New US Ambassador to Lebanon ...

Maura Connelly, Deputy Assistant Secretary in the State Department Near Eastern Affairs bureau, former charge d'affaires in Damascus, nominated to replace Michele Sison as Ambassador in Lebanon...

3/18/2010 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

MEI Boardman Room 1761 N Street NW, Washington, DC

Maura Connelly, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs The Middle East Institute Presents: Lebanon: Looking Ahead a Lebanon Policy Series Presentation #1 The Obama Administration’s Lebanon Policy Thursday, March 18 2010 ***1-2 PM *** (Note time change) MEI Boardman Room 1761 N St. NW Washington, D.C. Over the course of the next several months, The Middle East Institute will be hosting a series of talks on Lebanon ...... MEI is launching the series with a presentation by Maura Connelly, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State responsible for Lebanon. Ms. Connelly, who will have recently returned from a trip to the Middle East, will examine current US policy toward Lebanon, highlighting the United States' strong bilateral relationship with the Beirut government and its efforts to support Lebanese independence and sovereignty. BIO: Maura Connelly is the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs at the U.S. State Department. In the late 1980s, Connelly served as Political Officer and Acting Head of the Political Section in Algiers. She later served as Political Section Chief at the Jerusalem consulate (1993-1996) where she won the Director's General Award for her reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Connelly has also served at the U.S. Embassy in London as the Minister Counselor for Political Affairs from 2005-2008 and Charge d'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Damascus, Syria from 2008-2009. Additional Lectures to Include: U.S. Military Assistance to Lebanon: A Discussion of the Pros and Cons Tuesday, March 30, 2010 Featuring: Aram Nerguizian, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) David Schenker, Washington Institute for Near East Policy Lebanon and Syria: The Challenge of an Evolving Relationship April 2010 Featuring: Andrew Tabler, Washington Institute for Near East Policy Mona Yacoubian, United States Institute for Peace Political and Economic Reform: The Way Forward in Lebanon May 2010 Featuring: Paul Salem, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Samir Daher, Former World Bank Economist Please RSVP online or by email to rsvp@mei.edu.