Savannahians don’t often get the opportunity to ― borrowing a phrase from the musical “Hamilton” here― pose questions to those who were “in the room where it happens,” especially when it comes to international affairs. That changes May 22, when the Savannah Council on World Affairs brings Kurt Volker ― a veteran diplomat whose resume includes a stint as U.S. ambassador to NATO in the George W. Bush administration, as well as U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations during the Trump administration ― to town to wrap up the organization’s 2023-2024 speaker schedule.
“A New Storm is Gathering: Can We Prevent the Next War?” is Volker’s topic for the 7:30 p.m., May 22, discussion when SCWA meets at Skidaway Community Church (formerly Skidaway Presbyterian Church), 50 Diamond Causeway on Skidway Island. The church stands outside the gated communities on the island and the public is welcome to attend, with admission set at $10 for nonmembers of SCWA. A social period opens the meeting at 7 p.m., and the 7:30 p.m. lecture concludes with a question-and-answer session.
'The world situation is truly that tense'
The world situation truly is that tense, Volker said during a telephone interview May 15 from Estonia, where he was wrapping up a working visit to several European countries.
“Actually, we’re at a very dangerous point in time right now,” Volker said. “We have authoritarians in power all around the globe … and they’re all acting up and working together: North Korea is giving the Russians artillery shells, Russians are helping North Korea with missile technology.”
To those concerns, he said, add Iran being emboldened to attack Israel, with Russian approval, against the background of the war in Gaza, and China’s ongoing ambitions regarding Taiwan.
Meanwhile, NATO will hold its summit in Washington on July 9-11, the fourth time in the 75-year history of the organization that the U.S. has played host. This will also be the first summit at which Sweden will be among the now 32 NATO-member nations. Volker said he hopes the summit leads to substantive action ― like inviting Ukraine to join NATO ― instead of focusing on 75th anniversary ceremonies.
“This NATO summit really should be about how we should restore peace in Europe. Right now, we are undershooting, falling short of the mark,” he said. “When it comes to Europe, NATO should be leading.”
Volker said, “Our objective has to be to help Ukraine. If that’s really true, we need to be doing a lot more to make that happen. We need to lift restrictions on the types of weapons we provide and lift restrictions on how the weapons are used. We keep telling Ukraine not to hit Russian troops inside Russian territory.
“Second, we should help Ukraine defend their civilians just as much as we helped Israel defend their civilians from drone strikes by Iran,” he said.
Volker, 59, has spent 35 years in and out of the public sector as a diplomat and foreign service official, the private sector in consulting and finance, and in academia. He was the U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations from 2017 to 2019 and as U.S. Ambassador to NATO from 2008-2009. For seven years, through 2019, he served as founding executive director of The McCain Institute for International Leadership, a Washington, DC-based branch of Arizona State University. He taught transatlantic relations at Arizona State and at the George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs. Today, Volker divides his time among consulting for clients doing business in Europe, conducting research for a Washington, DC-based think tank, and working the speakers’ circuit.
What is SCWA?
Savannah is rich in special interest groups, gatherings of like-minded devotees of subjects ranging from foreign films to birdwatching. They mainly fly under the radar, out of the public eye for those who are not passionate about the given subject. The Savannah Council on World Affairs falls into this category, appealing to news junkies and followers of the international scene.
“We have students that attend, we have working people that attend and a lot of retired folks. It is a real mix, and we’re happy about that,” said Jim Van Epps, president of SCWA. “Not everyone has experience in international affairs, but they all want to know more.”
He went on to explain the local group is one of 90 affiliates of the World Affairs Councils of America. The local group has about 225 dues-paying members, but a typical meeting draws only 10 to 20% of them. SCWA is entirely volunteer-run, while the Atlanta group (the only other one in Georgia) has a paid staff, as does the chapter in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.
Where do the speakers – professors, usually from universities with prominent world affairs departments or ties to the military, retired foreign service officials, military representatives, and so on – come from? Some connections are made through WACA, but Savannah also has a robust supply of military retirees, academics and retired ambassadors who recruit speakers through their own contacts.
That’s the case with Volker. Lawrence Silverman and his wife retired to the Savannah area after dual careers with the U.S. State Department. In Silverman’s case, his 32-year career included service as U.S. ambassador to Kuwait. Over his years as a diplomat, he had become acquainted with Volker and approached him about speaking here.
The Volker program will wrap up SCWA’s schedule this year, since the organization doesn’t host programs June, July or August. Work has begun on firming up a schedule for the 2024-2025 schedule. Consult the website at savannahcwa.org for additional information.
In addition to the monthly programs during the academic year, SCWA sponsors scholarships to allow students from Savannah State University and Georgia Southern University to study abroad. An annual fundraising dinner and trivia contest helps raise funds for those scholarships. And this is no ordinary pub-quality trivia contest, or even the likes of a weekday Jeopardy match.
Test your grasp of world affairs with these rigorous trivia questions, culled from this year’s competition (answers at end).
1) Which country in the world has the longest coastline?
a. Indonesia
b. Canada
c. Australia
d. Russia
2) Can you name the currency of the country of Georgia?
a. Dram
b. Shekel
c. Som
d. Lari
3) Considered one of the most sacred Buddhist sites in the world, the Borobudur Temple compound is located in which country?
a. Indonesia
b. Laos
c. Cambodia
d. Thailand
Answers: 1= B; 2 = D; 3 = A
