The 2nd Annual Sulaimani Forum, "Navigating Challenges in the Middle East", was held on the 4th and 5th of March 2014. Influential public leaders and distinguished experts convened to discuss geopolitical dynamics in Iraq, Syria, Iran and Turkey, as well as critical regional issues including the water crisis, oil and gas, ethno-sectarianism, and the realities of investment and economic growth.
Prominent government officials from Iraq and abroad attended, including Foreign Minister of the Republic of Iraq Hoshyar Zebari; Foreign Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoğlu; National Security Advisor of Iraq Falah al-Fayyadh; Former Speaker of the Iraqi National Assembly Hajim Al-Hassani; Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government Nechirvan Idris Barzani; Former Vice President of Iraq Adil Abd Al Mehdi; Brett McGurk of the U.S. Department of State; and representative of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Sadeghi. Participants in the Forum also included prominent journalists such as BBC World anchor Pooneh Ghoddoosi, author and analyst Robin Wright, and former war correspondent and Al Monitor columnist Cengiz Çandar. Renowned experts on the panels included Kenneth Pollack of the Brookings Institution, Fanar Haddad of the National University of Singapore, Charles Tripp of the School of Oriental and African Studies, Kirk Sowell of Inside Iraqi Politics, and Fabrice Balanche of Universite de Lyon 2. Influential businesspersons participated as well, including Faruk Mustafa Rasool of Faruk Group Holding, Shwan Taha of Rabee Securities, Philip Khoury of Impera Capital, and Esra Pelitozu of Selco Finance and Industrial Group.
