January 15, 2013
Israeli ambassador Michael Oren speaking Jan. 29 at Kansas State University
Submitted by Communications and Marketing
Michael Oren, a frequent guest of the White House, the State Department and the Pentagon, will speak at 10:15 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29, in Forum Hall at Kansas State University's Student Union.
Oren is Israel's ambassador to the U.S., a post he has held since June 2009. His visit will mark the 162nd presentation in the university's Landon Lecture Series. He will present "Israel, The Ultimate Ally."
"Coming from such a historically rich and politically complex part of the world, Ambassador Oren no doubt will shed new light on our country's relationship with Israel," said Jackie Hartman, the university's chief of staff, director of community relations and chair of the Landon Lecture Series. "He will help us carry on the Landon Lecture Series tradition of bringing world leaders to Kansas State University."
Oren has been called one of the five most influential Jewish leaders in America and one of the 10 most influential Jewish leaders worldwide. He has been instrumental in securing U.S. support for Israel's defense and upholding Israel's right to security and peace. He briefs Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders on issues vital to the U.S.-Israel alliance.
Oren was born in the U.S. and educated at Princeton and Columbia universities. His last two books, "Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East from 1776 to the Present" and "Six Days of War," were New York Times bestsellers. Active in social media, Oren has a presence on Twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/AmbassadorOren and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/AmbassadorOren.
For more than 40 years, Kansas State University's Alfred M. Landon Lecture Series on Public Issues has brought prestigious speakers to campus. Alfred Landon served two consecutive terms as Kansas governor and was the 1936 Republican Party nominee for president of the United States.