‘Rebuilding Iraq: Progress or Quagmire’ panel set Nov. 19

1:42 p.m., Nov. 11, 2003--Students will hear three perspectives on the Iraq occupation when an Army colonel, an award-winning journalist and a U.S. ambassador speak on campus Wednesday, Nov. 19. The speakers are all recently back from Iraq.

“Beyond Shock & Awe—Rebuilding Iraq: Progress or Quagmire?” will feature U.S. Army Col. John Martin, Washington Post reporter Robin Wright and diplomat Robin Raphel discussing the continuing attacks on American forces and their supporters, the U.S. military operation in Iraq and American efforts to restructure the Iraqi economy and political system.

The speakers, who will discuss the issues and answer questions, all worked in Iraq since the U.S. invasion last spring.

Wright covers international affairs for The Washington Post, after more than a decade with the Los Angeles Times. She has reported from more than 130 countries and has traveled with officials from six U.S. administrations. Her foreign tours include five years in the Middle East, two in Europe, seven in Africa and several as a roving correspondent in those areas, Latin America and Asia. She recently returned from Iraq.

Martin served in Afghanistan in 2002 and worked with the U.S. Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance and the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq. He is a graduate of West Point, the Naval War College and the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School, and he holds a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School.

Raphel, a career U.S. foreign service officer, worked in Baghdad as a member of the Iraq Reconstruction Team during the U.S. occupation. In addition to English, Raphel, senior vice president at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C, speaks Urdu, the official literary language of Pakistan.

The panel will be presented twice. A daytime presentation is for students at 2:30 p.m. in Perkins Student Center. An evening presentation at 7 p.m. in Mitchell Hall is open to students, the UD community and the public.

Both sessions are free. No reservations or tickets are required.

Part of UD’s Global Community and Global Agenda programs, this event is being held as part of International Education Week.

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