The Middle East Policy Council's senior leadership and board of directors can offer unique insights into the complex issues facing U.S. policy making in the Middle East. These experts have diverse backgrounds in government, international organizations and the private sector. If you are interested in learning more about their areas of expertise, please click here. If you would like to inquire about connecting with them directly, please email: mepc.press at gmail dot com.
Hon. Richard J. Schmierer
Chairman of the Board of Directors & President
Ambassador Schmierer served as the U.S. Ambassador to the Sultanate of Oman from 2009 through 2012. He completed his Foreign Service career in 2014 as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs (NEA). In 2013 Schmierer served as NEA Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary. Previously he was the NEA Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Iraq, and Director of the Office of Iraq Affairs. Schmierer was at Georgetown University from 2005 through 2007, where he published the book Iraq: Policy and Perceptions. He had prior diplomatic postings in Iraq, Germany and Saudi Arabia. Schmierer holds a B.A. degree from Lehigh University and MA and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
Dr. Omar M. Kader
Chairman Emeritus and Member of the Board of Directors
Dr. Kader is Chairman and CEO of Pal-Tech, Inc., a management consulting firm focusing on training, technical assistance, and management. He has previously served as executive director of the United Palestinian Appeal and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. Kader is a U.S. Army veteran, and has been a member of U.S. election monitoring delegations observing electoral processes worldwide. He accompanied President Clinton to Jordan and Israel for the signing of the peace treaty between the two countries. He holds a B.A. degree from Brigham Young University and a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California. Dr. Kader has also been awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Humanities by Weber State University.
Hon. William A. Rugh
Vice Chairman Emeritus and Member of the Board of Directors
Ambassador Rugh served as Ambassador to Yemen from 1984 to 1987, and as Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates from 1992 to 1995. As a Foreign Service Officer, Rugh had nine diplomatic postings in the Middle East over his 31-year career, including Deputy Chief of Mission in Syria. Between 1995 and 2003 he was President and CEO of AMIDEAST. Rugh is a Trustee of the American University in Cairo and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is the author of several books, including: American Encounters with Arabs: the “Soft Power” of U.S. Public Diplomacy in the Arab World (2005), Arab Mass Media: Newspapers, Radio and Television in Arab Politics (2008), and Front Line Diplomacy: How U.S. Embassies Communicate with Foreign Publics (2014). He has a B.A. degree from Oberlin College, an MA degree from Johns Hopkins University, and a Ph.D. from Columbia University
Hon. Chas W. Freeman, Jr.
President Emeritus and Member of the Board of Directors (ex officio)
Ambassador Freeman served as U. S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia from 1989 to 1992, a period which included operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He is a Senior Fellow at Brown University’s Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, and Chairman of the Board of Projects International, Inc., a Washington-based business development firm. Freeman has served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs. His diplomatic postings also included Deputy Chief of Mission in Bangkok and Beijing, as well as service in India. He was also Director for Chinese Affairs at the U.S. Department of State and served as the principal American interpreter during President Nixon’s visit to China in 1972. He is the author of several books, including America’s Misadventures in the Middle East (2010), Interesting Times: China, America, and the Shifting Balance of Prestige (2013), and America’s Continuing Misadventures in the Middle East (2016). Freeman holds a BA degree from Yale University and a JD degree from the Harvard Law School.
Ms. Anne Joyce
Vice-president and Member of the Board of Directors (ex officio)
Ms. Joyce has been the editor of the Council's quarterly journal of political analysis, Middle East Policy, and director of MEPC’s publications since 1984. In 1993 she was named Vice-president of the Council and an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors. In her time at the Council, Joyce has supervised the production of more than 130 issues of the journal, as well as numerous conference proceedings and several special reports and books. Before coming to the Council, she held positions at the American Language Institute of Georgetown University and at the University of Iowa. She holds a B.A degree from Central Methodist University and MA degrees from the University of Iowa and the University of Missouri.
Dr. Thomas R. Mattair
Executive Director and Member of the Board of Directors (ex officio)
Dr. Mattair has served as the Executive Director of the Middle East Policy Council since 2009. From 1997 until 2003 he was a research scholar at the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research, where he wrote The Three Occupied UAE Islands: The Tunbs and Abu Musa. In 2008 Mattair published Iran: A Reference Handbook, which is a comprehensive study of Iran's foreign relations. From 1992 to 1995 Mattair served as the Director of Research at the Middle East Policy Council. He has taught at Kent State University, the University of Southern California, the University of California at Riverside, and Cornell University. He holds a B.A. degree from Harvard University and a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley.
Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley
Member of the Board of Directors
Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley served as U.S. Ambassador to Malta from 2012 to 2016. She joined the U.S. Foreign Service in 1985 and her diplomatic postings included Baghdad, Iraq, Jakarta, Indonesia, Cairo, Egypt, Tel Aviv, Israel, and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. In Washington, DC, Abercrombie-Winstanley served at the White House, on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and on the National Security Council, where she was Director for Arabian Peninsula Affairs. Her assignments at the State Department included Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Director of Middle East Area Studies at the Foreign Service Institute, and Director for Egypt, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. She holds a B.A. degree from the George Washington University and an MA from Johns Hopkins University. Abercrombie-Winstanley also served as a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer in the Sultanate of Oman.
Ms. Christine (“Christy”) Abizaid
Member of the Board of Directors
Ms. Abizaid was Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Central Asia from 2014 to 2016. In fall 2016 she assumed the position of Austin Presence Lead for the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental (DIUx). Previously Abizaid served on the National Security Council staff, first as a Director for Counterterrorism and later as the Senior Policy Advisor to the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism. She was also an intelligence officer in the Defense Intelligence Agency’s (DIA) Joint Intelligence Task Force Combating Terrorism. Abizaid has received the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence Award, the DIA Meritorious Civilian Service Award, and the U.S. Army Commander’s Award for Civilian Service. She holds a B.A. degree from the University of California at San Diego and an MA degree from Stanford University.
Ms. Karen Koning AbuZayd
Member of the Board of Directors
Ms. AbuZayd served as Under Secretary General and Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), based in Gaza, from 2000 to 2012. Since 2011 she has served as a pro bono Commissioner on the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic. Her UN service has also included working in various capacities for the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNHCR) in Sudan, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Bosnia, Geneva, and as Regional Representative for Washington, DC / Caribbean. AbuZayd has taught Middle East politics at Makerere University in Uganda and Juba University in southern Sudan. She is currently a member of several refugee and humanitarian boards, among them UNRWA USA (Washington, D.C.). In 2016, she served as the Special Advisor to the UN Secretary General for the Global Summit on Addressing Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants. She is the recipient of Austria’s Grosse Goldene medal, and the Spanish UN Association’s Premier Peace Prize. In 2015 AbuZayd was named the 2015 Chicago Woman Extraordinaire by International Women Associates in Chicago. She holds a B.S. degree from DePauw University and an MA degree from McGill University.
Hon. Mark Hambley
Member of the Board of Directors
Ambassador Hambley served as Ambassador to Qatar (1989-1992) and Lebanon (1993-1994). His 32-year diplomatic career included service in Vietnam, Yemen, Jordan, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, and coincided with such seminal events in the Middle Eastern region as the seizure of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the Sadat assassination in Cairo, the aftermath of 9/11 in Afghanistan, and both Gulf wars. Hambley's service in multilateral diplomacy included Special Representative to the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, U.S. Representative to the Intergovernmental Panel on Forests, and Special Negotiator for Climate Change during the Kyoto process. He is a founding member of the board of SOCOSIX Strategies and a trustee of the Next Century Foundation, in which capacity he has undertaken missions to Iraq, Syria, Israel/Palestinian Territories, Libya, and Yemen. Hambley holds a B.A. degree from American University and an M.I.A. degree from Columbia University. He has also attended UCLA, NYU, and the American University of Beirut, and has been awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters by Elms College.
Gen. Joseph P. Hoar (USMC)
Member of the Board of Directors
General Hoar was commander in chief of U.S. Central Command from 1991 to 1994. Since the time of his military service he has remained active in Middle East affairs and business through his consulting firm, J.P. Hoar and Associates. General Hoar is a member of the National Advisory Board of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation and the Board of Trustees of the Center for Naval Analysis. Among his many military awards and commendations are the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the Bronze Star, the Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal, and the Vietnam Service Medal. He holds a B.A. degree from Tufts University and MA degrees from George Washington University and the National War College; he is also a graduate of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College.
Hon. Richard H. Jones
Member of the Board of Directors
Ambassador Jones served as Ambassador to Israel (2005-2008), Kuwait (2001-2004) Kazakhstan (1998-2000) and Lebanon (1996-1998). From November 2015 to June 2016 he was Chargé d'affaires ad interim in Lebanon. In 2003-2004 he served as Chief Policy Officer and Deputy Administrator for the Coalition Provisional Authority in Baghdad, Iraq. In 2005 he was named Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State and Coordinator for Iraq Policy. During his diplomatic career he served twice at the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh as well as at the U.S. Embassies in Tunis and Paris. In 2004-2005 he was Senior Fellow at the Belfer Center at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. From 2008 to 2013 he was Deputy Executive Director of the International Energy Agency in Paris, France. He holds a B.S. degree from Harvey Mudd College and MS and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
Mr. Brian Katulis
Member of the Board of Directors
Mr. Katulis is a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, focusing on U.S. national security strategy and counterterrorism policy. His past experience includes work at the National Security Council, the U.S. Departments of State and Defense. He has also previously worked at Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs and Freedom House, and for former Pennsylvania Gov. Robert Casey (D). Katulis has provided expert testimony to key congressional committees, including the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee and conducted extensive research on the ground in the Middle East, including Egypt, the Palestinian territories, Israel and Jordan. From 1994 to 1995 he was a Fulbright scholar in Jordan. He is co-author, with Nancy Soderberg, of The Prosperity Agenda(2008). Katulis holds a B.A. degree from Villanova University and an MA degree from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School for Public and International Affairs.
Dr. Philip Mattar
Member of the Board of Directors
Dr. Mattar is Vice President of Circle in a Square Advisors, Ameriprise Financial, in Washington, DC. He was owner of Rittenhouse Investments, LLC, from 2006 to 2016. He taught history at Georgetown University, the City College of New York, and Yale University. He has also been a Fulbright scholar, a Fellow at The Woodrow Wilson Center, and a Senior Fellow at the United States Institute of Peace. He was a founder of and former President of the Palestinian American Research Center in Washington D.C. From 1984 to 2001 he served as Executive Director of the Institute for Palestine Studies. Mattar has published numerous articles and the book The Mufti of Jerusalem: Al-Hajj Amin Al-Husayni and the Palestinian National Movement. He is the editor of the Encyclopedia of the Palestinians (2005, 2017 digital), and Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa (2004). He holds a B.A. degree from Samford University, and M. Phil. and Ph.D. degrees from Columbia University.
Hon. Elizabeth (“Liz”) McKune
Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors
From 1998-2001, Liz was U.S. Ambassador to Qatar. Her 33 years with the State Department also included postings in Israel, Tunisia, Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, the Sultanate of Oman and the United Kingdom. Domestically, she was Deputy Executive Secretary from 1989-1991. Liz co-authored The National Security Policy Process: The National Security Council and the Interagency System. In addition to State awards, Liz received DOD’s Joint Civilian Defense Award and Qatar’s Emiri Sash of Merit. She earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Carleton College and Johns Hopkins University respectively. Liz is a Distinguished Graduate of the National War College, a recognition accorded to only a small percentage of students.
Hon. Ronald E. Neumann
Member of the Board of Directors
Ambassador Neumann served as Ambassador to Afghanistan (2005-2007), Bahrain (2001-2004), and Algeria (1994-1997). He is currently the President of the American Academy of Diplomacy. A career Foreign Service Officer, Neumann served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates and in Sana’a, Yemen. His diplomatic postings also included Baghdad, Iraq, Tabriz, Iran, and Dakar, Senegal. His domestic assignments included Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Near East Affairs and Director of the Office of Northern Gulf Affairs. Neumann is the author of The Other War: Winning and Losing in Afghanistan (2009). He is on the Advisory Committee of the non-profit School of Leadership, Afghanistan (SOLA). He was an Army infantry officer in Viet Nam and holds a Bronze Star, Army Commendation Medal and Combat Infantry Badge. In Baghdad, he was awarded the Army Outstanding Civilian Service Medal. He holds B.A. and MA degrees from the University of California at Riverside.
Dr. Margaret Nydell
Member of the Board of Directors
Dr. Margaret Nydell is an educator and author with expertise in Arabic and Middle Eastern studies. She has taught at Georgetown University, the U.S. Military Academy, and the State Department’s Foreign Service Institute. She is the author of the best-selling book Understanding Arabs, A Guide for Modern Times, which has sold 50,000 copies and is now in its 6th edition. Her work in the Middle East has included serving as the Director of the Study Abroad Program at the University of Alexandria in Egypt, the Foreign Service Institute’s Field School of Advanced Arabic Language and Culture in Tunis, Tunisia, and the Summer Arabic Program at the American Institute of Maghrebi Studies in Tangier, Morocco. Nydell holds a B.S. degree from Montana State University and MA and Ph.D. degrees from Georgetown University.
Dr. Fuad A. Rihani
Member of the Board of Directors
Dr. Rihani is an adviser for research and development at the Saudi Binladin Group in Saudi Arabia. He has pursued a more than 55-year career as an engineer in the Middle East as well as in the U.S. His work has also focused on transportation, urban planning and operations research. Rihani has served as Director of the Saudi Binladin Group’s Research & Development (SBG-R&D), as well as having held multiple engineering and management positions in the United States and Saudi Arabia. He has been a Fulbright Scholar, and has taught at North Carolina State University. Rihani holds a BE degree from the American University of Beirut and M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from North Carolina State University.
Amb. James B. Smith
Member of the Board of Directors
Ambassador James B. Smith served as the U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from 2009 to 2013. Prior to his appointment, Ambassador Smith held a variety of executive positions with the Raytheon Company. Smith spent a 28-year career in the United States Air Force as a fighter pilot, with over 4,000 hours of flight time. He flew combat missions during Operation Desert Storm, and held command positions at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan. He served in a variety of staff assignments and taught at the National War College. Smith retired from the Air Force as a Brigadier General on October 1, 2002. In April 2017, Smith was appointed dean of the newly-formed College of Engineering, Technology, and Aeronautics at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU), a position which he held through May 2018. Smith holds a B.S. from the United States Air Force Academy and an M.A. from Indiana University. He is a graduate of the Naval War College, the Air Command and Staff College, and the National War College. He has received honorary degrees from SNHU and the University of Maryland University College.
Dr. Janet Breslin-Smith
Member of the Board of Directors
Dr. Janet Breslin-Smith was a professor for 14 years at the National War College in Washington, DC; she was named Outstanding Professor at the College in 2006, and was the first woman to Chair the College’s Department of National Security Strategy. Prior to her academic career, she was Legislative Director for Senator Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont and Deputy Staff Director of the Senate Agriculture Committee. While living in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from 2009 to 2013, Dr. Breslin-Smith focused on higher education and outreach to women in the Middle East. She has written and lectured on Strategy and Culture, Macro-economics and Islam, and Women, Islam and Saudi Arabia. Her work includes “The Struggle to Erase Saudi Extremism,” which appeared in November 2015 in the New York Times, and co-authorship of The National War College: A History of Strategic Thinking in Peace and War. Dr. Breslin-Smith holds a B.A. from the University of Southern California and a Ph.D. from the University of California at Los Angeles.
Hon. Patrick Theros
Member of the Board of Directors
Ambassador Theros served as Ambassador to Qatar from 1995 to 1998. He is a former President and Executive Director of the U.S.-Qatar Business Council in Washington, DC. Theros was a career Foreign Service Officer from 1963 to 1999. In addition to his Ambassadorship, his assignments included Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Political Advisor to the Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command, Deputy Chief of Mission and Political Officer in Amman, Jordan, Chargé d'affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission in Abu Dhabi, UAE, and Economic and Commercial Counselor in Damascus, Syria. He also served in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Nicaragua. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the American Academy of Diplomacy, and serves on the Board of Advisors of the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University. He holds a BA degree from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, and has done advanced study at the American University in Washington, D.C., the Universidad Centroamericana in Managua, Nicaragua, the Armed Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Virginia, and the National Defense University in Washington, D.C.
Mr. Tom Walter
Member of the Board of Directors
Mr. Walter served as Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of ExxonMobil Saudi Arabia, Inc., from 2013 to 2015. Walter began his 37 year career with ExxonMobil as an electrical engineer in Saudi Arabia. Following that he held a variety of engineering and management positions with the company in refining, supply and marketing in the United States, Turkey, Zimbabwe, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and Egypt. Before assuming his position as head of ExxonMobil Saudi Arabia, Walter was ExxonMobil Egypt’s Chairman and Managing Director of Fuels Marketing, including responsibility for ExxonMobil’s fuels marketing activities across North Africa and in Cyprus. Walter holds a B.A. degree from North Dakota State University.