When: February 25, 2012 - April 20, 2012

Turkey, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt are critical to United States’ diplomatic efforts, global business interests and the general public for many different reasons.  Some of these countries are already a source of concern and in others troubles may lie just over the horizon.  If something goes awry in any one of them, consequences for the U.S. can be very serious —even disastrous.  The better informed we are about the politics, economics and problems of these countries, the better able we will be to address the challenges these states continue to pose.  Four lectures were planned; three are upcoming.

The four lectures of the series are:

1.  The New Ottomans - Turkey’s Muslim Nationalists
Speaker: Professor Jenny White, Boston University
Occurred on January 21

2.  Pakistan – Four Futures for a Troubled Relationship
Speaker:  Professor Timothy Hoyt of the U.S. Naval War College
Saturday, February 25, 3:00 p.m.

3.  Saudi Arabia -  A Problematic Ally?
Speaker:  Toby Jones
Saturday, March 24, 3:00 p.m.

4.  Egypt in Revolution
Speaker: Professor Nathan Brown of George Washington University
Thursday, April 19, 5:30 p.m.

You may purchase tickets using Paypal by clicking on the title of the postings or by calling the office at 982-4931.

When: February 25, 2012

From: 03:00 PM - 05:00 PM

Location:  The Forum, Santa Fe University of Art & Design, 1600 St. Michael’s Drive

Lecture Title:  Pakistan – Four Futures for a Troubled Relationship

Speaker:   Professor Timothy Hoyt of the U.S. Naval War College

Pakistan is considered to be one of the most dangerous countries in the world.  Instability, complex relations with India, terrorism, and nuclear weapons create a potentially explosive mix.  U.S.-Pakistani relations are difficult and at their lowest point since the death of Osama Bin Laden. Can this marriage be saved?

Dr. Timothy D. Hoyt has been a Professor of Strategy and Policy at the US Naval War College since 2002. He lectures and teaches there on a range of topics including strategy, terrorism, insurgency, warfare in the maritime domain, weapons of mass destruction, and contemporary conflict, and also teaches an elective course on South Asian security.

Dr. Hoyt received his Ph.D. in International Relations and Strategic Studies from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies in 1997. From 1998-2002 he taught graduate courses on security in the developing world, South Asian security, technology and international security, and military strategy at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. In October 2003, he testified before two subcommittees of the House Committee on International Relations regarding terrorism in South and Southwest Asia.

In addition to teaching at the Naval War College, Dr. Hoyt has worked for the U.S. Army, for the Library of Congress’ Congressional Research Service, and served as a lecturer or consultant at other U.S. military schools and government agencies. His recent publications include chapters and articles on the war on terrorism in South Asia, security and conflict in the developing world, the limits of military force in the global war on terrorism, the impact of culture on Iraqi military performance, the evolution of multi-generational terrorist organizations, Pakistani nuclear doctrine and strategic thought, the impact of nuclear weapons on recent crises in South Asia, case studies of the Irish Republican Army and its use of political violence, a multinational review of the Mumbai terrorist attack and its strategic impact, and the role of maritime cooperation in US-Indian relations. He was recently named co-chair of the Naval War College’s Indian Ocean Regional Studies Group, and is a participant in Track II discussions with both India and Pakistan.

Dr. Hoyt is the author of Military Industries and Regional Power (Routledge 2007), examining the role of military industry in the national security policies of India, Israel, and Iraq, as well as over 40 book chapters and articles. He is beginning work on American Military Strategy in the 21st Century (Polity Press, tentative publication 2011) and a history of the Irish Republican Army from 1909-2009.

You may purchase tickets using Paypal by clicking on the title of this posting to bring up the ticketing feature that will appear below or by calling the office at 982-4931.  When purchasing tickets, be sure to give us the names of attendees.  Your name(s) will be added to the list of attendees; no tickets will be issued.

When: March 24, 2012

From: 03:00 PM - 05:00 PM

Location:  The Forum, Santa Fe University of Art & Design, 1600 St. Michael’s Drive

Lecture Title: Saudi Arabia – A Problematic Ally?

Speaker: Toby Jones

Saudi Arabia is the world’s major oil producer, which means that the U.S., being highly dependent on foreign oil, is highly dependent on Saudi Arabia. But the Kingdom is a conservative absolute monarchy that fosters radical Islam around the world. With the current unrest in the Arab World can Saudi Arabia remain stable? What if not? What will result?

Toby Jones is a historian of the modern Middle East. His interests are varied. Jones’s scholarship focuses primarily on the political intersections between science, technology, the environment, knowledge production, and the state formation, war, and Islamism. Before joining the history department at Rutgers University, Jones taught at Swarthmore College. During the 2008-2009 he was a fellow at Princeton University’s Oil, Energy and the Middle East project. From 2004 to early 2006 he worked as the political analyst of the Persian Gulf for the International Crisis Group where he wrote about political reform and sectarianism.

Jones is author of Desert Kingdom: How Oil and Water Forged Modern Saudi Arabia, forthcoming in the fall 2010 with Harvard University Press. He is currently working on a new book project America’s Oil Wars also to be published by Harvard University Press. Jones has published articles in The International Journal of Middle East Studies, Middle East Report, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy’s online magazine, the Arab Reform Bulletin, Strategic Insights, and the CTC Sentinel.

He has presented his work at the annual meetings of the Middle East Studies Association, the American Historical Association, the Society for the History of Technology, the International Studies Association, and the American Political Science Association. He also presented his research and political analysis at Cornell University, Georgetown University, Harvard University, the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, New York University, Princeton University, Syracuse University, The College of New Jersey, and Yale University.

At Rutgers Jones teaches courses on the Arab-Israeli Conflict, the modern Middle East, oil, the environment in the Middle East, and war and revolution in Iran and Iraq.

You may purchase tickets using Paypal by clicking on the title of this posting to bring up the ticketing feature that will appear below or by calling the office at 982-4931.  When purchasing tickets, be sure to give us the names of attendees.  Your name(s) will be added to the list of attendees; no tickets will be issued.

When: April 19, 2012

From: 05:30 PM - 07:30 PM

Location:   To be confirmed

Title: Egypt in Revolution

Speaker: Professor Nathan Brown of George Washington University

Egypt is one of the most important, if not the most important Arab country in the world, but we know very little about the new and confusing mix of forces and politics that has emerged following the removal of Mubarak. Will the future see anything like a genuine democratization of the country or will Egypt become a new Iran?

Professor Brown received his B.A. in political science from the University of Chicago and his M.A. and Ph.D. in politics and Near Eastern Studies from Princeton University. He teaches courses on Middle Eastern politics, as well as more general courses on comparative politics and international relations. His dissertation received the Malcolm Kerr award from the Middle East Studies Association in 1987.

Professor Brown is author of Peasant Politics in Modern Egypt (1990); The Rule of Law in the Arab World: Courts in Egypt and the Gulf (1997); Constitutions in a Non-Constitutional World: Arab Basic Laws and the Prospects for Accountable Government (2001); and Palestinian Politics After the Oslo Accords: Resuming Arab Palestine (2003).

Professor Brown is the recipient of Fulbright grants to study in Egypt and the Gulf and teach in Israel. He also served two years as Senior Associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Professor Brown was recently selected as a 2009 Carnegie Scholar by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Under this grant, Professor Brown will analyze the impacts of increased participation by Islamist groups in electoral politics on both the movements themselves and the political systems in which they operate.

You may purchase tickets using Paypal by clicking on the title of this posting to bring up the ticketing feature that will appear below or by calling the office at 982-4931. When purchasing tickets, be sure to give us the names of attendees. Your name(s) will be added to the list of attendees; no tickets will be issued.