Oak Ridge Today

Fleischmann urges caution on U.S. response to Iraq

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U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann

Chuck Fleischmann

U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann on Friday urged caution in responding to the rapid advance of militants who have taken control of a wide swath of Iraq and are pressing on toward Baghdad.

Fleischmann was in Oak Ridge during the annual two-day Secret City Festival.

The militants are known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS. The Sunni organization was once part of Al Qaeda, and it has effectively gained control of large swaths of Iraq and Syria during the past year, including Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city. There have been battles in Baquba, less than 40 miles north of Baghdad.

Now, the United States and other countries are struggling with how to respond. Among the options that have been proposed are airstrikes and working with Iran to repel the rebels. [Read more…]

Sen. Corker completes Middle East trip with visits to Oman, Bahrain

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Sen. Bob Corker Meets with Tennessee Sailors and Marines

U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican, meets with Tennessee sailors and marines deployed to Bahrain with the U.S. Fifth Fleet. (Submitted photos)

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MANAMA, Bahrain—U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican and ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee, completed a three-nation trip to the Middle East on Dec. 5 in Bahrain, where he continued to assess U.S. diplomatic and security relations in the Gulf region, a press release said.

After a visit with U.S. Ambassador Thomas C. Krajeski, he met with Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al Khalifa to discuss the state of U.S.-Bahrain relations and the Crown Prince’s ongoing efforts for political reform and stability amidst continued unrest.

“Bahrain is an important and longstanding U.S. ally, hosting the U.S. Fifth Fleet, which plays a significant role in regional stability and protecting the global flow of energy,” Corker said in a press release. “It is in our national interest to continue our strong military partnership, ensure the country remains stable, and encourage nonviolent reformers on both sides to continue to work together to achieve a political solution to Bahrain’s own internal problems.” [Read more…]

Education Foundation awards Lawler Scholarship

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Ben Gavin

Benjamin Gavin

Benjamin Gavin has a life goal of visiting every country in the world. His studies abroad during his junior year of college will allow him to check off several countries on his list.

The International Relations Club at Oak Ridge High School generated his interest in international affairs, and the Dr. Adrian R. Lawler Exchange Student Scholarship provided a $1,000 scholarship to assist him in his studies abroad.

Gavin is spending this semester in Ho Chi Minh City, where he will have opportunities to study economics, humanities, and Asian religions. His studies took him to Tunisia this summer, where he researched the effects of the Arab Spring. Next spring, Gavin will head to Tokyo, Japan, to explore the language, history, politics and culture of that country. [Read more…]

UT professor discusses Arab Spring in Tuesday Lunch with the League

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Robert B. Cunningham

Robert B. Cunningham

A retired University of Tennessee professor who has taught in Syria and Jordan will discuss the Arab Spring and its impact on the Middle East and the United States during a Tuesday lecture in Oak Ridge.

The talk by Robert Cunningham, UT political science professor emeritus, starts at noon Tuesday in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church.

Cunningham’s research and teaching interests have focused on issues related to public administration and the politics of the Middle East. From 1959 to 1962, he taught at Aleppo College in Aleppo, Syria. He returned to the Middle East in 1986 through a faculty exchange program at Yarmouk University in Irbid, Jordan, and again in 1992 as a Fulbright Teacher and Scholar at Yarmouk University.

He has also conducted research in Marrakech, Morocco, and in Jordan.

Cunningham has a master’s degree and doctorate from Indiana University. He joined the UT faculty in 1972 and retired from full-time service at the end of the 2008-09 academic year.

[Read more…]