KEYNOTE: Dr. John Duke Anthony “America’s Changing Interests in the Middle East: Implications for U.S. Policies”

PANEL 1: "Disengagement or Limited Reengagement? The U.S. Foreign Policy toward Iraq and Afghanistan through the Lens of Cultural Challenges."
Moderator: BG (RET) Russell Howard
Dr. Rochelle A. Davis, Georgetown University: “US Military’s Conception of Culture in the Current War in Iraq.”
Dr. Clement M. Henry, University of Texas at Austin: “Colonial Situations in Comparative Perspective?”
Dr. Marvin G. Weinbaum, Middle East Institute: “Revising US Policy toward Afghanistan in an Obama Administration.”
Mr. Hekmat Karzai, Center for Conflict and Peace Studies, Kabul Afghanistan

PANEL 2: "U.S. Foreign Policy toward Egypt and North Africa: How the Obama Administration Could Respond to the Challenges raised by “Old Regimes,” Domestic Dissent and Regional Issues."
Moderator: Dr. Noureddine Jebnoun
Dr. John P. Entelis, Fordham University: “US-North African Relations under Obama.”
Dr. Ali Ahmida, University of New England: “The Obama Administration and the Politics of Reform in Libya.”
Dr. Samer Shehata, Georgetown University- Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars: “Egypt in Tumultuous Times.”

PANEL 3: "U.S. – Iran Relations and their implications for the GCC Countries."
Moderator: Mr. Owen Sirrs
Dr. John Duke Anthony, National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations: “Constancy and Change in GCC – Iranian Strategic Relations”
Dr. Michael C. Hudson, Georgetown University: “Obama Engulfed: A Lower American Profile?”
Dr. Mehrdad Kia, The University of Montana: “Confronting Iran: United States and the Rise of the Iranian Hegemony”

CLOSING KEYNOTE: Ambassador Mark Johnson “What the President Faces: Now Comes the Hard Part – The Lessons of 1979”