Reflections on the region and visions for tomorrow

I was asked to write a report on the conference's opening panel, entitled "Reflections on the region and visions for tomorrow." My report is pasted below, in case anyone is interested.

Meanwhile, there are such conflicting interpretations of the flotilla incident in Gaza. The Arabs insist that the boats were filled with peacekeepers intent on delivering food and aid to the people of Gaza. The Israelis insist that a small, lighly armed Israeli commando team boarded one of the vessels and were beaten with iron bars, at which point they had no choice but to open fire. Not sure what the truth is, but I know it's very bad for Israel and the peace process in general. Sigh...

ENRICHING THE MIDDLE EAST’S ECONOMIC FUTURE V CONFERENCE

OPENING PANEL – REFLECTIONS ON THE REGION AND VISIONS FOR TOMORROW

MAY 31, 2010

Participants: Steven L. Spiegel (Opening Remarks), Steve Clemons (Moderator), H.E. Mohammed Bin Abdullah Al Rumaihi, Former President of Lebanon Amin Gemayel, Former PM of the Netherlands Wim Kok, Former US Senator Mel Martinez, Amb. (Ret) Daniel Kurtzer, Bisher H. Al Khasawneh, Congressman Brian Baird.

Summary: The panel was asked to address their recommendations for moving the economic future of the Middle East forward. Most of the panelists felt compelled to comment on the situation that took place today on the flotillas in the Gaza strip. But the overarching theme of the evening was that the peace process should not be derailed by the tragic events of any given day, including today. Steve Spiegel, citing Obama’s campaign slogan of “Yes we can,” challenged conference participants to figure out “how we can” (enrich the economic future of the Middle East). Spiegel suggested that we need concrete recommendations for moving the region forward economically, politically and developmentally, since it is now, more than ever, fundamentally interconnected to and interdependent with the global community. The group mostly agreed that they want peace and they want it now, and that the world must work together to make this happen if the Middle East economy is to grow to its fullest potential.

Clemons asked all panelists to spend five minutes addressing the question of “how we can” that Spiegel posed. Senator Martinez began by saying that as the world recovers from the economic crisis, that he is optimistic about the Middle East, particularly because of the efforts of Senator George Mitchell on the Israeli/Palestinian crisis, and reiterated that Mitchell’s bottom up (civil society, rule of law) and top down (political process) approach cannot be derailed. President Gemayel said that it is very difficult to discuss development without addressing the injustices and violence of the day, because stability in the ME region must be based on equality and justice. Wim Kok said that the U.S and Europe have more in common with the Middle East than we sometimes think, and that it should be our central focus to figure out how we can work together on issues such as economic growth, governance, climate change, sustainability, regional, national and international security. Amb. Al-Khasawneh said that the question of “how we can” is inextricably linked to the need for sustainable peace and that without a two-state solution in Israel/Palestine, we cannot successfully move forward in growing and diversifying the Middle East’s economic future. Congressman Baird emphasized the need to create opportunities for the young men and women in the Middle East, particularly in Gaza, via education and science exchange programs and indicated that there is a shift away from simply making money and towards public service, such as the desire to become educators. Amb. Kurtzer summarized four cluster areas of how we can build the Middle East’s economic future: 1. The need for peace: we are all frustrated by the lack of peace and we need to send strong messages to our leaders that we have had enough of the conflict and that peace must be established now; 2. Institution building: we need to build institutions that will help us solve the dilemmas of the 21st century in the same way we did after the second world war (the GCC and the Arab League are examples but they need to go further to address our global interdependence); 3. Rethinking aid and development assistance: instead of using old paradigms that presume an absence of capital, we now need to focus on building infrastructures (scientific and technology transfer, education, managerial training, sustainable investment) that will create jobs; and 4. Focus on Arab based recommendations: if the Arab world determines that the recommendations defined in the five Arab Human Development reports are worth doing, then the global community needs to start making those recommendations a reality. Finally, Mohammed Al Rumaihi claimed that there is too much government involved in Middle East business affairs and that the role of the governance should be reduced.

Concluding remarks:

Gemayel underscored the importance for the Arab world to have a mechanism for moving forward economically. Kok suggested that while the G20 may have some imperfections, particularly that some of the countries are not yet anchored in global institutions, it is nonetheless the best we have and a significant step forward and we should use it to the best of our ability. Martinez, Baird and Kurtzer agreed that it is important for the U.S. to gain the world’s trust back regarding its financial reliability. Baird also claimed that the U.S. is going to need the help of the global community to grow its own economy. Nonetheless, as Kurtzer pointed out, the U.S. has two arenas where they can still be proud: social change and innovation (i.e., the ipad).

Bullet Point Summary
• The peace process must not be derailed
• We should all send strong messages to our leaders that we want peace now
• ME regional development must be addressed in conjunction with issues of equality and justice
• The young men and women in the region need educational and science exchange opportunities
• The ME countries should work together with partners in Europe, the U.S. and Asia
• Need new global institutions to address the challenges of the 21st century
• Development and foreign aid should focus on ME infrastructures that will create jobs via education, science and technology transfer, managerial training and sustainable investments
• The ME needs less government involvement in business
• The global community needs to work within the framework of international law
• The U.S. is still the best hope for establishing peace in the Middle East

Recommendations for next year’s conference:
• Amb Kurtzer suggested that before conference participants are invited back, the conference hosts should ask them what they have done in their own societies to advance any part of this agenda?
• Gemayel suggested that an item on next year’s agenda could be the question of how to establish economic integration between countries such as Syria, Iraq, Libya and Palestine.