CSIS Middle East Program to Expand Gulf Roundtable Initiative

June 7, 2010

WASHINGTON, June 7, 2010 – The Center for Strategic and International Studies’ (CSIS) Middle East Program is pleased to announce the expansion of its Gulf Roundtable initiative, which combines in-depth research and analysis with a monthly luncheon discussion series. The initiative is designed to highlight strategic trends, challenges, and opportunities in the Gulf region, in order to deepen Washington’s understanding at a critical juncture for U.S. diplomacy and security.

“The Gulf region is vital to global security and global economics, but remains underexplored in both the policy world and academia,” said CSIS Middle East Program Director Jon B. Alterman.   “We need to gain a deeper understanding of the region and broaden our traditional concept of Gulf security to meet future challenges and opportunities.”

A recent roundtable discussion examined the impact of Yemen’s internal crisis on the Gulf states and highlighted strategies for both the United States and Gulf allies to effectively address Yemen’s challenges. The discussion was led by Professor Bernard Haykel of Princeton University, one of the foremost experts on Yemen. Subsequent roundtables will concentrate on three core issues: security, natural resources, and economics. The Gulf Roundtable series was first launched in April 2007 and is made possible in part by the generous support of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates. 

For more information, please contact Andrew Schwartz, CSIS Vice President for External Relations, aschwartz@csis.org, (202) 775-3242.

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The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is a bipartisan, non-profit organization founded in 1962 and headquartered in Washington, D.C.  It seeks to advance global security and prosperity by providing strategic insights and practical policy solutions to decision makers.