World
Leaders Open International Conference on Energy Issues
and the Middle East in Qatar
Date: January 29, 2006
Contact: Nancy Ozeas ( nozeas@support.ucla.edu )
Phone: 310-794-8903
Doha, Qatar — World leaders today opened the
international conference, "The Power of Prosperity: An
Opportunity for Growth, Development, and Reform in the
Middle East" in Doha, Qatar. The conference,
co-sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar
and the UCLA Ronald W. Burkle Center for International
Relations, will focus on key economic issues in the
region, including energy security, Asia's emerging role
in the petroleum market and the Middle East's impact on
the global marketplace.
"The economic and regional stability of the Middle East
is of vital importance to the entire world community,
and as events in this region are rapidly progressing, it
is important that leaders from around the world join
together in a dialogue focused on tackling challenges
and employing solutions," said President Bill Clinton.
President Bill Clinton, who will speak at the conference
Monday morning, and His Excellency Sheikh Hamad Bin
Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani, first deputy prime minister
and foreign minister, are among the high-ranking
international leaders from the United States, Europe,
Asia and the Middle East attending and speaking at the
three-day conference.
"The government of Qatar is pleased to host this group
of international leaders to discuss critical issues of
importance to us all," said His Excellency Sheikh Hamad
Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani, first deputy prime
minister and foreign minister of the state of Qatar.
"Enriching the Middle East's Economic Future' will
explore the ways that the region can better utilize
rising oil revenues. Economic progress can lead to
social and political benefits, the advancement of
democratization, and to a lessening of conflict and
hostility region-wide," said Steven L. Spiegel, UCLA
political scientist and conference chair for the Burkle
Center.
The Conferences Organizing Committee at the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs organizes the following conferences
annually: "The U.S. Muslim World Forum," "A Dialogue
Between Religions," "Democracy, Development and Free
Trade" and "NATO and Security in the Gulf."
The Ronald W. Burkle Center for International Relations
is an integral part of the UCLA International Institute,
which provides the highest quality policy analysis on
the most pressing problems on the global geopolitical
landscape that affect American foreign policy. The
center's work includes research, teaching, and public
outreach and service on the contemporary world and the
role of the United States in global security, military,
political, social and economic affairs. For more
information on the Burkle Center for International
Relations and the conference visit our Web site at
http://www.international.ucla.edu/bcir/doha/.
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