CMEPP Events: 2002
Archive: CMEPP Events
2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002
CMEPP Hosts Talk by Lebanese Ambassador
On October 11, 2002, the Center for Middle East Public Policy hosted a talk by the Lebanese Ambassador to the United States, His Excellency Farid Abboud, on "Lebanon and the Peace Process" at RAND's Santa Monica office.
Ambassador Abboud first presented some background information about his country. According to the Ambassador, while there are 4 million people residing in Lebanon, there are 60 million Lebanese scattered throughout the rest of the world, a statistic that inspired him to refer to his country as "a nation of immigrants." He noted that there are 6 members of the U.S. Congress with Lebanese backgrounds. Lebanon is currently in the process of reconstruction and rebuilding from the ashes of a devastating civil war that ended in 1991. Although it enjoys a high literacy rate and a good education system, Lebanon faces significant economic challenges that are exacerbated by regional conflict and tension. He described Lebanon, which is bordered by Syria and Israel, as "residing in a dangerous neighborhood."
He went on to discuss regional issues such as Israeli-Arab relations and the possibilities for peace, public opinion in the Middle East, the potential for war in Iraq, and the global war on terrorism. He cautioned that much of the Arab world currently suffers from weak economies compounded by persistent unemployment and that idle, disaffected youth could become targets for recruitment by terrorist organizations. He also stressed that any initiative to foster democracy in the Arab world has little chance of succeeding in the absence of peace between Arabs and Israelis.
Ambassador Abboud studied political science at the Universite St. Joseph in Beirut, and received his Ph.D. in history at UCLA. He joined the Lebanese Foreign Service in 1973 and has served in Washington, Moscow, Rome, London, and Los Angeles. He was the delegate of Lebanon to the Monitoring Group of the April 1996 Understanding in Southern Lebanon. Dr. Abboud has been the Ambassador of Lebanon to the United States since March 23, 1999.
Top