[138] Visiting scholar to examine Indian-Israeli relations at MTSU Oct. 7

MURFREESBORO — One of the world’s foremost experts on the Middle East is coming to MTSU to share his insights with students and interested members of the public.

P.R. Kumaraswamy, a professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India, will talk about India’s relationship with Israel during associate professor Sean Foley’s class at 4:10 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 7, in Room 214 of MTSU’s Peck Hall. This event is free and open to the public, but public seating is limited.

Kumaraswamy was a research fellow at the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem from 1991 to 1999. He has taught at Jawaharlal Nehru University since September 1999.

“India has a large historical relationship to the Middle East,” said Foley, whose class focuses on the Arab-Israeli conflict. “Millions of Indians have worked in the Gulf States. There has been trade back and forth during the imperial era all the way to the present.”

Foley said Israel’s relationship with India, which has a large Muslim population, had been somewhat ambivalent in the 20^th century until free market reforms were introduced in India in 1991.

Given the rich oil reserves in the Middle East and India’s industrialization, the commercial relationships in the region could determine how the 21^st century develops, Foley said.

Kumaraswamy’s lecture is sponsored by the Department of History, the College of Liberal Arts, the Office of International Affairs and the Office of the Provost.

A searchable campus parking map is available at http://tinyurl.com/MTSUParking2015-16. Off-campus visitors attending the event should obtain a special one-day permit from MTSU’s Office of Parking and Transportation at http://www.mtsu.edu/parking/visit.php.

Contact Foley at 615-904-8294 or sean.foley@mtsu.edu in advance for more information.