The Iran Project: A U.S.-Iran Public Diplomacy Road Map

The USC Center on Public Diplomacy and the Pacific Council on International Policy were pleased to host a conversation about The Iran Project featuring Ambassador William H. Luers, Ambassador Frank G. Wisner, and Admiral Eric T. Olson.

The Iran Project is analyzing and assessing potential political and diplomatic solutions to the conflict between the United States and Iran. This conversation will provide an opportunity to examine challenging public diplomacy issues in the context of the current U.S.-Iran relationship.

Members of The Iran Project have worked to find political/diplomatic solutions to the U.S.-Iran problem for nearly a decade. They have worked behind the scenes with both the U.S. and Iranian governments to promote direct official talks and to help interpret communications. They have additionally engaged in “Track II” diplomacy efforts to create an ongoing dialogue and build trust.

The members of the project have prepared a full summary of their work and findings, to read this report, please click here [PDF].

In addition to Ambassador Luers, Ambassador Wisner, and Admiral Olson, the core organizing group behind The Iran Project includes Ambassador Thomas Pickering, Mr. Stephen Heintz, Dr. Vali Nasr, Ambassador William Miller, Dr. Jim Walsh, and others with significant experience and expertise related to Iran.

USC's Daily Trojan published an article about The Iran Project event which you can read here.

USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism highlighted the talk in their CommLine blog, "Inside Annenberg", please click here to read the write-up.

About Ambassador William H. Luers
Ambassador William H. Luers served as President and CEO of the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA) from 1999-2009. Prior to joining UNA-USA, Ambassador Luers served for 13 years as president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City. Prior to his move to New York in 1986, Ambassador Luers had a 31-year career in the Foreign Service. He served as US Ambassador to Czechoslovakia (1983-1986) and Venezuela (1978-1982) and held numerous posts in Italy, Germany, the Soviet Union, and in the Department of State, where he was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Europe (1977-1978) and for Inter-American Affairs (1975-1977). Ambassador Luers has been a visiting lecturer at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton, at George Washington University in Washington, DC, and at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. He was also the director's visitor at Princeton's Institute for Advanced Study in 1982-1983. An active member of the Council on Foreign Relations and other public policy organizations, Ambassador Luers is the founding Chairman of the USC Center on Public Diplomacy and serves on a number of corporate and nonprofit boards, including the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, The National Museum of Natural History, The Trust for Mutual Understanding, and the Rubin Art Museum.

About Admiral Eric T. Olson
Admiral Eric T. Olson retired from the United States Navy in 2011 after more than 38 years of military service. He served in special operations units throughout his career, during which he was awarded several decorations for leadership and valor including the Defense Distinguished Service Medal and the Silver Star. Admiral Olson was the first Navy SEAL officer to be promoted to three- and four-star ranks. Admiral Olson's career culminated as the head of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), where he was responsible for the mission readiness of all Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps special operations forces. In this capacity, he led over 60,000 people and managed an annual budget in excess of ten billion dollars. As President of ETO Group LLC, Admiral Olson is now an independent national security consultant who supports a wide range of private and public sector organizations. Among his current endeavors, he is an Adjunct Professor in the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University, a Director of Iridium Communications, Inc. and Under Armour, Inc., a Director of the non-profit Special Operations Warrior Foundation and the National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum, and a senior advisor to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and NATO Special Operations Forces Headquarters.

About Ambassador Frank G. Wisner
Ambassador Frank G. Wisner’s diplomatic career spans four decades and eight American presidents. He served as ambassador to Zambia, Egypt, the Philippines, and India during his extensive career in the State Department. As Foreign Affairs Advisor at Patton Boggs LLP, Ambassador Wisner plays a pivotal role at the firm, leveraging his vast experience in the Middle East, India, Europe, and Asia to assist the firm's domestic and international clients. In addition to his role as ambassador to four countries, he has served as Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and as Under Secretary of State for International Security Affairs. Ambassador Wisner was senior Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs from 1982 to 1986. Ambassador Wisner worked as a senior diplomat in Tunisia and Bangladesh before returning to Washington as Director of Plans and Management in the Bureau of Public Affairs. He joined the President’s Interagency Task Force on Indochina, the entity responsible for evacuating and settling nearly one million refugees and served as its Deputy Director. Later, as Director of the Office of Southern African Affairs, Ambassador Wisner worked closely with Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to launch negotiations with Zimbabwe and Namibia. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appointed Ambassador Wisner as the nation’s special representative to the Kosovo Status Talks in 2005 where he played a crucial role in negotiating Kosovo’s independence.