News/Events

Monday, Sep 10, 2012

seminar

Michael Durkee, Officer, US Senior Foreign Service (ret.)

12:00 PM - 1:00 PM

Outside Intervention in Civil Conflicts: Experience, Challenges and Prospects

Machmer e-23

Pizza will be served

Mr. Durkee will discuss how the US and other wealthy democracies can and should respond to civil conflict and civilian suffering, particularly in Africa and the Middle East. Mr. Durkee had an active role in the Balkan conflicts of the 90's, in Afghanistan, and in Iraq. He has seen how the US, NATO, UN and the EU have tried, in various ways, to respond to such conflicts, including humanitarian assistance, COIN, nation-building and conflict containment. He will discuss the high human and economic costs to such efforts and the results which are decidedly mixed. Using Afghanistan as one example, he will discuss what lessons can be drawn and suggest how the US might respond in future in places like Syria, Somalia, and Mali.

BIOGRAPHY: Michael Durkee, a retired officer of the US Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister Counselor, served from 1995 to 2004 as the Political Advisor and senior civilian aide to four Supreme Allied Commanders Europe. In this capacity he was personally involved in all major developments in NATO enlargement, Balkan crisis management, cooperation with Central and Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean Dialogue nations, and defence against terrorism. From January 2008 until April 2009 he served as Deputy to General James Jones in the latter’s capacity as US Special Envoy for Middle East Regional Security. During 1995-97, he worked closely with General George Joulwan to implement NATO’s Partnership for Peace with former Warsaw Pact nations, develop the operational plans for IFOR in Bosnia, design the military arrangements for Russian participation in IFOR, and lay the military foundation for enlargement decisions at the 1997 Madrid Summit.

RSVP to mgoncalves@polsci.umass.edu appreciated, but not required (so we can place an appropriate food order)