Understanding the Mess in the Middle East and Its Effects on the U.S.

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The United States has been the go-to nation in the Middle East for decades. But conflicts in the region have reached a fever pitch; wars there involve more nations than ever before and American influence there is now challenged not only by adversaries such as Russia and Iran but also by longtime allies such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia. Now is a time of questions: What caused this dangerous instability? Can it be reversed? Is the U.S. still in a position to be the stabilizing power there and, even if it is, can it pull it off?

Ambassador Dennis Ross has been a key player in Middle East negotiations and national security issues under four presidents — Reagan, Bush 41, Clinton and Obama — and is often asked to analyze events by major media organizations. He will talk with Vail Symposium’s Greg Dobbs, who spent much of his career as a journalist covering the Middle East, about the multiple messes in the region and give an insider’s insight into whether the US should try to keep its leadership role, what that role might be and the likely results.

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