The University of Kent’s Brussels School of International Studies will host a lecture series on “Perceptions from the Afghanistan-Pakistan Region” on Thursday 28 March 2013.
Guest Speakers:
- H.E. Mr. Munawar Saeed Bhatti, Ambassador of Pakistan to the EU, Belgium and Luxembourg
- H.E. Mr. Homayoun Tandar, Ambassador of Afghanistan to the EU, Belgium and Luxembourg
Decade old questions receive renewed and increased emphasis while more progressive and critical concerns emerge, with the scheduled 2014 drawdown of allied forces from Afghanistan and the subsequent shift of security responsibility from the international community to regional actors, including Afghanistan and Pakistan.
For Afghanistan, there is increasing concern over the timing and overall readiness, not only for sustaining forward momentum, but also for its ability to develop and maintain a monopoly on the legitimate use of force that is fundamental for the preservation of its sovereignty.
For Pakistan, the hand-off of security responsibilities coupled with the ongoing difficulties of managing its own domestic security calls into question the extent of its role and contribution to stability and the facilitation of progress in the region. Please join us in exploring such questions and concerns.
Our lecture series intends to bring together senior members of the Brussels diplomatic community, together with European institutional decision makers, researchers and postgraduate students to examine key foreign policy issues in an objective minded, academic setting.
Schedule
10:00 – 10:45 Pakistan’s Perception of its Regional Role Post 2014 – H.E. Ambassador Munawar Saeed Bhatti
10:45 – 12:00 Questions and Open Discussion
12:00 – 13:30 Break
13:30 – 14:15 Challenges to Afghan Regional Role and Influence Post 2014 – H.E. Ambassador Homayoun Tandar
14:15 – 15:00 Questions and Open Discussion
Registration is required as seating is limited. Please email Robert Zaman (rz37@kent.ac.uk) with subject line ‘Perceptions from the Afghanistan-Pakistan Region’ including both your name and organization.
Location
Brussels School of International Studies, University of Kent
Boulevard de la Plaine 5, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
3rd Floor (Room: Churchill)