In their ability to gain opportunity, support their families, and have some modest aspect of the american dream. Right now people do not feel that and we do not have a system that is coordinated in a way to be able to put that together. We do have programs that do positive things that we should double down on. Whether that is apprenticeships or advanced manufacturing. We need to paint a picture, what are we doing in various communities . Whether that is world communities, or communities like the southside of chicago where there should be job prospects. I do not think either party answer that question. And that is going to be laid right at the feet of the next administration. I want to see a congress that works. I am tired of everybody bickering and nothing getting done. Ms. Bumiller thank you both, thank you to the audience. [applause] follow the transition of government on cspan as president elect trump prepares his ca cabinet. , live a demand at cspan. Org, on our free radio app. Next, egypts foreign minister talks about his nation strategic hardener ship with the u. S. And Ongoing Events in the middle east. This was part a of a forum hosted by the brookings institution. It is 45 minutes. [applause] good evening ladies and gentlemen. I am delighted to have the to welcome you all to the 13th saban forum. Privilege andal honor to introduce you to a very special guest, our keynote speaker this evening. His excellency the foreign minister sameh hassan shoukry. Here inry wellknown washington. To have her join him. He is one of the architects of egyptiannt u. S. Relationship, having served as ambassador to the United States between 20082012. In those dramatic years, his his wise judgment, and his diplomatic skills helped navigate the relationship through stormy seas, safeguarding and preserving the partnership between United States and egypt. He left washington with the admiration and friendship of many people, including myself. During his long and samehguished career, served in the many central roles in the ministry of Foreign Affairs and cairo. He is the very model of an egyptian diplomat. Cici014, president shoukry called minister out of ministert called shoukry out of retirement. He is one of the key players and shaping the middle east today, a do not envy. As part of this mission, he has been instrumental in the all important relationship between egypt and israel, which he visited this summer and again represented egypt at the funeral of the late shimon peres. This relationship between egypt and israel is critical for the peace and welfare of the two countries, but it is also central to the prospect of rotor peace and cooperation in the region. Cairo was and remains a key to regional stability and peace. Adat was the first arab leader to make a visit to israel, egypt was the first arab Company Country to make peace with israel, the First Capital to host an israeli embassy, and is leadership cic and involvement, israeli peace may again become possible. In this regard, relationships naturally depend on a third partner, the United States. It is no accident that egyptianisraeli peace was cemented in a trilateral handshake between president jimmy carter and. Trianglee strategic between United States, egypt, and israel can serve as the cornerstone for a better, more stable, and peaceful middle east. Having had the opportunity to converse with president cici with the minister recently, i know that this is the egyptian president s vision. We are truly honor and delighted that mr. Shoukry excepted our invitation to address the saban forum tonight. Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming his excellency sameh hassan shoukry. [applause] mr. Shoukry thank you for that introduction. I am honored and delighted to be with you tonight. At this important for him, i am definitely to be glad in washington and to see so many friendly faces. Ladies and gentlemen, it is indeed my pleasure to meet the back in washington today and share with you egypts perspective on the key questions and the Guiding Principles that government egypts Foreign Policy towards our troubled region. And to explore with you how egypt and the United States can join forces to navigate such a turbulent regional environment and such couple times. Five years ago, the dynamics that governed the middle east for at least six decades were evenundly changed, perhaps reversibly altered. A wave of largescale societal change swept the region and shook it to its very core, launching a unique historic moment that is at once promising and alarming. How to navigate these turbulent waters is the core policy question of our time, and is indeed what will determine eventually to quote dickens, whether we are on the eve of a spring of hope or a winter of despair. Such navigation is quite inconceivable without some form of a guiding principle, a framework for making sense of the epic we are in, and a guide for policy. The debate over the significance of the historic moment we are witnessing, as well as over how to navigate it, wovolves around t positions. The first is opportunities for longawaited change. Its proponents argue that it is time for change, the structures of power and governance in the arab world, this is what the people want, and this is what they should get, at any cost. This is probably the thinking that continues to guide strategies of regional and International Actors that seek to support change without necessarily being too fluffy about their allies. This is how extremists and eight handful of designated terrorist organizations find financial and military support in iraq and libya, to mention a few examples. On the other end of the political spectrum it is another diametrically opposed position in the face of a wave of messy social change to reverse the clock. Dysfunctional government that orses their people are the terrorist threat. All that was needed was to restore the regime. However decadent and dysfunctional that may be. If the price of old ways of governing is to quash every legitimate demand for change and crush popular hopes thereof, then so be it. We are also quite familiar with the consequences of this strategy, as well as its inherent futility. To stop the legitimate calls for change in the march of progress. The question remains how to reap the benefits the waves of change while minimizing the price thereof. This is the core dilemma of Foreign Policy planning and the execution in the region. Ladies and gentlemen, our isroach in egypt straightforward and i harp hypothesis is twofold. And our hypothesis is twofold. It is a prerequisite to breaking through the historical impasse that the region has reached and fulfilling the aspirations of millions of young people in the middle east, a region in which more than 60 of the population are under the age of 30. Second, compromising the integrity and stability of the institutions of nationstates in the belief is not the way to achieve the muchneeded and much desired change. The experience of the last five years has demonstrated beyond any doubt that undermining the institutions of the nationstate creates a political and social vacuum that is quickly filled by primordial institutions, sectarian militias, and outright terrorists whose ideologies are hostile to the hopes for democracy, modernization, and the revival of civic order. From syria to libya to iraq and yemen, examples abound. The challenge is to achieve change within the nationstate, not on the ruins thereof. The nationstate remains the most viable vehicle for modernization. In its more progressive version, it is the embodiment of civic order and democratic principles and policy. That is the hopes that the calls for change since 2011. Egypt traditionally is the intellectual and political powerhouse of the region. It demonstrated through two ways of its revolution in 2011 and 2013 that an orderly and responseve change with to the aspirations of the vast majority of the population while maintaining the integrity of the is anstate, institution viable choice. Egyptians demanded change, but they rejected the ruin of their state institutions in the process. They believed that they can have a democratic government that is at once representative and responsive to their needs and desires. Boldly committed to ambitious reform. The Foreign Policy of this rejuvenated reform and revised Egyptian State is guided by principles that are deeply embedded in our history and values. The conspiracy theories and conflictual world views to peace,ly committed element, respecting nations, and not intermission nonintervention in their affairs. There are always opportunities for regional and International Cooperation to face the challenges of our times. If egypt will change and democratize his government and embark on the most Ambitious Program of political and economic reform in modern history without undermining the integrity of the state, so can our brethren in the arab world and the region. The principal continues to guide the approach to our region. Reform nationstates are the answer to the aspirations of the civic uprising that swept the region some five years ago. Sectarian militias, bloodthirsty warlords, and identitybased cleansing are by contrast the product of the civil wars of the democratic aspirations of several countries of our regions that have regressed too. Ladies and gentlemen, few would disagree that orderly change based on the nation based on the reformation of nationstates would probably be the best way out of todays turbulence in the middle east. That continues to be the guiding principle that governs egypts policy in the region. Millions of it is difficult to remember that this tragedy started with peaceful and legitimate demands of the Syrian People that they are perfectly entitled to. Between the regional and International Powers that support various militias to achieve regime change in syria, of those who thought to diverse at any cost, Syrian People have to endure the bloodiest civil war in modern times. How do we break this vicious cycle in syria . We start with attempts to reverse the clock and restore the status quo are as delusional the reliance on sectarian militia led reformation. By contrast, the vision for the way forward is based on two theories. The first is to preserve the National Unity and territorial integrity of the syrian state and prevent the collapse of its institution. The second is to support the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian People in rebuilding their own state through an acceptable political solution that represents them all and furnishes an enabling environment for reconstruction efforts. This is why we continue to support the efforts of the United Nations special envoy and we call on him to resume political negotiations immediately and without delay. This is why we hosted two allinclusive conferences with the various opposition groups in cairo in 2012 and 2015, which brought together syrians from across the political spectrum and demonstrated they can agree on a comprehensive document that fromded a doable roadmap the foundation of the current plight in syria. You must have noticed that these documents for the foundations upon which every subsequent effort, syrian or international, practical Political Sentiment were premised. The revival of a reform National Stage means that external political engineering is neither desirable nor possible. The International Community is not in a position to pass judgment on the suitability of national stakeholders, let alone decide to exclude any of them. The experience in iraq and syria should have taught us at least that much. The same applies to libya. Wasrlying that agreement the thought that any viable sentiment should revolve around the three digit midstate institution, the council, the house of representatives, and the National Army. Achieving consensus among the three in the wake of violent upheaval is not easy. Problems and contradictions abound. Deadlocks emerge profusely. It does not mean that we can not take sides between the three legitimate institutions in moments of this agreement or even worse, decide to alienate one of them in the hope this might speed up the process of reconciliation. Several international and regional players have opted at one point or another to undermine one of these institutions or to replace the National Army with allegedly benign militias. But not egypt. We remain convinced of the futility of political engineering and we do not think any nonlibyan parties is in a position to award or exclude libyan stakeholders. Our vision for the via is based thenwavering commitment to implication of the agreement and follow a clear and sequential approach. To encourage the president ial council to fulfill its duty. Subsequently, we should shift our attention to ensuring that the house of representatives meets to endorse the government and undertake his constitutional work in preparation for libyan elections that would bring about elected libyan governing bodies to exercise full authority over a united and territorially intact Libyan National state. Meanwhile, we should devote efforts to supporting the libyan National Armys efforts in the fight against growing terrorist organizations in libya. I could go on and explore other cases of troubled nation states in the region, yemen or iraq, but they all follow the same pattern. Troubled nationstates faltering and creating a vacuum that is subsequently filled by primordial organizations and sectarian militias and they could all benefit from the same answer. Revise, reform, an allinclusive modern nationstate based on civic efforts in full citizenship. Modernizedor nationstates is not only the answer to the emerging threats in the region. It is also the answer to the oldest conflicts in our region. The palestinianisraeli conflict. Thet, as you all know, was pioneer of peace in the middle east. Our vision is based on full nation statehood for everyone in the region. Anare committed to bringing end to more than six decades of the conflict, without which we can shift the resources of our region to more productive channels. To do so, the palestinians should not and could not be an independent nationstate. Desperation and lack of any light at the end of what is a long tunnel could only be insurmountable in hopes of stability in the region. The structure of the two state solution is evident. They should return to negotiations in good faith. The president has offered publicly to support any forthcoming negotiation and to provide both agreement security guarantees. Ofid and large scale elements that have talked about in more than one area of our region hopefully do not occur in a bubble. Given the strategic importance of the middle east, it is only natural that several regional and National Powers may be seeking to influence the course of developments in our region. Egypt appreciates the stakes of the middle east are of interest to several International Players and whilst we insist on national over shift ownership of the arab worlds problems, a nonreformed the nation statehood as a key response to the challenges of our time, egypt remains ready to cooperate with our partners to bring satisfactory conclusions to the crisis that spread in our region. One that preserves the territorial and institutional integrity and social cohesion of nationstates is a core criteria of deciding whether or not we can cooperate with regional or international stakeholders. I am back today in washington full of promises and challenges. I come from a country that is moving to restore its leading role in a changing region. The chechen people have demonstrated the ability to take charge of their future through two revolutions in the span of three years. The first to initiate change, and the second two preserve egypts moral and social foundation. We realize we face inherent problems, but the determination to deal with these problems is unshakable. Egypt has changed in many ways, most important of which is the confidence of ejections in their andership and the faith fortitude of the people. This confidence and faith allows us to embark on a new chapter in our history. With problems head on, make difficult decisions and rise to the occasion to make a Better Future for our children and grandchildren. The necessity to achieve greater progress in the area of political, economic, and social reform while dealing with the internal challenges associated with societal evolution, educational, and economic deficiencies, as well as regional and global turbulence. Egypt has always been and will continue to be the beacon of modernity of the middle east. This will be reinforced by implementing policies based on a moral code and values derived from our history and heritage. Ladies and gentlemen, we are on the eve of a new u. S. Administration that has stated to worknt with its partners and restore stability to the middle east. How we address the challenges is in order. I believe we share with the United States and the administration a firm belief in the importance of restoring stability of the territorial integrity of the regions nationstates through supporting nationally owned processes of reconciliation and revival of these estates. How else can we face the growing threat of terrorism . How can we bring about the peaceful conclusion to the multitude of crisis in our region . Our countries are in clear convergence. In syria, we can Work Together for a peaceful settlement. In libya, we can work to support the full implementation of the agreement and an allinclusive government of national accord. We both share the same unrelenting commitment to the education of second eradication of sectarianism and terrorism. We see the need to relaunch efforts to achieve the two state solution. I could go on. I trust that you get the idea. The middle east is in turmoil. Egypt is key in cooperating with a new u. S. Ad