Zalmay Khalilzad, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, will give a free public lecture at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Jan. 30.
The 5:30 p.m. talk at the Kenan-Flagler Business School’s Koury Auditorium is the annual Weatherspoon Lecture and kicks off the spring season of the Dean’s Speaker Series. Free parking will be available in the business school parking deck.
Khalilzad served as the 26th U.S. ambassador to the United Nations from 2007-2009 where he dealt with extraordinary global issues during one of the most challenging periods in U.S. history, including the recent Russia-Georgia conflict and the Mumbai terror attacks. He is the highest-ranking Muslim in federal government in U.S. history.
Previously, he served as U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan and U.S. ambassador to Iraq, where he played a significant role in facilitating both countries’ constitutions, elections and formation of government. In Iraq, he was instrumental in getting the Sunni Arabs to participate in the political process and move away from al-Qaida.
After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, President Bush came to rely on Khalilzad's regional expertise. Khalilzad was involved in the early stages of planning to overthrow the Taliban, and, on Dec. 31, 2001, was selected as Bush's special presidential envoy to Afghanistan. He served in that position until Nov. 2003, when he was appointed U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan. He oversaw the drafting of Afghanistan's constitution and was involved with the country's first elections.
The Weatherspoon Lecture was created with a generous gift from longtime UNC Chapel-Hill and UNC Kenan-Flagler supporters Van and Kay Weatherspoon. The series provides lectures by outstanding visiting scholars and world leaders from the fields of politics, education, business and government. The purpose of these lectures is to enrich the professional lives of members of the UNC Kenan-Flagler community and provoke interesting discussion and debate.
Previous Weatherspoon Lecture speakers have included David Brooks, noted author and columnist for The New York Times; Vicente Fox, former president of Mexico; Cherie Blair, noted human rights lawyer and wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair; Steve Forbes, president and chief executive officer of Forbes Inc. and editor-in-chief of Forbes magazine; Joe Klein, columnist at Time magazine and author of "Primary Colors"; and Bob Woodward, assistant managing editor of The Washington Post.
To R.S.V.P. to the lecture or for questions, call (919) 843-7787 or e-mail .
Contact: Heather Harreld at 919.962.8951 or .