On February 9, over 180 participants joined us for a discussion exploring the changing geopolitical dynamics shaping Israel and the Middle East with Ambassador (Ret.) Daniel Kurtzer. In light of the recent normalization of ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco, Ambassador Kurtzer discussed the history and circumstances that led to such historic regional cooperation, and about the geopolitical possibilities for the region, including in relation to the new Biden administration and its priorities in the international realm.
Daniel C. Kurtzer is the S. Daniel Abraham Professor of Middle East Policy Studies at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. During a 29-year career in the U.S. Foreign Service, Ambassador Kurtzer served as the United States Ambassador to Israel and as the United States Ambassador to Egypt. He was also a speechwriter and member of the Secretary of State George Shultz’s Policy Planning Staff; and served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs and as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intelligence and Research.
Kurtzer was a member of the “peace team” for Secretary of State James A. Baker III and Secretary of State Warren Christopher. He played an instrumental role in formulating and executing American policy, in particular helping to bring about the Madrid peace conference. Following that breakthrough, Kurtzer was named as the coordinator of the multilateral peace talks; served as the U.S. representative to the bilateral talks between Israel and the Palestinians and between Israel and Syria; chaired the U.S. delegation to the multilateral refugee negotiations.
Kurtzer is the co-author of Negotiating Arab-Israeli Peace: American Leadership in the Middle East, co-author of The Peace Puzzle: America’s Quest for Arab-Israeli Peace, 1989-2011, and editor of Pathways to Peace: America and the Arab-Israeli Conflict. After retiring from the State Department, he served as a member of Secretary of State John Kerry’s Foreign Affairs Policy Board, and as an advisor to the bipartisan Iraq Study Group. In 2007, he was named the first Commissioner of the professional Israel Baseball League.
Ambassador Kurtzer received his Ph.D. in political science from Columbia University.
Supported by the generosity of the Kaye family.