The United States does not have the ability to resolve the conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia, argued the panelists at the Clarke Forum’s event on Thursday, Oct. 6.

“The event was student initiated, and I think it was inspired by an occurrence last January,” explained Rehoboth Gesese ‘17 a student project manager of the Clark Forum. According to him, the severed relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran was prompted by the execution of an Iranian Shia leader because he was an activist in Saudi Arabia, which is a Sunni majority country.

The panel discussion was moderated by History Professor David Commins, Associate Professor of Political Science Ed Webb, and Professor of Government at the U.S. Army War College Marybeth Ulrich.

The three panelists each cited different reasons for the ongoing conflict. Webb believed that the three reasons for the increasing tensions between the two countries are ideology, regional balance of power and domestic politics of both countries. Offering a global perspective on American foreign policy, Webb argued that each idea plays a vital role in the cultural dynamics of the two states.

Ulrich examined U.S. strategies in the past few decades and how they related to Iran and Saudi Arabia. She concluded that the primary objective for the U.S. is to protect nuclear weapons access.

Commins presented a “twist on Saudi religious policy,” stating that it is easy for governments to manipulate religious identities in order to gain maximum support of their people. He also expressed his appreciation for the way the discussion was tied to public interests.

“…what I really appreciated was how they tied our observations to issues of public concern,” Commins said. “I thought it was a really good discussion, the expertise we brought was complimentary. The questions from the audience were very well informed.”

Devin Simonson ’19 was the first to ask a question. She inquired, “Why is religion always explained first [in the context of the Iran-Saudi Arabian relations], rather than economics in the U.S. media?” Ulrich responded by saying that this occurrence implies that there is nothing the U.S. can do to influence the religious contentions in the area.

This explanation reiterated the main conclusion of the night, which regarded the inability of the U.S. to provide solutions for the conflict between the two countries.

Simonson maintained that he particularly enjoyed the way the event covered topics that are often not part of the news.

“I thought that it was very insightful and it actually talked about issues that I didn’t know about,” Simonson said, continuing, “or they took it from a view point that is not always talked about in the media of an actual practical and economic use.”

Other students maintained that since their major does not involve the Middle East, the talk was very educational for them.

“I thought it was insightful, though Middle East isn’t my area of concentration,” Caitlin Macomber ’19 said. “It was nice to see an in depth discussion about two main players in the Middle East.”

The event, sponsored by the Milton B. Asbell Center for Jewish Life, the Department of International Studies, Judaic Studies, Military Science and Political Science and the Security Studies Certificate Program, almost filled the Stern Center Great Room with about 60 people in attendance. Students and faculty gathered to hear a discussion regarding Iran and Saudi Arabia Relations.