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EGYPTIAN
AMBASSADOR AND WIFE LECTURE JAX
Egypt
’s ambassador to the
U.S.
, Nabil Fahmy, and his wife each delivered an informative
lecture to WAC members and friends during their visit to
Jacksonville
, January 28-30.
At the
Cummer
Museum
on January 28, Mrs. Fahmy, a noted Egyptologist, provided to
some 200 guests detailed insight into the life and times of
Queen Nefertiti, the first queen to reign as co-equal to an
Egyptian king. The
next evening, Ambassador Fahmy addressed a capacity audience
at UNF as part of the WAC/UNF global affairs lecture series.
Ambassador
Fahmy noted that
Egypt
’s 74 million people represent 25 percent of the Arab world.
With 56 percent of Egypt’s (and the region’s)
population under 25 years old the critical challenge is the
creation of nearly 100 million jobs in the region over the
next 15 years. Nevertheless,
Egyptians regard the Arab-Israeli conflict as their most
pressing domestic issue, and Fahmy stressed that the
U.S.
must use its leverage to move all sides toward peace.
Fahmy
stressed the critical role played by
Egypt
as the present cultural and political trend-setter in the
Middle East
, as well as the cultural crucible of the Arab world.
Egyptian soldiers stood shoulder-to-shoulder with
American forces during the first Gulf War, he said, but
Egypt
had strongly advised against the American invasion of
Iraq
and declined to join its coalition.
There is now no military solution to the
Iraq
conflict, said Fahmy, but
Baghdad
must be secured and a political solution, including an
equitable sharing of revenue and control of federal security
forces, is the only way forward.
Fahmy emphasized that the
U.S.
must embrace multi-lateralism to address this issue, as well
as issues related to
Iran
, terrorism and
Israel
, if any meaningful progress is to be achieved.
Ambassador
and Mrs. Fahmy’s visit to
Jacksonville
was jointly sponsored by Water Street Capital and Dr. Diane
DeMell Jacobsen.
-Tom
Brennan
Board
of Directors
World
Affairs Council of Jacksonville
Sponsored
By: Water Street Capital
Co-Hosted With:
and
Dr. Diane
DeMell Jacobsen
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