Event Details

Date: Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Time: 12:15 PM-2:00 PM
Location: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

1779 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20036
Speakers: Robert Danin, Oussama Kanaan, Firas Raad, Marwan Muasher
 

This event is co-sponsored by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
 

The Palestinian economy made significant advances in recent years under Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s institution building program, yet questions remain regarding the sustainability of such progress in light of the ongoing, and seemingly long-lasting, diplomatic stalemate with Israel.

Council on Foreign Relations' Robert Danin, the International Monetary Fund's Oussama Kanaan, and Firas Raad, acting head of mission of the Office of the Quartet Representative Tony Blair, will examine the current status of the Palestinian economy and future prospects, the political impact of the Palestinian Authority’s financial situation, and the peace process. Carnegie's Marwan Muasher will moderate.

Speakers

Robert Danin is the Eni Enrico Mattei Senior Fellow for Middle East and Africa studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. He headed the Jerusalem mission of the Quartet Representative Tony Blair from April 2008 until August 2010. Danin previously served as deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs with responsibilities for Israeli-Palestinian issues and Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt. He also served on the National Security Council.

Oussama Kanaan is the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) mission chief for the West Bank and Gaza, and for Syria. He was previously the IMF’s resident representative in Jerusalem. He worked on several regions, including former Soviet Union countries and East Africa, and served with the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs and Policy and Development Review departments. He was also the alternate executive director at the IMF for the chair, representing several Arab countries.

Firas Raad is the acting head of mission of the Office of the Quartet Representative (OQR) to the Middle East Peace Process Tony Blair. As acting head of mission, Raad works closely with the Quartet Representative on all aspects of his development agenda to support the Palestinian Authority. Prior to the OQR, he was human development coordinator and senior health policy specialist at the World Bank with wide-ranging experience in human development reforms in the Middle East and North Africa; and in South Asia.

Moderator

Marwan Muasher is vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment, where he oversees the Endowment’s research in Washington and Beirut on the Middle East. Muasher served as foreign minister (2002–2004) and deputy prime minister (2004–2005) of Jordan. Previously, Muasher opened Jordan’s first embassy in Israel, later becoming minister of information. From 1997 to 2002, he served in Washington as ambassador. He then returned to Jordan to serve as foreign minister, where he played a central role in developing the Arab Peace Initiative and the Middle East Road Map.