Category Archives: US-Arab Relations

Chas Freeman, HE Ali Aujali, Libya, NCUSAR Program, Podcast, Policymakers Conference, US-Arab Relations

Luncheon Keynote Address – 2008 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

LUNCHEON KEYNOTE ADDRESS

Speaker: Ambassador Chas. W. Freeman, Jr. −  President, Middle East Policy Council; former Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs (1993-94), earning the highest public service awards of the Department of Defense for his roles in designing a NATO-centered post-Cold War European security system and in reestablishing defense and military relations with China. He also served as U. S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia (during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm) and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs during the U.S. mediation of Namibian independence South Africa and Cuban troop withdrawal Angola.

Remarks by: H.E. Ali Suleiman Aujali – Chargé d’Affaires, People’s Bureau of the Great Socialist Libyan Arab Jamahiriya; former Chargé d’Affaires Libyan People’s Bureau in Ottawa, Canada; former Libyan ambassador to Malaysia, Argentina, and Brazil.

“An Update on Libyan-U.S. Relations – The Process of Renewal”

TRANSCRIPT (.pdf)

Ambassador Chas. W. Freeman, Jr. AUDIO (.mp3)

H.E. Ali Suleiman Aujali AUDIO (.mp3)

AUDIO FROM PANEL Q & A (.mp3)

NCUSAR Program, Podcast, Policymakers Conference, Security and Defense, US-Arab Relations

Defense Cooperation – 2008 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

“DEFENSE COOPERATION”

Chair: Rear Admiral Harold J. Bernsen, (USN, Ret.) −  Chairman, Board of Directors, National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations; President, Board of Trustees of Physicians for Peace; Director, American-Bahraini Friendship Society; former Commander, U.S. Middle East Force; and Director Emeritus, National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce.

Speakers: Dr. Anthony H. Cordesman − Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Adjunct Professor in National Security Affairs, Georgetown University; former senior adviser and consultant to the U.S. Departments of Defense, Energy, State.

Mr. Christopher Blanchard −Middle East Policy Analyst, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division, Congressional Research Service, United States Congress.  Mr. Blanchard has authored or co-authored 13 CRS reports for the Congress, including products on the Gulf Security Dialogue and related U.S. arms sales, U.S. relations with Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and regional perspectives on the Iraq conflict.

Mr. Jeffrey C. McCray − Vice President, International Marketing, BAE SYSTEMS. BAE Systems is a major defense contractor, representing the merger of British Aerospace and Marconi Electronic Systems, engaged in the development, delivery, and support of advanced defense and aerospace systems.

Ambassador Barbara Bodine − Director of the “Scholars in the Nation’s Service Initiative” and a Diplomat-in-Residence at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. Ms. Bodine’s over 30 years in the US Foreign Service were spent primarily on Arabian Peninsula and great Persian Gulf issues, specifically US bilateral and regional policy, strategic security issues, counterterrorism, and governance and reform.

TRANSCRIPT (.pdf)

AUDIO FROM PANEL INTRODUCTION (.mp3)

Dr. Anthony H. Cordesman AUDIO (.mp3)

Mr. Christopher Blanchard AUDIO (.mp3)

Mr. Jeffrey C. McCray AUDIO (.mp3)

Ambassador Barbara Bodine AUDIO (.mp3)

AUDIO FROM PANEL Q & A (.mp3)

DR. CORDESMAN’S FULL POWERPOINT PRESENTATION (.ppt)

Muna Abu Sulayman, NCUSAR Program, Podcast, Policymakers Conference, US-Arab Relations

Foundations For Change In The Arab World: A Woman’s Personal and Professional Perspective – 2008 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

“FOUNDATIONS FOR CHANGE IN THE ARAB WORLD: A WOMAN’S PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL PERSPECTIVE”

Ms. Muna Abu Sulayman − Co-Host Kalam Nawaem (“Softly Speaking”), Middle East Broadcasting Corporation [MBC-TV]; Managing Director, HRH Prince Awaleed Bin Talal Kingdom Foundation

TRANSCRIPT (.pdf)

Ms. Muna Abu Sulayman AUDIO (.mp3)

AUDIO FROM PANEL Q & A (.mp3)

Energy, NCUSAR Program, Podcast, Policymakers Conference, US-Arab Relations, Video

Energy – 2008 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

“ENERGY”

Chair: Ms. Karen Harbert − Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Institute for 21st Century Energy, U.S. Chamber of Commerce; former Assistant Secretary for Policy and International Affairs, U.S. Department of Energy.

Speakers: Ms. Nabilah Al-Tunisi − Director of the Saudi Aramco-Dow Chemical joint venture project to build one of the largest hydrocarbon and chemical complexes in the world near the R’as Tanura Refinery in Saudi Arabia.

Mr. Ryan M. Lance − President, Exploration and Production – Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, for ConocoPhillips. He serves on the boards of both the American Petroleum Institute and the Independent Petroleum Association of America, is an advisory board member of Montana Tech and a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers.

Mr. James Burkhard − Managing Director, Cambridge Energy Research Associates [CERA], Global Oil Group; leads the team of CERA experts focused on exploration and production strategy, upstream technology, and short- and long-term analysis of crude oil and refined products markets; coauthor of CERA’s World Oil Watch, which analyzes short- to medium-term developments in the oil market.

Mr. Jay R. Pryor – Vice-President for Corporate Business Development, Chevron Corporation. Mr. Pryor is responsible for identifying and developing new, large-scale business opportunities throughout the world. He assumed his current position in 2006 but began his career with Chevron in 1979.  Since that time he has held a succession of management positions with increasing responsibilities in Asia, the United States, Europe and the former Soviet Union.

VIDEO

TRANSCRIPT (.pdf)

Ms. Karen Harbert AUDIO (.mp3)

Ms. Nabilah Al-Tunisi AUDIO (.mp3)

Mr. Ryan M. Lance AUDIO (.mp3)

Mr. James Burkhard AUDIO (.mp3)

Mr. Jay R. Pryor AUDIO (.mp3)

AUDIO FROM PANEL Q & A (.mp3)

NCUSAR Program, Podcast, Policymakers Conference, Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, US-Arab Relations, Video

Luncheon Keynote Address: H.E. Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi – 2008 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

LUNCHEON KEYNOTE ADDRESS

Welcome and Brief Remarks: The Honorable Dina Habib Powell − Global Head of Corporate Engagement, Goldman Sachs; former Assistant Secretary for Educational and Cultural Affairs and Deputy Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, U.S. Department of State; former Assistant to the President for Presidential Personnel, White House.

Speaker: H.E. Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi − Minister for Foreign Trade, United Arab Emirates

H.E. Sheikha Lubna Al-Qasimi headed the UAE’s Ministry of Economy during one of the country’s most economically prosperous periods. Additionally, Sheikha Lubna’s appointment in November 2004 to manage what was then the UAE’s newly merged economy and planning portfolio was a historic event for the UAE as she became the first woman ever in the country to assume a cabinet position. Sheikha Lubna was also appointed Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the UAE’s Securities & Commodities Authority, serving 2004 until 2008. Following her tenure as Minister of Economy, Sheikha Lubna was appointed in February 2008 to another highly sensitive post as Minister for Foreign Trade.

Commentator: The Honorable David Bohigian − Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Market Access and Compliance, International Trade Administration, United States Department of Commerce; Department of Commerce representative on the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).

VIDEO

TRANSCRIPT (.pdf)

The Honorable Dina Habib Powell AUDIO (.mp3)

H.E. Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi AUDIO (.mp3)

The Honorable David Bohigian AUDIO (.mp3)

AUDIO FROM PANEL Q & A (.mp3)

NCUSAR Program, Podcast, Policymakers Conference, Saudi Arabia, US-Arab Relations, Video

Arab-U.S. Relations in Transition: Views from Riyadh and Washington – 2008 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

“ARAB-U.S. RELATIONS IN TRANSITION”

The Honorable Ford Fraker

The Honorable Walter Cutler

The Honorable Wyche Fowler

The Honorable Robert Jordan

VIDEO

TRANSCRIPT (.pdf)

The Honorable Ford Fraker AUDIO (.mp3)

The Honorable Walter Cutler AUDIO (.mp3)

The Honorable Wyche Fowler AUDIO (.mp3)

The Honorable Robert Jordan AUDIO (.mp3)

Development and Education, Jeremy Jones, Joseph Moynihan, NCUSAR Program, Odeh Aburdene, Podcast, Policymakers Conference, Trade and Investment, US-Arab Relations

Developmental Dynamics – 2007 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

DEVELOPMENTAL DYNAMICS

Chair: 

Dr. Joseph C. Moynihan, Regional Vice President for the Middle East and Africa, Northrop Grumman

Speakers: 

Ambassador Shaun Donnelly, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Europe and the Middle East, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, Executive Office of the President

Mr. Jeremy Jones, Senior Strategic Fellow, Oxford Center for Islamic Studies; Senior Fellow, Harvard Belfer Center for International Affairs; Senior International Affairs Fellow, National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations; and author, Negotiating Change: The New Politics of the Middle East

Dr. Odeh Aburdene, President, OAI Advisors; Adviser, Capital Partners Holding; Member of the Board, AMIDEAST, Search for Common Ground, the Rand Center for Middle East Public Policy, the Bethlehem Foundation, Seeds of Peace, and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University

Dr. Abderrahim Foukara, Washington Bureau Chief, Al-Jazeerah Internationaland former longtime BBC Correspondent

AUDIO (.mp3)

TRANSCRIPT (.pdf)

General Wesley Clark, NCUSAR Program, Policymakers Conference, Security and Defense, US-Arab Relations

Revisiting Arab-U.S. Strategic Relations: An Overview and Personal Perspective – 2007 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

REVISITING ARAB-U.S. STRATEGIC RELATIONS: AN OVERVIEW AND PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE

General Wesley K. Clark (USA, Ret.) – Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, Europe; author, A Time to Lead, Waging Modern War, and Winning Modern Wars

TRANSCRIPT (.pdf)

NCUSAR Program, Policymakers Conference, Saudi Arabia, US-Arab Relations, Video

What Went Wrong, What Went Right, and the Way Forward – 2006 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

WHAT WENT WRONG, WHAT WENT RIGHT, AND THE WAY FORWARD — MISTAKES MADE, LESSONS LEARNED

Moderator: The Hon. Walter L. Cutler, twice former U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, having represented President Ronald Reagan, 1984-86 and 1987-1988; Ambassador to Tunisia and Zaire and Ambassador-Designate to Khomeini’s Iran before diplomatic relations were severed; President Emeritus, Meridian International, Washington, D.C.; former Senior Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Congressional Relations.

Panelists:

  • “Economic and Related Reforms in the Kingdom’s Strategic Development Plans” – H.E. Dr. Mohammed Al-Qunaibet, Vice Chairman, Economic and Energy Affairs Committee, Majlis ash-Shura [National Consultative Council], Riyadh.
  • “Perspectives of a Former Ambassador and United States Senator: Saudi Arabia-U.S. Relations, Reforms, Elections, and the Challenges Ahead.” — The Hon. Wyche Fowler, Chairman of the Board, Middle East Institute; former U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, having represented President Bill Clinton, 1996-2000, and former Deputy Minority Leader, United States Senate and Congressman, 1977-1993.
  • “Enhancing the Mutuality of Benefit: The Bilateral Commercial Dimension” —H.E. Usamah Al-Kurdi, Member, Majlis Ash-Shura [National Consultative Council], Riyadh; immediate past Secretary General, Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry 1997-2001; former Vice President, Saudi Consulting House, a fore-runner of the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA).

VIDEO

Energy, NCUSAR Program, Policymakers Conference, Saudi Arabia, US-Arab Relations, Video

The Energy Outlook: Independence or Interdependence – 2006 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

Moderator: The Hon. James Schlesinger, Chairman of the Board of the MITRE Corporation and Senior Advisor at Lehman Brothers; Consultant to the Departments of Defense, State, and Homeland Security; Member, the Defense Policy Board, the Arms Control and Nonproliferation Advisory Board, and Vice-Chairman of the Homeland Security Advisory Council; former Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission and Director, Central Intelligence Agency; and former Secretary of Defense as well as the nation’s first Secretary of Energy.

Keynote Speaker: Mr. Khalid Al-Falih, Senior Vice President, Industrial Relations, and Board Member, Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), the world’s largest producer of crude oil and which manages a quarter of the world’s total oil reserves; Chairman of the Board, South Rub’ Al-Khali Company, an upstream gas joint venture among Shell, Total, and Saudi Aramco; Chairman, Dammam City Municipal Council; former President of Petron Corporation, a refining and marketing venture between Saudi Aramco and the Philippine National Oil Company; former Vice-President for Gas Ventures, Development, and Coordination.

Panelists:

Among the senior energy executives represented in the following session are those whose companies are, among other things, major purchasers of Saudi Arabian crude oil, joint venture partners in refining projects in Saudi Arabia and the United States, substantial investors in both countries while pursuing expanded commercial relations and sharing technology to ensure continued reliable long-term energy supplies.

  • Mr. Stephen D. Pryor, President, ExxonMobil Refining and Supply Company and a Vice President of the Corporation
  • Mr. Peter J. Robertson, Vice Chairman of the Board, Chevron Corporation; former Comptroller for Chevron Oil Europe, Comptroller of Chevron USA, and Vice President of Finance, Chevron USA; former President, Warren Petroleum Company, Chevron’s former natural gas liquids subsidiary; former President, Chevron Overseas Petroleum Inc., with responsibility for directing Chevron’s oil exploration and production activities worldwide; Director, U.S.-Russian Business Council; the U.S.-Saudi Arabian Business Council; the American Petroleum Institute; and Vice-Chairman, U.S. Energy Association.
  • Mr. John D. Hofmeister, President, Shell Oil Company; Head, U.S. Country Leadership Team, which includes the leaders of all Shell businesses operating in the United States; Board Member, the American Petroleum Institute, United States Energy Association, National Association of Manufacturers, National Urban League, and the Foreign Policy Association.
  • Mr. James J. Mulva, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, ConocoPhillips, and Chairman, the American Petroleum Institute; former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Phillips Petroleum Company; Member, the Business Council and the Board of Visitors of M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
  • Mr. Gary R. Heminger, President, Marathon Petroleum Company LLC, and Executive Vice President, Marathon Oil Corporation; Chairman, American Petroleum Institute Downstream Committee; Chairman of the Board, Tiffin University; former Chairman, Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, and Member, Oxford Institute for Energy Studies.

VIDEO

HRH Prince Turki Al Faisal, NCUSAR Program, Policymakers Conference, Saudi Arabia, US-Arab Relations, Video

A Vision for the Future of U.S.-Saudi Relations – 2006 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

Keynote Speaker: “A Vision for the Future of U.S. Saudi Relations” — HRH Prince Turki Al Faisal, Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the United States of America; Chairman, King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies in Riyadh; Co-Chair, C100 Group, Council of 100 Leaders (West-Islamic World Dialogue) which has been affiliated with the World Economic Forum since 2003; Founding Member, Board of Directors, King Faisal Foundation; former Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the United Kingdom and Ireland; and former Director General, General Intelligence Directorate, the kingdom’s main foreign intelligence service, 1977-2001.

VIDEO

NCUSAR Program, Policymakers Conference, Saudi Arabia, US-Arab Relations, Video

Taking Stock of the Saudi Arabian-U.S. Relationship – 2006 Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference

WELCOME & INTRODUCTIONS

Dr. John Duke Anthony, President and CEO, National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations; Member, Council on Foreign Relations; Adjunct Associate Professor on Saudi Arabia and Gulf Politics, Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University; author, numerous books, articles, and essays on the Arabian Peninsula, the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the six GCC countries.

TAKING STOCK OF THE SAUDI ARABIAN U.S. RELATIONSHIP

Moderator: Ms. Afnan Al-Shuaiby, Advisor to the President of the U.S.-Saudi Arabian Business Council, Washington, D.C.; formerly a business consultant to major U.S. companies and commercial associations, including Walt Disney World Company and the Business Council.

Keynote Speaker: “Saudi Arabia and America: Where Are We Headed?” — H.E. Abdalla A. Alireza, Minister of State, Saudi Arabian Council of Ministers; former Co-Chairman, National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce.

Panelists:

  • “Saudi Arabian-U.S. Relations: A Balance Sheet on the Issues of Greatest Importance to Both” — The Hon. Robert Jordan, Partner, Baker and Botts; President, Dallas Committee on Foreign Relations; Member, Board of Directors, the John G. Tower Center for Political Studies; in addition to having served as personal attorney to President George W. Bush, he was U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia 2001-2003.
  • “The Dynamics of Educational Reform in the Kingdom: A Balance Sheet” —H.E. Dr. Khalil Al-Khalil, Member, Majlis ash-Shura [National Consultative Council], Riyadh and Professor, Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University, Riyadh.
  • “Women’s Rights and Development in the Kingdom: An Analytical Assessment” — Dr. Eleanor Abdella Doumato, Visiting Fellow at the Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island; former president of the Association for Middle East Women’s Studies; co-editor of, inter alia, Getting God’s Ear: Women, Islam, and Healing in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, plus author of essays on women in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the Gulf in numerous edited volumes and monographs as well as scholarly journals and encyclopedias.

VIDEO

John Duke Anthony, NCUSAR Program, Policymakers Conference, US-Arab Relations

America and Arabia: Where Matters Stand

John Duke Anthony and M. Scott Bortot – America and Arabia: Where Matters Stand (.pdf file).

A special report drawing on the proceedings of the 13th Annual Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference. The conference title and theme was “Restoring Arab-U.S. Mutual Trust and Confidence: What is Feasible? — What is Necessary?” The report is from Dr. John Duke Anthony, National Council on U.S. Relations President and CEO, and Mr. M. Scott Bortot, former editor of Trade Lines, a publication of the National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce.