A perceived lack of real progress in the improvement of conditions for foreign labor, aggravated by a Qatari reluctance to engage in public debate beyond platitudes, is undermining the soft-power goals underlying the Gulf state’s sports strategy

The forum will host President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan, HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Ahmed bin Abdullah al-Mahmoud, former US ambassador to the United Nations Thomas Pickering, Egyptian Minister for International Co-operation and Development Amr Darrag, Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs undersecretary Tara Sonenshine and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation secretary-general Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, among others.

DOHA, Qatar --- News from the Middle East is dominated by conflict, whether the stories come from Syria, Libya, Iraq, or other states in the region. Blood is plentiful; hope is scarce. But beyond the lurid viciousness that dominates daily journalism are long-term challenges to the region’s future that are impervious to solutions that rely on the weaponry of conflict. The resolve and creativity with which Arab leaders and publics address these matters, as well as their local wars, will shape the lives of coming generations.