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Dr. Thomas R. Mattair will join us to discuss the UAE claim to sovereignty over three Iranian-occupied islands, which is the topic of his recent book, The Three Occupied UAE Islands: The Tunbs and Abu Musa. As a scholar at the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research in Abu Dhabi, Mattair researched the strategic importance of these islands because of their position along the major shipping lanes in the Gulf through which much of the world's daily oil needs are shipped. The book examines Arab support for the UAE claim to the islands, British acquiescence to the Shah's takeover of the islands in 1971, and Iran's military capabilities on and around the islands.

Dr. Mattair argues that Iran's occupation of these islands increases its capabilities for attacking shipping, oil and gas fields, GCC states, and US military assets in the region. He will offer possible options for peacefully resolving the islands dispute and other concerns about Iran's nuclear programs.

Thomas R. Mattair is a Washington-based author and consultant. He is an honors graduate of Harvard and has a Ph.D. in political science from the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Mattair has taught at a number of American universities, including Kent State, the University of California at Riverside, and Cornell University. From 1992 through 1995, he was the Director of Research at the Middle East Policy Council in Washington. He contributed numerous articles to their journal, Middle East Policy, and organized and moderated the first ten of their Capitol Hill Conferences.

Copies of The Three Occupied UAE Islands: The Tunbs and Abu Musa will be available for sale after the event.