A day and a half of generally excellent speakers was nearly derailed (at least for me) by the concluding luncheon. [Not the food... that, provided by the International Trade Center caterers was actually a notch above the usual conference fare.] Over six sessions, serious academics, businessmen, and current and former policy makers, discussed serious issues. They all had a grasp of the immediate situation in the Gulf and Iraq. They all demonstrably understood the political dynamics at play, both in the US and in the region. From discussions of the likelihood of women’s ability to vote in future Saudi elections to reform of textbooks and curricula suspect of creating extremists, to the future of the GCC’s “Peninsula Shield” defense force, the conference was very worthwhile. The final hurdle, though, was missed…

The notional keynote speaker was Nasser bin Hamad bin Mubarak Al-Khalifa, Ambassador of Qatar to the US and Mexico. He really didn’t have much to say, though he did provide a few instances of pro-forma insult-tossing against Saudi Arabia. This is pretty normal for Qatari diplomats, unfortunately, where they try to provide humor instead of illumination.

Al-Khalifa was followed by Lt. Gen. (Ret.) David Bambo, currently of the National Defense University, who seemed to misgauge his audience. His address was light on substance, unfortunately. I was reminded of speeches given by military officers to local Chambers of Commerce or Rotary Clubs, where no one will challenge or interrupt the speaker out of deference to his position. Lots of platitudes and broad generalities; no real information. I’m sure he’ll do better next time.

What really tarnished the program for me, though, was the de facto keynote speaker, former Amb. W. Charles (Chas) Freeman. Freeman seems to have slipped into “Bush Derangement Syndrome”. From the dais, he essentially stated the Bush Administration had singlehandedly undone years of progress in the Middle East. Rather than discuss mistakes that had been made—and there assuredly have been many serious ones—he appeared satisfied to impute dishonorable motives to Bush and his Cabinet. I don’t actually recall all that much progress in the region over the past quarter century, particularly when it comes to the promotion of representative governments, transparency, rule of law, independent judiciary, reduction of extremism, or peace. For some in the audience, mostly Arabs of various backgrounds, this was “red meat to the lions”. Perhaps he felt it necessary to “fire up the base” on the eve of American elections. Perhaps he truly believes it. This, though, is the kind of uncritical pandering to all causes Arab that served to marginalize former Amb. Richard Curtiss, his “American Educational Trust”, and its Washington Report on Middle East Affairs with its overtones of Antisemitism. And this is a great pity, because Freeman once knew better as he ably represented the US during Desert Shield/Desert Storm in Riyadh.

I’m disappointed, too, that Dr. Anthony, host of the conference, felt the need to offer his support in the manner he did. He opened the question period with his own inflammatory remark: “In 1948, the United States had no enemies in the Middle East” and now it has many. I am hard-pressed to figure out what friends in the Middle East the US had in 1948. The Bey of Tunis? King Farouq? The French in Algeria? Perhaps the Trucial States under the dominion of the United Kingdom? Anthony is usually better than this. I hope he can return to a more serious critique in the future.

I think it sad that the conference slipped up at the last possible moment. I’ve attended the annual event over the past three years. Last year, I feared for its continuation as the speakers were of widely and wildly varying quality. This year, though, the program pulled itself together into something very much worthwhile. Solid, serious discussions of serious issues were the norm, with the speakers knowledgeable about both the subject matter and its import to the US, the Arab world, the global community. On that basis, it should continue into its 16th, 17th, and future years.

I heard from several attendees that this year’s success was, in large part, due to the generosity of the Saudi Embassy and Pr. Turki, who took over the funding for the entire program but stayed away from the programming. The Saudi government, as part of its efforts for the US-Saudi Strategic Dialogue, is spending a lot of money and using a lot of the Ambassador’s time in public outreach. The NCUSAR program was certainly a worthy effort. In spite of the last act at this year’s conference, I look forward to next year’s.