Energy from the United Arab Emirates to the United Kingdom

Or was it the United Kingdom to the United Arab Emirates? Within the palace walls in Abu Dhabi hangs a picture of the first oil deal made in the Middle East. This was long before Saudi Arabia was even a country. The UAE was merely a territory too, not a country, owned by the Brits. The photograph captures a well-dressed English man pointing to a paper, where a shepherd wearing a headdress is signing. There are sheep in the background witnessing the event. The current Emir of Dubai pointed to the shepherd and tells his guests, "that is my great grandfather." The English man pictured was from British Petroleum.

103 years later, Dubai hosted the World Energy Forum in 2012, the same year London hosted the Summer Olympics at the ExCel Convention Center. The ExCel Center was built by the Emir of Dubai and is the largest convention center in London. The ExCel owners attended the Energy Forum in Dubai last year and begged World Energy Forum to come to England. World Energy Forum is pleased to announce that World Energy Forum 2014 will be held in London, United Kingdom, addressed by His Highness Prince Charles, Crown Prince of the United Kingdom. Sometimes commercial incentives transcend political discord. Sometimes age-old partnerships revitalize hundreds of years later, and we stand back and witness nations unite once again.

China's Hidden Heroes

Who knew that China's current President, Xi Jinping, was arrested 30 years ago? Last night I went to dinner at the Capital Grille with the man who rescued him from prison, along with 8 people from his company. He breezed over the statement as if it was no big deal. I stopped him,"Wait, you rescued China's President? How?" The story follows: My new friend, at the age of 22, received a Visa under the Reagan Administration to be courted in China. He joined a group of about a dozen youth for the ride. Upon his arrival, he discovered that his host, Xi Jinping, had been arrested by a local sherif. He proceeded to tell the U.S. Ambassador to China about the situation. "Well I guess you'll have to get him out of jail. You can figure it out. Be creative," said the Ambassador. He managed to round up 50 marines dressed in blue and white, fully armed, to follow him to the jail. Upon arrival, John told the jailer, "Look here's the deal. I'm over here on an American Visa and you have my host locked away. So come on, just let him out. If you don't, behind me there are 50 marines." Xi Jinping was released immediately. 

Later that evening, my new friend "adopted" and offered to help my company. "If anyone treats you poorly, I'm going to send the FBI (he pointed across the table) and the mafia (pointed to another man) to go after them." Oh, the strength of America's commercial soldiers. :) Today, my boss and I talked about the Christian concept of consecration over lunch. In a dominantly quid pro quo world, I am most grateful for people like my new friend who are so generous with their time, resources, and kindness. 

Rockettes with the Ukrainians

Tamara Struk with the Ukrainian Ambassador's wife & mother

 LDS Area 70 Jeff Olsen and the Ukraine UN Ambassador Yuriy Sergeyev

Some countries have a certain delicacy to them. Ukraine is one of them. Ukrainians apparently are the most sought after women on online marriage purchasing sites. They have very striking features and a calming effect, as their flag suggests. Last Friday was my third interaction with the Ukrainian Ambassador. Yet this Eastern European country seems to speak more by what is not said than by what is said.

Mr. and Mrs. Sergeyev met in college and knew they would get married 5 days after their first meeting. They have been married for 35 years. We joined the couple for dinner, hosted by the LDS Church, at Ruth's Chris Steak House. Dinner was followed by the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular. I have officially resolved

 to audition for the New York Rockettes after seeing their stunning performance, just for the heck of it. :)

New York Rockettes

Tamara and I at Radio City Music Hall

Liszt, anyone?

I'm going to stray from politics for a minute and talk about a piece from the famous Hungarian composer Franz Liszt. There are few things more challenging, and rewarding, than learning arguably the most difficult piano solo on the planet. I work with and depend so much on people at work all day, that it is quite refreshing to rehearse a talent that depends 100% on me. No one else can make me sound good. Perfection is not an option on the piano, it's a necessity. I think there's great wisdom to teaching a child a musical instrument: only perfection is acceptable (and tolerable). "Be ye therefore perfect," as the scripture says. I do marathon training about three times per week. Running is SO basic compared to Liszt. No single strategy works: I am constantly trying different methods each time I rehearse. My mentality and approach change all the time. The only constant is practice. The great thing about the piano is that practice really does make perfect. Or, as my friend says, "perfect practice makes perfect."

                  

United Nations meets Harvard Professor Christensen

In truly one of the most delightful evenings of my life, I had the pleasure of joining the Sri Lankan and former Iraqi UN Ambassadors for a banquet with Harvard Business School Professor Clayton Christensen. Dr. Christensen received a M.Phil at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar and was a mentor of mine during my Rhodes candidacy at Hopkins. Ambassador Kohona was also a Rhodes candidate in college. We were honored to join the good professor at the table for this occasion. Clayton gave an astounding keynote presentation about religion, business, and domestic and international politics. He discussed how the LDS faith is one that never stops asking questions.

 One Marxist Economist Clay knew who had come to America on a Fulbright once mentioned, "I never knew how critical religion was to the establishment of democracy. You probably don't see it because you're right in the middle of it." Clayton said that most Americans voluntarily choose to obey the laws. The reason why democracy works is because people of faith believe that if the police don't catch him, God will catch him. Around the world, when Americans try to install democracy, if they don't have this fundamental belief, it doesn't work very well. Democracy exists best in countries that are accompanied by some form of religion. At least the theism religions have institutions where they voluntarily try to teach next generations to obey the laws. If we take theistic religions & stick them in the back seat, what remains in our government is the religion of atheism. What are atheist institutions that try to teach citizens to voluntarily obey the law? That's the big question: would we like to have our country linked to theism or atheism? What are the atheist institutions that try to teach to uphold the law? The Fulbright scholar couldn't answer the question. Too often, he stated, countries try to separate church and state, when they really function best together.

Clayton also had the opportunity to be a White House Fellow in the early years of the Reagan Administration. One day he had lunch with Richard Nixon, for about 4 hours, 10 years after the Watergate Problems that took him out of office. They decided not to talk to him about that, but rather about the decision to have a diplomatic relationship with China. "Now those of you who have grey hair may remember that that decision was really sleeping with the enemy." To open that relationship with China was a very unexpected event. So he asked Nixon why he had done that. Nixon answered that he had studied our history of foreign affairs and it seemed to him that whenever a despot took charge of a nation, when they tried to topple a despot by isolating them, it always strengthened the dictator. It enabled them to control what their people heard, it enabled them to blame Americans for the problem the mismanagement created, and ultimately strengthened the dictator. He noted that whenever we open up relationships with a country, first diplomatic interaction, then educational and cultural, and ultimately economic interaction, always the despot crumbles and went away. "I realized we had to eliminate Mao as an enemy." Then over the next 20 years, what had been a horrible enemy to us has became a close friend. Nobody had to be killed by doing this. Now you look around and where we continually try to isolate despots, as in North Korea and Cuba and Iran, each time the dictator has become stronger and stronger. The question we should ask that we don't is that shouldn't we always do what Jesus taught? To love our enemies and do good to people who despitefully use us? Does the Savior's teachings apply not just to individuals, but to nations? I think that's the question that would give us a good answer. 

Ambassador Al-Bayati from Iraq asked a question which warranted a round of applause from the audience. Only once in my life have I seen this, and it was at the United Nations. Ambassador Al-Bayati stated that he was born into a Muslim family, but attended a Christian school since the age of 4. He has been to Salt Lake City, has had lunch with two LDS apostles, and has lectured at University of Utah. He said he has read all the holy books and that all of them say that we are descendants from two parents: Adam and Eve. His question was, "If we are one big family, brothers and sisters as you say in your church, why is it that so many wars have been fought in the name of religion? Shouldn't we all get along if we are one big family?" Dr. Christensen smiled and responded that it is largely because religious people are actually not living their own religions fully, or there is a complete absence of religion. He said that there is one civilization in the ancient Americas that fully lived up to their religious beliefs for 300 years. However, there are only 6 verses in the Book of Mormon that talk about how they did that. He said that when he meets God face to face after he dies, God will ask him a bunch of questions but he will sit down and say, "I have one question for you first!" He would ask God how they managed to live righteously for such a long period of time. Clayton Christensen received a standing ovation after his remarkable presentation.

Professor Clayton Christensen with Ambassador Kohona from Sri Lanka and Ambassador Al-Bayati from Iraq.
"We are just sad we didn't get you at Harvard." -Anne Christensen to Hamid Al-Bayati

Dinner at the Sri Lankan Ambassador's

View from the Ambassador's Residence

One of my closest friends in UN circles is the Sri Lankan UN Ambassador, Palitha Kohona. Last Friday he invited a few friends and I over for dinner. Palitha, Chair of the UN's Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices, added his two cents to the Norwegian Ambassador's proposal from the prior evening. "The big problem with that proposal is that the West Bank was allocated largely as a Palestinian Territory at one point. However, since then, Israeli occupation has increased to around 1.3 million in the West Bank." Israeli jurisdiction and regional council extends to about 42 percent, according to the Israeli NGO B'Tselem. "It would be next to impossible to ask the Jews to leave. Best to integrate them into the West Bank." More and more, I'm learning the value of meticulous attention to detail when international deals are concerned. One provision, or the lack thereof, can make or break an entire deal.

I discovered that the fans behind me are a symbol of royalty, whereas the crossed spears are a sign of strength.

New York Politics as usual

I love being around New York politics. It's like all my senses come alive and I learn something new every time I just stand still and listen (which is usually a difficult exercise for me). There is little science to opinion. Opinions can be as broad and as varied as the sea. They are subject to change on a daily or hourly basis. It's not something you can stick in an incubator and analyze as an experiment: a known process for me given my science background. Tonight I chatted with the man who ran Clinton's Campaign and I've chatted at length with the Attorney General twice this month. Politics is my comfort zone: my endlessly intriguing comfort zone. International relations is so vast it can be unmanageable at times. Politics is something I can put my arms around. It's my more manageable passion.

De Blasio actually can't raise New York taxes as Mayor. That is a state responsibility. However, not all banks know that and the result might be dire, especially if Albany sides with the Mayor. The biggest problem with taxing the rich to help the poor is that Wall Street corporations might relocate, the same way the BRICS countries are discussing creating a new World Bank abroad due to their frustrations with U.S. monetary policies. "One of the worst things that ever happened to California is that Bank of America picked up and moved to North Carolina. It bankrupted the state." Schneiderman's bank proposal, which could supposedly be the biggest deal in U.S. history, is less threatening because it's an opt-in policy for the banks. Taxes are not. Moderation in all things, New York. Apparently there's more to conservative wisdom than meets the eye...

Saudi & Iraqi Ambassadorial Embrace

Today I saw the cute Saudi Arabian & former Iraqi UN Ambassadors embrace each other & chat in Arabic with huge smiles & great enthusiasm. The cute little Saudi Ambassador then approached me & said, "yes of course I remember you. Come visit sometime!" Sometimes it's the little things in life that brighten your day. 

Trump World Tower

After a few final stories from the Ambassador, I left feeling like somehow I am inheriting the problems of existing generations. My thoughts immediately turned to Washington and the realization that Presidents probably feel like this all the time. How can one excuse an Under-Secretary General who takes 2 years to respond to an Ambassador, who was caught sleeping on the job according to Iraqi Ambassador Hamid Al-Bayati. Yet somehow these high-ranking officials are making about $50,000 per month. I dig my heels in the ground, hoping our generation can do better and avoid the pitfalls of negligence when in positions of authority. How can so much money be spent without a dime reaching the constituents (even internally within the United Nations)? 

Chairman Oh with Vice President Ambassador Hamid Al-Bayati

I was reassured, however, to note that the infant mortality rate in the Philippines has dropped 50% since the MDGs came out. Even though the goal-setters have their own issues, at least some countries are picking up the slack of the goal-setting entity that is occasionally found hitting the snooze button. As the saying goes, "that which gets measured gets improved." -Robin S. Sharma. "

Philippine UN Ambassador Robert Romulo 

"We have sometimes felt like abandoned orphans in the Philippines. However, the U.S. Marines have arrived & we hope this will change attitudes in many of our alliances. We welcome the U.S.'s support, alongside with the 16 other counties that have been supplying aid. Let us hope that we can get over this tragedy & move forward." -Philippine UN Ambassador Roberto Romulo.

Norwegian UN Ambassador Discussion

They couldn't have chosen a more gorgeous building for tonight's Global Leaders Lecture.

Who knew that the Norwegian Ambassador knew so much about Israeli, Iranian, and Syrian politics? H.E. Geir O. Pedersen, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Norway to the United Nations, gave a remarkably in-depth overview of the three hot spots in the Middle East. Please excuse any typos or brevity from these notes.

"Obama was not prepared for Camp David negotiations. Summer of 2000. The negotiation was basically that 25-50,000 first generation Palestinians in Lebanon would be placed in the northern part of Israel.

I absolutely believe that the two parties, if left to themselves, will fail. Usually if you take the side of the pessimist, you will be proven right. So if I say we are nearing a peace agreement, I would look stupid. 

We could be moving more towards another Camp David failure. Americans will have to come up like in 2000 with a proposal like Clinton did. Israel should annex Area C. If there is an agreement, it will be a referendum. You will need a 2-state solution for a Jewish democracy. The current leader has the intellectual capacity to arrive at a solution. But I fear it will become another crusade: it will exist for about 100 years & then go up for dispute. What will an agreement look like? The refugees will have to accept that there is no right to return. Bigger issue is Jerusalem. If we don't reach an agreement, it will be because of Jerusalem. Holy land: incredibly difficult. 'If Jerusalem is not part of the deal, the Arabs will not consider it a solution.' I agree. 'Coexistence is you're stuck together. 2-state system is the only solution, but what is negotiable is quality. As long as we ignore the fundamentals, we won't be solving the underlying issue.' *****There is never such a time as a perfect situation for a solution.**** A lot of Israelis are nervous because of what's going on in Iran. Big notion that Muslim brotherhood has weakened, ***but there's never a better time for an Arab breakthrough than this time. 'Iran's nuclear system has brought countries together.' If there is a deal that Israel doesn't see as a requirement, it will definitely complicate the situation. If we don't come to an agreement on the Iranian fight, we likely won't see a deal. I'm not talking about a matter of months, but a matter of weeks. Whatever you do, you need a deal that you can  verify . Sanctions have been working. Are the Iranians serious? Only a negotiation will tell. They are extremely skilled negotiators. You need a deep knowledge of the situation, but you need a good confidence in yourself, & if the US can do it, we'll see. 'facilities that produce petroleum.' Do you accept a 3% enrichment or do you not. 'Iranians brought this upon themselves.' Absolutely. Issue of trust..  Watching Iranians do what they have done for so long... Iranians cannot develop the bomb. They don't have the capacity to do it. Major reluctance from Saudi & Israeli side to negotiate. Error. Either you have a bomb, or negotiation situation. You either negotiate or end up with a war. Only a matter of months. Is it urgent to sit down and negotiate? Absolutely. Trust with Israelis: do Americans have the capacity to deliver what they say they will. Is there a possibility that the Iranians will play games? There's always that risk. Why negotiations are critical. Will the Iranians follow through? If I knew that I would win a Nobel Peace Prize. I think you should test them.

'Let's go to the easier question of Syria. 300,000 injured. It is a disaster.' I met Assad in 2011, & I've never met such an arrogant leader. It was a good thing to get rid of his other leaders in the gulf leader. He was well liked, & he rode on that. Regime was based on a coalition of minorities that perhaps at the time was supported by most of the people. We don't know. Even the people didn't believe the stories. They thought it was American propaganda coming out. Minorities were basically siting on the fence. They didn't want to go out & make a mistake. Qataris supporting the different groups, weakening of the seculars, but a strengthening of Alqaida. Don't want to sit in Geneva to negotiations. Why did they do that? The Americans said if you don't, you can forget any sort of support. Ban Ki-Moon is considering going to Geneva in November. Who will show up? My feeling is that if it happens, it may not do anything. If the Americans don't sit down with Saudis, Turkish, & force a compromise. If not, we'll end up with Alkaida & the terrorists. The window we have for doing this is only a few months. Otherwise we'll be there for 10-15 years. Too late to go for a situation where Assad will be at the table. Hardly any more brutal leaders than Assad. He's too strong. Then you'll have to deal with the devil. 'Do you think the Americans did well?' How long do we have? Even off the record, I won't describe... 'US has to play much larger role.' Yeah. 'Shouldn't you strengthen the rebels?' If I were an American diplomat, that would have been my position. Very few good guys. But the ones we want to see strengthened, they do not get the support. 'Russians want to stay there & they have a great deal to loose if another government shows up.' I think we're very close that that narrative will be proven right. Iranians position in Syria is much weaker than in March 2011. Polar position in Lebanon has weakened Iranian politics. Want to sacrifice Assad. My position is that no shot of success in Geneva if Iranians are not on board, same with the Saudis.

Question from the audience: "I really questioned how you seemed to blame Israel for everything. Then I said, oh yeah he's from Norway." Your observation is correct. It's about Israel's right to exist from the American narrative, whereas to Palestinians it's that Israel should give up the West Bank. Territory: Israel will have to give 98% of West Bank & Jerusalem: Jewish villages & slums will go to Israel, & Palestinian will go to P. Big question is holy places & Temple of Amman. Let me be careful, but my position is that Natinyaho is not informed & was surprised. Americans really heavily leaned on him. 550,000 Israelis currently living in West Bank. Every Israeli Prime Minister has continued this. Not just am issue of Natinyahu. In Europe we are not so clever as in the United State to integrate new immigrants. If you are a Pro-Palestinian, you'll have to deal with these issues. The U.S. must come to the party. If I gave this lecture in Europe, by the way, I would have had at least 15 comments asking me why I wasn't more pro-Palestine." Note: all 'sub quotes' are comments made by Join Ben-Meir, the moderator for tonight's discussion.