We can work on governance programs. We can work on poverty. We can work on education. But if violence will remain a legitimate tool at least this is how its perceived by the majority of people in the region, then whatever progress we can aim at will, as i said, be shortlived. We are trying to include this element in our interventions. We intervened, for example, in 2012 in a region between the christians and at that time what we told them in the first place is that there is a better way to address the issue of coincidin religious dates than dealing or adopting violence to solve it. And not only we told them that violence is not going to help them and to address this issue, but we also help them to find the middle ground to celebrate both christmas during the same week while avoiding or while preventing Violent Attacks from both groups. In the aftermath of the massacre, we also explained to sunni and shia tribes that resort to go violence will not advance the judicial process and that i
Methodologies in terms of engagement. Something as simple as. Sychosocial counseling it can be powerful in affecting the sense of being able to control their own destinies. Question, and the best of circumstances trying to governance is a challenging road. You always stumble on and hit vested interests and you talk about that in your report. There is the vested interest in governance but you have also regionalerest in interest in the proxy wars that are happening and affecting and wiping out some of the investments you make whether it is in [indiscernible] how do you see the effect youn mark trying to look from the prism of the vested interest, local or regional. Is this a worthwhile investment,s this a way to counter that can you speak about that challenge . Obviously the answer is yes. Investing in iraq is a worthwhile investment. Give the right value to. Heir regional dynamics i think that they can they are already affecting a lot of what is happening. That peace believe building in
Military power in as safe away as possible in a difficult combat environment. He has experienced, not only as a pilot but also as an individual who helped coordinate unmanned aerial situations with a background as well in foreign area operations. He has a sophisticated understanding of the way in which military operations affect populations in which they take place. Vanda is the author of the aspirations of excellence when , we had an event at brookings, one of our copanelists described that in words i would concur with as the single best book on afghanistan conflict in recent years. She also wrote her first book which was a nexus of counter narcotics, counterinsurgency criminality, and the ways in , which these issues and concerns occur in places like i like afghanistan. She has done a great deal of Field Research in afghanistan and other countries. She has wrestled with the issue of Human Security and the broader issue of trends and governance in governance and operations in politics
And to explain what i had seen to win the ideological war against extremism. I firmly believe we can win. I know firsthand of the men and women serving our nation with commitment and steadfast determination to keep us safe from harm. I am honored to work with them and for them i also know the respect all president s have for all faiths. Both administrations have openly said that he this act represents the religion. My interest and involvement in the issue is not typical being involved in the h. W. Bush administration it was there in 1993 and focus on National Security and awarded of grant during the delicate and unstable time. And to understand that power of ideology and a way of life. I felt called to serve after graduate school after 9 11. Al qaeda would define my country and religion i could not sit back and watch. For more than a decade i have worked on the history of the impact of muslims. During my tenure in that conflict with isis broke out of the founders also prepared that som
[inaudible conversations] are we ready to go . Great. Welcome to todays launch of the council on Foreign Relations and the pendant Task Force Report north america time for a new focus to rid the cochairs hear Robert Zoellick of course, somebody who i think last time i interviewed you we were both in sudan. So thank you very much. Shannon oneil, director and cochair, David Petraeus i think last summer i into the jew we were in iraq. So its good to be in a slightly more tame environment. I want to get right to the question of why now, why this . Reading newspapers, the attention, the focus of this administration clearly on Foreign Policy, current prices the in the middle of these, please to the idea of a pivot to asia and effectively what youre talking about in the Task Force Report is a pivot to north america. So why . Its time for a new focus. The reason is when you come back to it, our number one and two trading partners are our two neighbors, not other countries or regions of the wor