Tom Hanson, a former Foreign Service Officer of the U.S. Department of State, spoke at the September 27 Great Decisions gathering, sharing his insight on the unrest in the Middle East.
On September 27, Tom Hanson, a former Foreign Service Officer of the U.S. Department of State, spoke to approximately 30 to 35 attentive and enthusiastic people at the Cook County Community Center regarding Middle East Realignment: The Arab Upheaval and the ongoing regional sectarian conflicts in the Middle East.
Hanson discussed the situations in Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Syria and Iraq and the influences and concerns of Iran and Turkey in these conflicts. Much of the unrest is due to social and economic injustice among ethnic groups and religious sects, the disenfranchised being frustrated by lack of opportunity, inequality, greed and corruption.
Hanson discussed the roles of the United Nations, NATO and the United States in some of the conflicts, pointing out that unrest in the Middle East is about much more than the idea of democracy.
During and after the presentation he fielded a variety of questions from the audience regarding Afghanistan, Pakistan, Israel, as well as, Russia, China and the United States.
Hanson currently teaches International Relations at the University of Minnesota – Duluth and does frequent Great Decisions lectures and is associated with the Minnesota International Center.
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