The Wars of the Middle East

The Wars of the Middle East - Thursday, June 6 at 12pm PDT

Only a few months ago, the Biden administration was celebrating relative stability in the Middle East. However, since October 7th, Israel has been involved in a multifront war in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria. The US and its allies have also been drawn directly into military operations against the Houthis, including arguably the most significant naval engagements since World War II. Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen will be in conversation with AJU President Jeffrey Herbst to discuss Israel's military prospects, how the US can successfully exercise force to pursue its interests, and what victory means in the twenty-first century.

Admiral Mike Mullen, USN (Ret.) is President of MGM Consulting, LLC. ADM Mullen served as the 28th Chief of Naval Operations from 2005-2007, and as the 17th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for Presidents Bush and Obama from 2007-2011. Since his retirement from the United States Navy in November 2011, Mullen joined the boards of General Motors, Sprint, and Bloomberg Philanthropies. Additionally, he taught National Security Decision-making and Policy at the Woodrow Wilson School of International and Public Affairs at Princeton University from 2012-2018. ADM Mullen is a Distinguished Graduate of the Naval Academy and a Distinguished Graduate of the Naval Postgraduate School, a Distinguished alumnus of Harvard Business School, a member of the National Academy of Engineering, and a trustee at Caltech.

Dr. Jeffrey Herbst, the fourth president of American Jewish University (AJU), is an advocate for academic innovation. His leadership at AJU includes fostering growth in the Maas Center for Jewish Journeys, expanding the Open Learning

 digital platform, and improving the Brandeis-Bardin Campus. Formerly, he served as president and CEO of the Newseum and the Newseum Institute in Washington, DC. Notable achievements include successfully overseeing a half billion-dollar fundraising campaign, implementing a university-wide strategic plan, and enhancing educational programming at Colgate University, where he was president from 2010 to 2015. Dr. Herbst holds a summa cum laude bachelor's degree from Princeton University, as well as a master's and doctorate in political science from Yale University. He is the author of the award-winning “States and Power in Africa” and, with several co-authors, the just-published “Making Africa Work.” In addition to many books and articles, he has been published in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and many other digital and print publications around the world.