Middle East & North Africa

This year’s Halifax International Security Forum paid respect to the 100th anniversary of the end of World War One, but in its final plenary session, Future Tense: Our World in Ten, the attention shifted to the future. How will the issues discussed throughout this year’s Forum play out over the next decade? Will democratic states be able to defend their values and institutions from growing threats like great power politics and cyber-warfare? This diverse set of panelists spoke confidently and optimistically about the resilience of democracies to withstand this challenge.

The U.S. is "a long way" from taking any "punitive action" against Saudi Arabia over the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi any time soon, a former ambassador said Monday.

"For President Trump, it is a difficult balancing act," Nicholas Burns, who served under Republican and Democratic administrations as ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Greece, said on CNBC's "Squawk Alley."

"He doesn't want to end the relationship with Saudi Arabia," he added. "But on the other hand, you have American values to uphold."

Prominent journalist and critic of the Saudi government, Jamal Khashoggi, walked into the country’s consulate in Istanbul last week to obtain some documents and has not been seen since. The authorities in Istanbul believe he was murdered by Saudi agents. Saudi Arabia insists that he left the consulate shortly after he arrived. Former diplomat and US Under-Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Nicholas Burns, told BBC Hardtalk's Stephen Sackur that because Mr Khashoggi was a permanent resident of the United States there was a direct interest of the US government to pressure the Saudi government to “tell the truth of what happened.”

Texas Congressman Joaquin Castro joined Harvard Kennedy School Professor Nicholas Burns in a discussion concerning the role Congress should play in foreign policy in the era of President Trump. Castro discussed his upbringing and the civic conscious he gained at a young age alongside his twin brother Julian Castro, which encouraged him to eventually pursue a career in public service. The conversation covered a wide range of foreign affairs topics including immigration, trade, and terrorism. Castro took questions from the audience and voiced his concerns about a variety of global developments and threats and his believe that Congress should take a more active role in these issues.  

Nicholas Burns' interview op-ed with NowThis news: Trump is only making Iran stronger.

Cathryn Cluver Ashbrook, Executive Director of the Future of Diplomacy Project, discusses the importance of the final wording of the G-20 communique, particularly with respect to the climate change and energy policy dossiers, noting different approaches to achieve transatlantic compromise. She underlines the importance of high-level meetings such as the G-20 to address critical global challenges, including multilateral responses to North Korea’s provocations and the ongoing conflict in Syria.

For the first time during the Syrian civil war, the US has shot down a Syrian aircraft. In response, Russia has threatened to target any aircraft, including US aircraft, that fly west of the Euphrates River.

Moderator Professor Nicholas Burns was joined by panelists David French, Juliette Kayyem, Gil Kerlikowske, and Moshik Temkin to discuss the ramifications of President Trump’s executive order on immigration. The panelists discussed a wide range of issues relating to border security, constitutional law, and refugee and anti-terrorism efforts under the Trump administration. The panelists also discussed the future of immigration law under the new administration, focusing on the new slate of advisors and cabinet members in the White House and how immigration and refugee law will change moving forward.