: Johns Hopkins SAIS – Bernstein-Offit Building 1717 Massachusetts Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. Room 500
Speakers: Michele Dunne, Nathan Brown
During this panel, our participant speakers will discuss the political situation in Egypt two years after the revolution. They will consider the results achieved, met and unmet objectives, and political reforms enacted since the spring of 2010. Furthermore, they will indicate the roles of the Muslim Brotherhood as a ruling party and President Morsi. They will discuss the recent happenings and unrest in Egypt and future scenarios.
RSVP to:
menaclub.sais@gmail.com
5. The Bread Revolutions of 2011 and the Political Economies of Transition, Tuesday April 30/ 10:00am – 11:30am, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Venue: Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars-1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 200046th Floor Flom Auditorium
Speakers: Pete Moore, Holger Albrecht, Haleh Esfandiari
The Middle East Program at the Woodrow Wilson Center and the United States Institute of Peace Present The Bread Revolutions of 2011 and the Political Economies of Transition. During the 2011 uprisings, Arab protestors channeled decades of discontent with failed economic policy. However, the demise of leaders will not be enough to answer this discontent nor ensure productive development. Scholarship on the political determinates of economic development finds that the common recipe of expanding the private sector and increasing trade openness may be valuable, but alone are not sufficient for successful development. The Arab World’s economic path to 2011 included implementation in these areas, yet reform in underlying socio-economic structures and interests lagged. Addressing these conditions constitutes one of the most serious challenges facing Arab economies and politics.
This event will be the fourth in a series of five papers and presentations on “Reshaping the Strategic Culture of the Middle East.
Website: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/the…
6. The Imperatives of the Inter-Religious Dialogue in Nigeria, Tuesday April 30/ 2:00pm-3:30pm, Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars
Venue: Woodrow Wilson Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20004
Speakers: H.E. Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, Sa’Adu Abubakar, John Onaiyekan
This dialogue seeks to ascertain the true nature and scope of religious tensions in Nigeria, as well as elaborate possible ways forward.
The Wilson Center’s Africa Program continues to monitor Nigeria’s progress and welcomes the opportunity to hear from a panel of such respected government and religious leaders.
Speakers:
H.E. Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, Governor of the Rivers State, Nigeria
Sa’adu Abubakar, Sultan of Sokoto and President of the Society for the Victory of Islam
John Onaiyekan, Roman Catholic Cardinal Archbishop of Abuja
Website: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/the…
7. Ten Years After Saddam, Tuesday April 30/ 2:00pm-3:00pm, Center for International Media Assistance
Venue: National Endowment for Democracy, 1025 F Street NW, Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20004
Speakers: Abir Awad, Tim Eaton, Theo Dolan, Shameem Rassam
It is a decade since the U.S.-led coalition troops entered Iraq in March 2003. “The years that have followed have been turbulent for an Iraq riven by divisions and sectarian violence, as elites have battled one another for control,” according to a policy briefing by BBC Media Action, The media of Iraq ten years on: The problems, the progress, the prospects. “It remains a country that is anything but stable and united.” The report, which the panelists will present and discuss, examines one element of Iraq’s journey over the last ten years: that of its media reform. The paper makes the point that while the Iraqi media landscape of 2013 may not be the free, pluralistic, and professional fourth estate that many in the West had envisioned in 2003, it nonetheless has real strengths. Those strengths–as well as weaknesses– reflect the complexity and reality of modern Iraq.
Website: http://cima.ned.org/events/upcoming-e…
8. Future of US Ground Forces Report Roll-out Event, Wednesday May 1 / 9:00am-10:30am, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Venue: Center for Strategic and International Studies, 1800 K Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20006
Speakers: David J. Berteau, Nathan Freier, Barry Pavel, James Dubik, Frank Hoffman
The Center for Strategic and International Studies presents the roll-out event for the report
Beyond the Last War: Balancing Ground Forces and Future Challenges Risk in USCENTCOM and USPACOM with introductory remarks by
David J. Berteau
CSIS Senior Vice President and Director, International Security Program
followed by a discussion with
Nathan Freier
Senior Fellow, Center for Strategic and International Studies
and
Barry Pavel
Director, Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security, The Atlantic Council
and
Lieutenant General James Dubik
U.S. Army (Ret.), Senior Fellow, Institute for the Study of War
and
Frank Hoffman
Senior Research Fellow, Institute for National Strategic Studies,
National Defense University
9. Drones and the Rule of Law and War, Wednesday May 1 / 10:00 am-11:15 am, Bipartisan Policy Center
Venue: Bipartisan policy Center, 1225 I Street, NW Suite 1000, Washington, D.C. 20005
Speakers: John Bellinger, Dafna Linzer, Hina Shamsi, Philip Zelikow
The Bipartisan Policy Center’s (BPC) Homeland Security Project will host a discussion convening legal and policy experts on the rule of law and war to discuss the use of drones and targeted killings. Join us as panelists evaluate issues like the current frameworks regarding the use of drones, the ramifications of a ‘drone court,’ the targeting of U.S. citizens abroad, and whether Congress should examine what these policies mean for the country.
Thomas Kean
Former Governor of New Jersey
Co-chair, 9/11 Commission
Co-chair, BPC Homeland Security Project
John Bellinger
Partner, Arnold & Porter LLP
Former Legal Adviser, U.S. Department of State
Former Legal Adviser, National Security Council
Dafna Linzer
Managing Editor, MSNBC.com
Follow @DafnaLinzer
Hina Shamsi
Director, ACLU’s National Security Project
Follow @HinaShamsi
Philip Zelikow
Associate Dean, University of Virginia’s Graduate School of Arts & Sciences
Former Counselor, U.S. Department of State
John Farmer
Dean, Rutgers School of Law
For viewing purposes, we recommend the latest version of the following browsers: Google Chrome, Safari or Internet Explorer.
Having trouble viewing the webcast player below? Please click here.
If you are experiencing issues, please visit the webcast troubleshooter page here. Conduct a firewall test (see the side menu on the troubleshooter page) if the test video does not play.
Homeland Security Project
Website: http://bipartisanpolicy.org/events/20…
10. Afghanistan after 2014: Regional Impact, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Wednesday May 1/ 2pm-5pm, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.
Venue: Woodrow Wilson Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20004
Speakers: Noah Coburn, Marlène Laruelle, Simbal Khan
Spotlight on Central Eurasia Series //
This event explores local and regional perspectives on the future of Afghanistan against the backdrop of the planned NATO withdrawal of military forces from the region. The first session focuses on local politics and governance in Afghanistan, and the second session investigates the ways in which Afghanistan’s neighbors have been discussing and planning for the upcoming changes.
This event is free and open to the public but requires event registration. Please RSVP.
Cosponsored by the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Kennan Institute and Asia Program, and the Central Asia Program, George Washington University.
Speakers:
Noah Coburn, Professor, Bennington College, and author, ‘Bazaar Politics: Pottery and Power in an Afghan Market Town’ (2011)
Marlène Laruelle, Research Professor and Director, Central Asia Program, IERES, George Washington University
Simbal Khan, Director, Afghanistan and Central Asia, Institute for Strategic Studies, Islamabad, Pakistan
Website: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/afg…
11. The Strategic Environment in Southern Asia, Wednesday, May 1 / 3:30pm – 5:00pm, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Venue: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20036
Speakers: Frederic Grare, C. Raja Mohan, C. Uday Bhaskar
The strategic environment in Southern Asia is rapidly changing. Over the next decade, the United States, China, and India will form a critical strategic triangle while the individual relationships of these three nations with ASEAN, Iran, and Pakistan will have significant regional and global implications. Although globalization will lead to more robust engagement among the major actors, this will inevitably result in dissonances that pose complex challenges in the southern Asian security domain. Please join Uday Bhaskar and C. Raja Mohan as they discuss the critical role of the United States and China in dealing with the delicate strategic framework in South Asia. Carnegie’s Frederic Grare will moderate.
Website: http://carnegieendowment.org/events/?…
12. The Nuclear Security Summit in 2014: Challenges and Opportunities, Thursday, May 2 / 9:00am – 10:30am, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Venue: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace , 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20036
Speakers: Togzhan Kassenova, Piet De Klerk
Following the Nuclear Security Summits in Washington in 2010 and Seoul in 2012, the Netherlands will host the next summit in The Hague on March 24 and 25, 2014. The summit process, begun in 2010, is a response to growing awareness of the risk that weapons-usable fissile material might be acquired by non-state actors and terrorist groups. It seeks to further the goal of securing all nuclear material worldwide through engagement with key heads of state and international organizations. Please join Ambassador Piet de Klerk for a discussion of the continued importance of nuclear security, how the Summit in The Hague will build on the meetings in Washington and Seoul, challenges for the future, the expectations for 2014 and the Dutch role in this process. Togzhan Kassenova will moderate.
Website: http://carnegieendowment.org/events/?…
13. The Road to Damascus: U.S.-Turkish Cooperation Towards a Post-Assad Syria, Bipartisan Policy Center, Thursday, May 2 / 10:30am – 12:00pm
Venue: Bipartisan Policy Center, 1225 I Street, NW Suite 1000, Washington, D.C. 20005
Speakers: Mort Abramowitz, Eric S. Edelman, Alan Makovsky
Ridding Syria of President Bashar al-Assad has been the goal of the United States for almost two years. Should this objective be achieved, however, an enormous challenge will still remain: stabilizing and rebuilding Syria in a way that advances U.S. strategic goals and values. However, this will require the cooperation of Turkey—a U.S. ally with keen interests in Syria. Ankara’s interests, however, do not perfectly match Washington’s, posing the challenge for policymakers of finding the right tools to align more closely the two countries’ visions of Syria’s future.
Join BPC as it announces the creation of its Turkey Task Force, co-chaired by former Ambassadors to Turkey Morton Abramowitz and Eric Edelman, and releases a paper on the opportunities and obstacles to U.S.-Turkish cooperation towards a post-Assad Syria.
Read the press release here.
Mort Abramowitz
Co-chair, BPC Turkey Task Force
Former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey
Ambassador Eric S. Edelman
Co-chair, BPC Turkey Task Force
Former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy
Former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey
Alan Makovsky
Senior Professional Staff Member, House Foreign Affairs Committee
Paula Dobriansky
Former Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs
Press Release
Foreign Policy Project
Website: http://bipartisanpolicy.org/events/20…
14. Africa and The Global Arms Trade Treaty, Thursday, May 2 / 12:00pm – 2:00pm, Institute for Policy Studies,
Venue: Institute for Policy Studies, 1112 16th St. NW, Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20036 Conference Room
Speakers: Rachel Stohl, Adotei Akwei
Join us for a remarkable panel discussion on the impact and future of the small arms trade in Africa.
Can an Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) help? How can world leaders and national governments both within and without Africa best help leverage the ATT to help deal with existing small arms violence and prevent violence in the future?
Join IPS’ Foreign Policy In Focus for a panel discussion examining the ATT and its implications for Africa with a specific focus on what the ATT is and what it is not, as well as what is next to help the treaty come in to force. Key areas of concern, such as conflict, commission of human rights abuses, the impact of the unauthorized/illicit arms sales on development and security in Africa will also be addressed.
Panelists:
Rachel Stohl, Senior Associate with Managing Across Boundaries initiative, Stimson Center and
Adotei Akwei, Managing Director for Government Relations, Amnesty International
Co-sponsors: Travis Roberts – Founder of Fight Back/Rebuilt campaign, Carl LeVan – IPS Associate Fellow and professor in the School of International Studies at American University, Estelle Bougna Fomeju – Senior at American University and Sciences Po Paris, Intern for IPS’ Foreign Policy in Focus.
Website: http://www.ips-dc.org/events/africa_a…
15. Turkey’s Peace Process, Thursday, May 2 / 3:00pm – 4:30pm, SETA Foundation at Washington DC
Venue: SETA Foundation at Washington, DC1025 Connecticut Avenue Northwest, Suite 1106, Washington, DC 20036
Speakers: Henri Barkey, Erol Cebeci, Kadir Ustun
Resolution of Turkey’s Kurdish question has been the subject of much debate. Today, there is more hope about the prospects of success than ever before with the ongoing peace talks with Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). This latest attempt comes after previous initiatives such as the so-called “Democratic Opening” of 2009 and the following secret talks dubbed the “Oslo Process.” In the wake of heightened stakes in the Middle East, a possible end to PKK violence and resolution of the Kurdish question through democratic means could have dramatic implications for regional security and Turkey’s democratization. What are the possibilities and limits of finally resolving the Kurdish question?
Join us for a discussion with Henri Barkey, professor of international relations at Lehigh University, and Erol Cebeci, executive director of the SETA Foundation at Washington, DC, moderated by Kadir Ustun, research director at the SETA Foundation.
Website: http://setadc.org/events/50-upcoming-…
16. Israel’s Periphery Doctrine: Then and Now, Thursday, May 2 / 3:30pm – 4:30pm, International Institute for Strategic Studies
Venue: International Institute for Strategic Studies, 2121 K Street, NWSuite 801
Speakers: Yossi Alpher
During its first three decades, Israel employed a grand strategy whereby it leapfrogged over the ring of hostile Arab neighboring states and forged partnerships with non-Arab and non-Muslim countries and minorities in the region. Most well known are Israel’s alliances with Iran and Turkey and its aid to the Iraqi Kurds. Beginning in the late 1970s, the peace process and the collapse of friendly periphery regimes rendered the doctrine of secondary importance. Now, with Islamists and even Salafists threatening to surround Israel, is a new periphery strategy viable?
Yossi Alpher
Co-editor, The Bitterlemons Guide to the Arab Peace Initiative
17. The Way of the Knife, Friday, May 3 / 12:00pm – 1:00pm, Center for American Progress
Venue: Center for American Progress, 1333 H Street NW, 10th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20005
Speakers: Mark Mazzetti, Ken Gude
In his most recent book, Mark Mazzetti argues that the most momentous change in American warfare over the past decade has taken place away from the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq in the corners of the world where large armies can’t go. The Way of the Knife is the untold story of that shadow war—a campaign that has blurred the lines between soldiers and spies and lowered the bar for waging war across the globe. The United States has pursued its enemies with armed drones and special operations troops, trained local assets to set up clandestine spying networks, and relied on mercurial dictators, untrustworthy foreign intelligence services, and proxy armies.
Please join us for a discussion with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Mark Mazzetti on his provocative new book.
Copies of The Way of the Knife will be available for purchase.
Featured author:
Mark Mazzetti, author, The Way of the Knife; correspondent, The New York Times
Moderated by:
Ken Gude, Chief of Staff, Vice President, Center for American Progress
A light lunch will be served at 11:30 a.m.
Website: http://www.americanprogress.org/event…
18. Post-2014 Afghanistan: Pakistan’s Concerns, Anxieties and Expectations: A Conversation with Ambassador Sherry Rehman, Friday, May 3 / 5:30pm – 7:00pm, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies
Venue: Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, 1619 Massachusetts Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. Rome Auditorium
Speakers: Sherry Rehman
Pakistani Ambassador to the US will speak about post 2014 Afghanistan. Question and answer session to follow Ambassador’s remarks.
19. The Dispensable Nation: American Foreign Policy in Retreat, Friday, May 3 / 7:00pm – 8:00pm, Politics and Prose
Venue: Politics and Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20008
Speakers: Vali Nasr
As senior advisor to Richard Holbrooke from 2009 to 2011, Nasr, dean of SAIS and author of The Shia Revival, witnessed both how the Obama administration made its foreign policy and how these decisions played out abroad. His book finds that Obama failed to chart a new course in the Middle East, and warns that the next Arab Spring may be an angry uprising against America.
