William J. Burns is president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He served in numerous posts in the State Department in a career spanning more than 30 years. Burns was deputy secretary of state from 2011 until 2014, and before that assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs from 2001 until 2005. He was ambassador to Jordan from 1998 until 2001 and served as ambassador to Russia between 2005 and 2008. Burns became president of Carnegie in February 2015. In late July, Diwan sat with him to get his perspective on a wide variety of Middle Eastern issues, including the U.S. role in the region, the Iranian nuclear deal, Palestinian-Israeli negotiations, and what Burns views as the most significant long-term threats to regional stability.
The Wages of Dysfunction
Carnegie President William J. Burns discusses the Middle East and what the future may hold for a troubled region.
by Blair Scott
More work from Diwan
The Hezbollah Disarmament Debate Hits IraqBeirut and Baghdad are both watching how the other seeks to give the state a monopoly of weapons.
- Hasan Hamra
Iran’s Woes Aren’t Only DomesticThe country’s leadership is increasingly uneasy about multiple challenges from the Levant to the South Caucasus.
Is Lebanon Hosting Officers of the Former Assad Regime?Recent leaks made public by Al-Jazeera suggest that this is the case, but the story may be more complicated.
- Mohamad Fawaz
Pax Israelica and Its DiscontentsThe U.S. is trying to force Lebanon and Syria to normalize with Israel, but neither country sees an advantage in this.
Unpacking Lebanon’s Gap LawIn an interview, Ishac Diwan looks at the merits and flaws in the draft legislation distributing losses from the financial collapse.
