Page Monthly Report February 2017 Afghanistan-Pakistan Confidence Building Seminar 12 senior officials from Afghanistan and Pakistan attend a NESA Confidence Building Seminar. WASHINGTON-January 30-February 9, 2017-12 senior military and government officials from the Afghan and Pakistani government gathered in Washington to participate in the NESA Center s annual Afghanistan-Pakistan Confidence Building Seminar. The course, led by NESA professors John Wood and Jack Gill, is designed to provide a cooperative strategic dialogue between Afghanistan and Pakistan, thereby reducing tensions and instilling confidence. Over the course of two weeks, participants heard from a variety of subject matter experts including senior U.S. government officials, think-tank academicians, and diplomats. Afghan and Pakistani participants were provided multiple opportunities to discuss mutual concerns, including separate meetings with officials at the State Department, the Pentagon, and Capitol Hill. Throughout the seminar, participants engaged in several security -based lectures, including U.S. policy for Afghanistan-Pakistan, an overview on current Iranian foreign policy, narcotics as an A sign of friendship and mutual understanding between Afghan and issue of border security, Daesh Pakistani representatives. as an emerging threat along the Durand Line, refugees and border protection, as well as the current status of the Counter-ISIL campaign. Guest lecturers Ambassador Ronald E. Neumann, the former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, Dr. Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, CEO of Valens Global, and Mr. Roy Kamphausen, Senior Vice President of the National Bureau of Asian Research, made presentations during the course as well. Participants were also involved in preparing papers for a cohesive border-security strategy, which were presented to H.E. Hamdullah Mohib, the Afghan Ambassador to the U.S., and Mr. Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, the Pakistani Deputy Chief of Mission to the U.S.
Page 2 Peer-2-Peer Regional Competition Students from Universite Saint Joseph, after winning first place in the regional competition. WASHINGTON-February 28, 2017-The NESA Center in partnership with EdVenture Partners and Facebook, hosted the regional P2P (Peer-To-Peer) Fall 2016 Challenging Extremism competition. P2P is a global university initiative implemented in over 200 colleges and universities around the world. Throughout the course of the last semester, several university teams worked to design, pilot, implement and measure the success of a social or digital initiative, product or tool that empowers students to become involved in countering violent extremism. Engaging youth in this fight is crucial; P2P offers a creative and exciting way for students around the world to become involved in the effort. During this regional competition, three of the top teams from the Near East and South Asia region, from over 20 that made the previous rounds in the Fall 2016 competition, competed in Washington, D.C. for the title of regional winner. The three teams in this year s finals included Universite Saint Joseph in Lebanon, with their project Ta3a Sob El Fan, the University of Jordan, with their project Athar, and the University of Kuwait, with their project of andyouq8. During this regional competition, students from all three teams had the opportunity to interact and network with senior international military and government security professionals from the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia region, who were concurrently participating in the NESA Center s Senior Executive Seminar. Students from Universite Saint Joseph in Lebanon were named winners of the Fall 2016 P2P competition. Their innovative campaign, Ta3a Sob El Fan, established a grassroots connection within the Lebanese at-risk youth community in Tripoli and their neighboring community in Beirut. The message of their campaign spread to over 10,000,000 people online and received endorsements from celebrities and human-rights organizations alike.
Page 3 Radicalization Workshop in the NESA Region COLOMBO, Sri Lanka-February 14-16, 2017-The NESA Center in partnership with the Regional Center for Strategic Studies (RCSS) conducted a "Radicalization in the Levant, North Africa and South Asia Workshop in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The event was designed to provide a venue for senior security professionals to discuss issues surrounding radicalization, terrorism, recruitment, returning fighters and government initiatives to address the growing threat of terrorism and violent extremism. The objective was to clearly lay out the extent of the problem in each region, but more importantly address existing options available nationally and regionally to deal with the security crisis, as well as proposing new regional initiatives/directions. The focus of recommendations was on whole of society solutions and recommendations as well as feasibility of best business practices. 22 senior security professionals from countries of the Levant (Jordan and Palestinian Authority), North Africa (Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia), and South Asia (Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal and Pakistan) attended along with 12 experts/researchers from RCSS in Sri Lanka. Professor Anne Moisan and Dr. Jennifer Jefferis from the NESA Center led the program. Security and research professional from the NESA region gather in Colombo to discuss radicalization. Professors Moisan and Jefferis encouraged an honest dialogue in developing whole of society requirements, protocols, processes and policies to address the hard and soft security issues related to terrorism and violent extremism. The main focus was to develop creative problem solving options among all elements of society in a cooperative/collaborative mode. Finally, countries were encouraged to identify and share best practices and current capacity programs as well as embrace cross border cooperation with neighboring countries. Each session was moderated by either a NESA or RCSS faculty and focused on participant speakers in round table discussions. Topics included but were not limited to: The Pull-Push Factors and Security Implications from A Sub-Regional Perspective; National Programs and Initiatives: Government-Civil Partnership on De-radicalization; and Reintegration Efforts: Hard and Soft Approaches. The workshop concluded with a brainstorming session with participants that provided final comments and recommendations.
Page 4 Professor Gawdat Bahgat Guest Lectures at JMI Professor Gawdat Bahgat (center) in mid-lecture, during his week in New Delhi. NEW DELHI, India-January 30- February 5, 2017-The Centre for West Asian Studies, a part of the Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI), invited NESA Professor Dr. Gawdat Bahgat to lecture on U.S. foreign policy as well as policies in several Middle Eastern countries. Dr. Bahgat taught several sessions including the Arab-Israeli peace process, the foreign policies and political situations in Egypt, Syria, and Iran, the war on terrorism, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. 52 graduate students and researchers attended the week-long seminar. Dr. Bahgat also gave a lecture at Jamia Millia Islamia s Arabic Studies Department on U.S. foreign policy. Saudi Arabian War College Course Members of the Saudi Arabian War College, asking questions from panel members. WASHINGTON-February 13-17, 2017-The NESA Center held its annual course for members of the Saudi Arabian War College. 18 senior Saudi Arabian officials, led by Professor David DesRoches, spent close to a week learning about international and regional foreign policy in the Middle East. Participants covered several vital presentations during their seminar, including the influence of lobbying in policy making, the impact the Yemeni civil war on its regional partners, the U.S. strategy towards fighting Daesh, the rise of Russian influence in the Middle East, and an overview of the U.S. government. Special guest lecturers including BG (ret.) Peter Zwack, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for National Strategic Studies, Dr. Paul Sullivan, Professor of National Security at the Eisenhower School of National Security and Resource Strategy, and Ambassador Gerald Feierstein of the Middle East Institute, presented to participants as well. Participants also received the opportunity to take an off-site visit to Capitol Hill and the Embassy of Saudi Arabia, where they received a briefing from H.E. Ambassador Abdullah bin Faisal Al Saud and Defense Attaché Brigadier General Yousef Al Harbi. NESA Center and the Saudi Arabian War College continue to grow a cooperative relationship and provide an opportunity for the U.S. and Saudi Arabia to have a critical and strategic dialogue on international security.
Page 5 NESA-AFRICOM CVE Workshop Security officials from the North African region, attend a NESA-AFRICOM workshop in Casablanca. CASABLANCA, Morocco-February 6-10, 2017- The NESA Center in partnership with U.S. Africa Command conducted a "Countering Terrorism and Countering Violent Extremism in North Africa and the Sahel Workshop" in Casablanca, Morocco. The event was designed to provide a venue for senior security professionals to discuss issues surrounding radicalization, terrorism, recruiting of youth, returning jihadists and government initiatives to address the growing threat of terrorism and violent extremism. The objective was to clearly lay out the extent of the problem by country, but more importantly address existing options available nationally and regionally to deal with the security crisis, as well as proposing new regional initiatives. The focus of recommendations was on whole of society solutions and recommendations as well as best business practices. 27 senior security sector professionals from countries of the North Africa-Sahel region attended from Algeria, Burkina Faso, Morocco, and Tunisia. CPT Corey Young, SFC Nicholas Fitzpatric and SSgt Robert Hoover from Special Operations Command/AFRICOM also attended; as did Dr Benjamin Nickels from the Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS). Professor Anne Moisan led the workshop program. The main focus was to develop creative problem solving options among all elements of society in a collaborative environment. Finally, countries were encouraged to identify and share best practices and current programs and embrace cross border cooperation with neighboring countries. Each session was moderated by either a NESA or ACSS faculty member and focused on participant-speakers in round-table discussions. Topics included but were not limited to: mapping the threats; examining the pull-push factors that attract youth to radicalization; Daesh s appeal and expansion with affiliates in Africa; the capabilities that exist to deal with terrorists, violent extremism and locating gaps; illicit commons and the financing of terrorist groups, as well as the regional solutions and opportunities for cooperation. The workshop concluded with a brainstorming session with participants that provided final comments and recommendations. Publications Bahgat, Gawdat. 2017. Stati Uniti: Trump, i gasdotti, la politica estera. Rienergia.
Page 6 NESA Center-Middle East Institute Track II BERLIN, Germany-February 13-17, 2017- NESA Dean Dr. Roger Kangas attended a joint NESAMiddle East Institute(MEI) conference in Berlin, concentrated on a U.S.-Russia dialogue on the Middle East. The conference ventured into several pertinent topics including an informal exchange of views on the Syrian conflict, joint discussion of possibilities for reducing the intensity of the fighting, and an analysis of prospects for American-Russian cooperation in Syria. Several American and Russian research experts participated in the conference as well. Special guests included Andrey Kortunov, Director of the Russian International Affairs Council, Irina Zvyagelskaya, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies, and Elena Suponina, Senior Advisor at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies. Washington Seminar Series Discussion Ambassador Craig Dunkerley (2nd from right) addressing the panel of the Washington Seminar. WASHINGTON-February 21, 2017-The NESA Center hosted its first Washington Seminar of 2017. Over 60 high-level foreign officials and military attachés from D.C. embassies attended the discussion, moderated by NESA Distinguished Professor Ambassador Craig Dunkerley. The Washington Seminar series is tailored to presenting key partners within the diplomatic community, including Algeria, Morocco, Pakistan, Denmark, Germany, and Korea, an opportunity to engage in thought-provoking discussion with policy-makers. A featured panel of experts including Mr. Richard Fontaine, President of the Center for a New American Security, Dr. Philip Gordon, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and NESA Director LTG (ret.) Terry Wolff discussed the process of National Security Decision-Making in the New Administration. NESA-UCLA Track II Conference PRAGUE, Czech Republic-February 9-11, 2017- NESA Center Director LTG (ret.) Terry Wolff and Deputy Director David Lamm attended a Track II sponsored event by the Center for Middle East Development at the University of California at Los Angeles. Over 300 participants attended the conference, which covered a wide range of topics including regional security issues, women s rights, economic growth, and the current military situation in Iraq and Syria. Deputy Director Lamm gave the keynote address and led a session on countering violent extremism. Director Wolff also led a seminar discussion on the ongoing campaign against Daesh.
Page 7 Strategic Crossroads Seminar BEIJING, China February 22-23, 2017 A delegation led by the Near East South Asia (NESA) Center for Strategic Studies in cooperation with the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies conducted a Track II discussion with experts gathered by the Institute of International Strategic Studies of Peking University on the prospects of U.S.-PRC cooperation in the larger Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region. Held on the campus of Peking University in Beijing, China, the discussions included a review of the primary interests of both countries within the MENA region, the ways in which to deal with regional conflicts and to address regional rivalries, and views on trend lines. The two day meeting culminated in a session designed to recognize and develop areas of mutual agreement and potential collaboration. Upcoming NESA Center Events Executive Seminar March 13-24 CENTCOM Pakistan Military Visit March 25-31 RSADF Executive Leadership Seminar March 26-30 Tunisia NDI March 27 April 7