Former U.S. Ambassador to Egypt to Speak about the U.S., Europe and the Crises in the Middle East

Frank Wisner, former U.S. ambassador to Egypt, will visit the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Tues., Sept. 17, 2013. During his visit, he will deliver remarks on “The U.S., Europe and the Crises in the Middle East” at 5:30 p.m. in the Nelson Mandela Auditorium at the FedEx Global Education Center. Following his remarks, Ambassador Wisner will participate in a roundtable discussion which will include Klaus Larres, Richard M. Krasno Distinguished Professor of History at UNC.

Ambassador Wisner’s visit to UNC is in conjunction with the Ambassadors Forum which brings to campus prominent diplomats, politicians and business leaders to deliver public lectures and conduct seminars and workshops for graduate students. Students have the opportunity to engage first-hand with international leaders and obtain insights into the practical application of their study of history, political science, European studies and international relations. The forum is organized by the Richard M. Krasno Distinguished Professorship in the Department of History, the Center for European Studies and the College of Arts and Sciences, and this event is also co-sponsored by the Carolina Center for the Study of the Middle East and Muslim Civilizations, the Curriculum in Peace, War and Defense, the Institute for the Arts and Humanities and UNC Global, as well as the Triangle Institute for Security Studies and the West Triangle Chapter of the United Nations Association of the United States of America.

Ambassador Frank G. Wisner Ambassador Wisner’s diplomatic career spans four decades. He served as ambassador to Zambia, Egypt, the Philippines and India during his extensive career in the State Department. In addition to his role as ambassador, he has served as undersecretary of defense for policy, undersecretary of state for international security affairs and senior deputy assistant secretary for African affairs. After graduating from Princeton University in 1961, Ambassador Wisner joined the State Department as a foreign service officer. His first postings were in Algiers and Vietnam before working as a senior diplomat in Tunisia and Bangladesh. He returned to Washington as director of plans and management in the Bureau of Public Affairs and then joined the President’s Interagency Task Force on Indochina, the entity responsible for evacuating and settling nearly one million refugees, and served as its deputy director. Later, as director of the Office of Southern African Affairs, he worked closely with Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to launch negotiations with Zimbabwe and Namibia. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appointed Ambassador Wisner as the U.S. special representative to the Kosovo Status Talks in 2005 where he played a crucial role in negotiating Kosovo’s independence, and he was sent to Egypt by President Barack Obama in 2011 to negotiate a resolution to the protests against the government. Ambassador Wisner served as vice chairman of external affairs for American International Group before his current role as foreign affairs advisor for Patton Boggs, where he provides clients with strategic global advice concerning business, politics and international law.

Event Contact:  Klaus Larres, Richard M. Krasno Distinguished Professor, Department of History, larres@email.unc.edu, 919.962.8079.

Media Contact: Katie Bowler Young, director of global relations, UNC Global, kbowler@unc.edu, 919.962.4504.