This week I had a special opportunity to get to know some top experts on global terrorism. I had the pleasure of introducing Peter Bergen, a prominent CNN national security analyst and VP at New America, moderator for a panel on China, Security Threats and Society (Then and Now) for Phoenix Committee on Foreign Relations 40th anniversary.
Bergen has written four books on terrorism most recently the United States of Jihad. He made a compelling argument about why he doesn't think a wall is going to stop terrorism.
Bergen commented that American is not threatened as much by terrorism as Europe. He noted that night and also in this article that he published here that "we are not so far seeing Americans trained by ISIS in Syria in paramilitary tactics then returning to the United States as we have seen with recruits to ISIS in Europe."
Gayle Tzemach Lemmon, senior fellow for women and foreign policy, commented passionately about her work and coverage of women in Afghanistan. She emphasized that Afghanistan is often a forgotten war. Lemmon pointed out that many times she communicated with Bergen about Afghanistan stories. She pointed out that sometimes she thinks that she and Bergen are among the few committed to remind us what we did in Afghanistan and theravages of that war are NOT over.
The other panelists Ambassador Stapleton Roy, who spoke about China the military and the economy, and Marco Vicenzino, who addressed cybersecurity and security concerns, were also stimulating. But Bergen's and Lemmon's comments stood out to me to be the most compelling.
Now when I watch Bergen regularly commenting on CNN about the ongoing coverage of the horrific terrorist attacks in Belgium, I feel like I am watching a friend report.
