Contact: Sammy McDavid
A former top United States diplomat visits Mississippi next week as the guest of Mississippi State University.
Retired assistant secretary of state Richard W. Murphy will be on the Starkville campus Monday and Tuesday [Nov. 15 and 16] before heading to Jackson for a Tuesday evening address to members of the Executive Lecture Forum.
Sponsored by MSU's Janos Radvanyi Chair in International Studies, Murphy's visit will include campus tours of major research centers and a Tuesday meeting with students and faculty members. The Jackson presentation takes place at the Capitol Club.
Murphy is a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York and chairman of the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C. He is a frequent commentator on Middle Eastern issues for national and international news organizations.
Named by President Ronald Reagan to the highest diplomatic rank of career ambassador, Murphy was assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern and South Asian affairs from 1983 until his retirement in 1989. Prior to that, he was ambassador to several countries, including Syria and Saudi Arabia.
For additional information on Murphy's visit, telephone (662) 325-8406.