Global Strategy Forum
Michael Ancram PC DL QC
Chairman - Global Strategy Forum
Michael Ancram comments on the reaction to the Israeli attack on the Gaza Flotilla, in particular the reaction to the response of the US and the UK, from the 10th Doha Forum, where he is a speaker.
Tuesday 23rd March, National Liberal Club
Victoria Clark, Dr Kristian Ulrichsen, Michael Ancram MP and Stephen Day
GSF hosted a discussion entitled 'Yemen and Somalia: a 'ticking time bomb'?' with panellists Victoria Clark (author of 'Yemen: Dancing on the Heads of Snakes'); Stephen Day, former Head of the Middle East Department, Ambassador to Qatar and Tunisia and Dr Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Research Fellow at LSE Global Governance and Deputy Director of the Kuwait Research Programme on Development, Governance and Globalisation in the Gulf States. The debate was designed to address a number of questions including the scale of the security threat posed by both countries. Yemen, heralded by some as the next front in the War on Terror, was addressed in particular. The measures, including development measures, which the international community should consider to support both countries were discussed as well as how these efforts might produce real results. It was agreed that while there was clearly a terrorist flow of information and weapons between Yemen and Somalia, there were significant differences between the two countries, which ought to inform policies towards them. It was also suggested that framing international policy towards Yemen based solely on the potential terrorist threat could risk undermining efforts to stabilise the country and that the focus on maintaining a united Yemen might be misguided.
Sir Richard Dalton KCMG
UK Ambassador to Iran (2002-2006)
On 24th November, Sir Richard Dalton addressed GSF on 'Iran in 2009: how much has changed?' In a meticulous analysis, he drew on his expert knowledge of the region and the insights gained from his experience as the UK Ambassador to Iran from 2002-2006, concluding that in our policy towards Iran, we need to 'make haste slowly on sanctions and we need to continue firmly, coupled with non-interference, on Iran's internal problems.'
Debate - Tuesday 24th February 2009
Malcolm Bruce MP, Alastair Crooke, Lorna Fitzsimons and Andrew Wilson
On Tuesday 24th February, Malcolm Bruce MP, Chairman of the International Development Select Committee; Alastair Crooke, Founder and Director of Conflicts Forum, Lorna Fitzsimons, Chief Executive of Bicom and Andrew Wilson of Sky News took part in a debate entitled 'Is the Middle East Peace Process Dead?', in the light of the recent conflict in Gaza. A The audio transcript of the debate is available.
'Isolation and Polarisation: the West's failing agenda?'
Michael Ancram QC MP and Alistair Crooke
On Monday 14th July, GSF's chairman, Michael Ancram was joined by Alistair Crooke, founder and director of Conflicts Forum, to discuss 'Isolation and Polarisation: the West's failing agenda?' They both underlined the need not only for engagement with the countries of the greater Middle East by the west, but also for a more thoughtful diplomacy and a deeper understanding of the issues.
Dr Jack Caravelli
Guest speaker
President Bill Clinton's former principal advisor on non-proliferation policy Dr Jack Caravelli agreed to share his thoughts on the topic 'Nuclear Insecurity - an insider's account'. He concentrated on Iran's quest for nuclear weapons, pointing out in his view that Iran was deadset on obtaining a full nuclear weapons system; that the heavy water plant at Arak was not there as a civil energy research centre but was there for military purposes; that the Natanz uranium enrichment plant will have produced enough material to "make a few bombs" by the end of 2009; and that Iran has the means through the Shahab III missile system to deliver a warhead anywhere within a 1300km radius of its borders. He went on to give his views on the regional impact of a nuclear Iran and what the international community should be doing, also pointing out that in his opinion it was a US policy mistake not to have diplomatic relations with Tehran.
HRH Prince El Hassan bin Talal
Advisory Board member
On the eve of the Annapolis conference in the United States, Prince Hassan bin Talal of Jordan, a GSF International Advisory Board member proposes the key outlines of the Israeli-Palestinian and regional peace to which it should aspire.
Jonathan J Lehrle
Advisor to the Forum
Since October 2006 the Chairman and the Director of Global Strategy Forum have been involved in a series of on-going meetings in Beirut, Damascus and Jerusalem in order to examine the options for promoting geniune dialogue in the region. Views were obtained from representatives of Hamas, Hezbollah and the Syrian Government, and in Jerusalem meetings were held with journalists and ex officials of the security services. Global Strategy Forum does not claim to represent any of the parties involved nor does it necessarily agree with the views put forward by the representatives met. This interview with a senior Hamas representative deals with the precursors to the Hamas take-over of Gaza in June 2007. The interview has been witheld until now due to the sensitivity of the information regarding the BBC journalist Alan Johnston. Alan Johnston was freed on 4th July 2007.
Michael Ancram PC DL QC
Chairman - Global Strategy Forum
Finding a peace in the Middle East is a fraught business. Michael Ancram suggests that by looking at the Northern Ireland Peace Process lessons can be learnt. As he points out in this Lecture to the Eisenhower Institute (Washington DC) there was no rule book on how to conduct negotiations and the United States Adminsitration was urging the UK to talk to the IRA - this though the bombing campaign had recently transferred to the mainland. The analogy? Perhaps it is time to talk to the likes of Hamas and Hezbollah...
Rt Hon William Hague MP
Guest Speaker
The Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague MP set out the policies of the Conservative Party towards the Middle East. He paid special attention to Iran and Palestine. Questions from the floor included those from HE Mr Mohammed Belmahi - Ambassador of Morocco, Sir Joseph Hotung, Lord (Peter) Inge, Her Excellency Dr Alia Bouran, Ambassador of Jordan, Alastair Crooke - Conflicts Forum, Sir Roger Tomkys - Chairman, Arab British Chamber of Commerce, Tim Montgomerie - Conservative Home and Amir Frayman from the Israeli Embassy.
Michael Ancram PC DL QC
Chairman - Global Strategy Forum
Following Tony Blair's appointment by the Quartet as Special Envoy to the Middle East, Michael Ancram, drawing on his experience from his time as a Minister in Norethern Ireland, passes on some thoughts he thinks Mr Blair might do well to heed.
Dr Sergio Catignani
Lecturer, Department of War Studies, King's College London
Although a lot has been made in the foreign press of the Mecca agreement in terms of its potential to stabilise intra-Palestinian politics and eventually re-start Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations, what are the real prospects for the achievement of an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement with Harakat al-muqawama al-Islamiyya (‘Islamic Resistance Movement’, Hamas) at the helm of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA)? The outlook for peace appears very dim given Hamas’ terrorist track record before and after it won the Palestinian Legislative Council elections on 25 January 2006.
Dr Rosemary Hollis
Guest Chair
Dr Rosemary Hollis, Director of Research at Chatham House kindly agreed to Chair the Forum's Debate, "What Boundaries to Dialogue in the Middle East?" Guest panellists were HRH Prince Hassan of Jordan, Michael Ancram MP and the journalist Jonathan Freedland. The Debate benefitted from Prince Hassan's wide-ranging experience and from the fact, as he put it, 'we live in the middle of it all'. Comparisons were drawn between the situation in the Middle East and what foundations were put in place with regards to the peace process in Northern Ireland.
Dr Sergio Catignani
Lecturer, Department of War Studies, King's College London
An incisive analysis of the recent conflict in Lebanon by Dr Sergio Catignani, Department of War Studies. King's College London. His work provides a highly-detailed critique of Israeli military operations and an assessment of the effects of the conflict on Israel, Hezbollah and the United Nations.
Deborah Pout
Reuters Fellow, Oxford University
The rise of Hamas through democratic means has caused a dilemma for the major world powers; how to support the Palestinian people without supporting Hamas. This conundrum is explored by Reuters Research Fellow (Oxford) Deborah Pout.
Dr Asher Susser
Author & Academic
The election of Hamas in January 2006 gave Hamas an unexpected victory. By taking part in the electoral process in the internationally recognised Gaza and West Bank areas, has Hamas inadvertently accepted the two state solution? This and other issues, such as the demise of Arab influence in the region are explored in this fascinating piece by Dr Asher Susser.
