The Middle East remains a critical focus of U.S. foreign policy, despite recent debates about whether America should pull back from the region and focus on other parts of the world.
This half-day conference, co-sponsored by the Edward P. Djerejian Center for the Middle East and the Middle East Institute, examined the future of relations between the United States and the Middle East — particularly Iran.
In the first panel, experts explored how global energy and economic dynamics, combined with broader geopolitical shifts driven by the rise of China and Russia’s recent aggression, have recast the role of the Middle East and its significance to the United States.
The second panel narrowed in on U.S.-Iran relations. Experts discussed how regional security and political tensions impact the prospects of an Iran nuclear deal, as well as how the current protests in the country will affect internal dynamics and Iran's external posturing.
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Registration
Registration is closed.
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Agenda
9:00 am
Breakfast
9:15 am
Welcome Remarks
Paul Salem, Ph.D.
President and CEO, Middle East Institute
The Honorable David M. Satterfield
Director, Baker Institute; Former Ambassador to Lebanon and Turkey
9:30 am
Panel I — Why the Middle East Continues to Matter to America and the World
Moderator: Brian Katulis, Vice President of Policy, Middle East Institute
F. Gregory Gause III, Ph.D.
Professor of International Affairs and John H. Lindsey ‘44 Chair, the Bush School of Government and Public Service, Texas A&M University
Dalia Dassa Kaye, Ph.D.
Senior Political Scientist, UCLA's Burkle Center for International Relations; Former Director, Center for Middle East Public Policy, RAND Corporation
Jim Krane, Ph.D.
Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies, Baker Institute
Paul Salem, Ph.D.
President and CEO, Middle East Institute
11:00 am
Panel II — Assessing Iran’s Future: The JCPOA and the Current Protests
Moderator: The Honorable David M. Satterfield, Director, Baker Institute; Former Ambassador to Lebanon and Turkey
Suzanne Maloney, Ph.D.
Vice President and Director, Foreign Policy Program, Brookings Institution
Mohammad Ayatollahi Tabaar, Ph.D.
Fellow for the Middle East, Baker Institute; Associate Professor of International Affairs, Bush School of Government and Public Service, Texas A&M University
Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Ph.D.
Fellow for the Middle East, Baker Institute
Alex Vatanka
Director of Iran Program and Senior Fellow, Frontier Europe Initiative, Middle East Institute