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KNOXVILLE — Two retired U.S. military commanders will review the history of U.S.-Iran relations at a lecture on April 17 at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Lt. Gen. Robert G. Gard Jr. and Col. William Hauser will speak at 2 p.m. in the Shiloh Room of the University Center.

The event, which is free and open to the public, is being sponsored by the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy, with assistance from the Tennessee World Affairs Council (http://www.TNWAC.org).

“This will be a fascinating talk on a tremendously important topic. Few issues are more critical than our future relationship with Iran and our position in that part of our world,” said Alan Lowe, executive director of the Baker Center.

Gard has been active in national security issues and nuclear non-proliferation, national missile defense and the war in Iraq. He is the Senior Military Fellow at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. He is a graduate of West Point and holds a doctorate in political economy and government from Harvard. He also was president of the National Defense University.

Hauser specializes in military-civilian issues. He retired from Pfizer Inc., following a career as a U.S. Army officer in the U.S., Germany, Korea and Vietnam. A graduate of West Point, Hauser served as research fellow at John Hopkins University and is the author of numerous articles and a book, “America’s Army in Crisis.”

Gard and Hauser also will speak at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. as guests of the East Tennessee Economic Council.

The mission of the Tennessee World Affairs Council is to promote, on a nonpartisan basis, understanding of important international issues, throughout the community and with a special focus on the region’s schools.

The Baker Center is a nonpartisan center that develops educational programs and promotes research to further the public’s understanding and knowledge of our system of governance, critical public policy issues and the importance of public service and civic engagement. The center fosters a genuine respect for differing points of view, and it serves as a forum for discussion, debate, education and research.

For more information about the Baker Center, see http://www.bakercenter.utk.edu/.


Contact:

Amy Blakely, (865) 974-5034, amy.blakely@tennessee.edu