Last modified: Monday, October 27, 2003
IU Bloomington to host ambassadors involved in relations with Afghanistan, India and South Korea
EDITORS: Arrangements are being made for media availabilities with the ambassadors. Contact George Vlahakis at 812-855-0846 or gvlahaki@indiana.edu to request interviews.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University Bloomington in November will host three ambassadors, past and present, representing relations with nations that have been prominent in recent news reports -- Afghanistan, India and South Korea. Each visitor will give a public presentation that is free and open to the public.
Visiting IUB will be Vijay K. Nambiar, permanent representative of India to the United Nations; Robert P. Finn, U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan from March 2002 to August 2003; and Donald Phinney Gregg, U.S. ambassador to South Korea from 1989 to 1993.
Vijay K. Nambiar, Nov. 2
Nambiar, permanent representative of India to the United Nations, will speak on Nov. 2 at 5 p.m. in Room 130 of Myers Hall, 1001 E. 3rd St., on "A Permanent Seat on the Security Council at the United Nations: India's Case?"
Nambiar was India's high commissioner to Pakistan from August 2000 to May 2002, when he was appointed to his current U.N. post. He previously held a series of important diplomatic assignments including serving as India's ambassador to China (1996-2000), as high commissioner to Malaysia (1993-96), as ambassador to Afghanistan (1990-92) and as ambassador to Algeria (1985-88).
Nambiar also has been director general for East Asia in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, dealing with China, Japan, North and South Korea, and Mongolia. He played an important role during the Seventh Non-Aligned Summit hosted by India in 1983, and in 1979-82 he was first secretary-counselor in the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations, when he dealt with political issues including decolonization and the struggle against apartheid.
The Office of the Chancellor at IU Bloomington, in conjunction with the College of Arts and Sciences and the India Studies Program, is hosting Nambiar's visit.
Robert P. Finn, Nov. 3
Finn, U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan from March 2002 to August 2003 and former ambassador to Tajikistan, will speak on Nov. 3 at 7:30 p.m. in the Frangipani Room of the Indiana Memorial Union, 900 E. Seventh St., on "Afghanistan: Where Do We Stand?"
The first U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan in more than 20 years, Finn will discuss the changes in Afghanistan since Sept. 11, 2001. Afghanistan was one of the poorest countries in the world before it was destroyed by 23 years of civil war. The worldwide effort to aid Afghanistan has since brought a new government, the war on terrorism and a multi-billion dollar program of assistance. Finn will examine each of these and their effects on Afghanistan, the changes made and the country's future needs.
Finn is the Ertegun visiting professor in the Near East Studies Department of Princeton University, where he had been on the faculty prior to serving as ambassador to Afghanistan. He was the U.S. ambassador to Tajikistan in 1998-2001, and his other diplomatic postings include Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir in Turkey, Lahore in Pakistan and Zagreb in Croatia.
He opened the U.S. embassy in Baku, Azerbaijan, in 1992. His campus visit is part of the Chancellor's Forum series.
Donald Phinney Gregg, Nov. 19
Gregg, U.S. ambassador to South Korea from 1989 to 1993 and current chairman of the Korea Society in New York City, will speak on Nov. 19 at 7:30 p.m. at the Buskirk-Chumley Theatre, 114 E. Kirkwood Ave.
Gregg will speak on security issues on the Korean peninsula, including the current nuclear situation in North Korea. A question and answer session will follow his presentation.
He joined the Central Intelligence Agency in 1951 and over the next quarter-century was assigned to Japan, Burma, Vietnam and Korea. He was appointed to the National Security Council staff in 1979, where he was in charge of intelligence activities and Asian policy affairs. In 1982, he was asked by Vice President George H.W. Bush to become his national security adviser. He then retired from the CIA and was awarded its highest decoration, the Distinguished Intelligence Medal. During his six years with Vice President Bush, Gregg traveled to 65 countries.
From 1980 to 1989, Gregg lectured at Georgetown University, where he taught a graduate-level workshop entitled "Force and Diplomacy." He served as ambassador to Korea from September 1989 to March 1993, when he retired from a 43-year career in the U.S. government and assumed his current position. He also is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
His visit is being hosted by the East Asian Studies Center.
