The Aspen Security Forum Releases Select 2012 Forum Panels

WASHINGTON, July 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Aspen Institute Homeland Security Program today releases its agenda for the third annual forum on homeland security and counterterrorism, the Aspen Security Forum, to be held July 25-28 in Aspen, CO. A full schedule is available on the forum website, www.aspensecurityforum.org. The forum is co-presented by CNN.com's "Security Clearance" and The New York Times.

Notable sessions include:
*Note: All event times are Mountain Time

July 25

• Admiral William McRaven, commander of US Special Operations Command
  In conversation with Wolf Blitzer, host of CNN's "The Situation Room"
  At the Point of the Spear: The Role of Special Operations Forces in America's Post-9/11, Post-Iraq/Afghanistan Defense Strategy at 6:00 PM

July 26

• Matthew Olsen, director of the National Counterterrorism Center
  Michael Leiter, former director of the National Counterterrorism Center
  In conversation with David Ignatius, Washington Post Associate Editor & Columnist
  The National Counterterrorism Center's Role in Counterterrorism at 9:00 AM
• Michael Sheehan, assistant secretary of defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict
  Paul Stockton, assistant secretary of defense for Homeland Defense and Americas' Security Affairs
  Admiral (Ret.) Eric Olson, former commander of US Special Operations Command
  In conversation with New York Times Chief Washington Correspondent David Sanger
  The Department of Defense's Role in Counterterrorism at 10:15 AM
• General Keith Alexander, National Security Agency Director and Commander of US Cyber Command
  In conversation with NBC News correspondent Pete Williams
  Cybersecurity at 12:45 PM
• The hit Showtime series "Homeland" will be screened at 8:00 PM. Following the screening, the show's executive producer, Alex Cary, will be joined by former Director of Intelligence Analysis at NYPD Mitch Silber and former Commissioner of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (9/11 Commission) Richard Ben-Veniste to discuss the role that Hollywood plays and should play in the national security debate, especially as it pertains to terrorism. CNN Intelligence Correspondent Suzanne Kelly will moderate the discussion.

July 27

• John Pistole, administrator of the Transportation Security Administration
  In conversation with ABC News' "Nightline" co-anchor Terry Moran
  Aviation Security at 9:00 AM

• Sean Joyce, deputy FBI Director
  Timothy Williams, director of INTERPOL Washington
  William Webster, former FBI and CIA Director
  Bart Johnson, former principal deputy undersecretary for intelligence and analysis at the Department of Homeland Security
  Brad Brekke, VP for assets protection at Target
  In conversation with NPR's Dina Temple-Raston
  Law Enforcement and Homeland Security at 10:30 AM

• American Wars and Foreign Policy will feature discussions on Iraq, Afghanistan, and European partners and international organizations.

Paul Wolfowitz, former deputy Secretary of State
Christopher Hill, former US Ambassador to Iraq
Jabir Habeb Jabir, Ambassador of Iraq to the US
In conversation with the Associated Press's Kimberly Dozier
The Iraq War at 2:45 PM

Lieutenant General (Ret.) Douglas E. Lute, special assistant to the President for Afghanistan and Pakistan
Sherry Rehman, ambassador of Pakistan to the US
Eklil Hakimi, afghan Ambassador to the US
Lieutenant General (Ret.) Karl Eikenberry, former US Ambassador to Afghanistan
In conversation with CBS News' "60 Minutes" Correspondent Steve Kroft
The war in Afghanistan at 4:15 PM

July 28

• Lisa Monaco, assistant attorney general for national security at the Department of Justice
  Alberto Mora, former general counsel of the Navy
  Ali Soufan, former FBI special agent
  In conversation with Newsweek special correspondent Dan Klaidman
  The Rule of Law and the War on Terrorism at 9:15 AM
• Raymond Kelly, New York City Police Department Commissioner
  In conversation with Walter Isaacson, president & CEO of The Aspen Institute
  Securing the Nation's Largest City at 11:30 AM
• Colin Kahl, former deputy assistant secretary of Defense for the Middle East (President Obama supporter)
  Douglas Feith, former under secretary of Defense for Policy (Governor Romney supporter)
  In conversation with Politico White House correspondent Josh Gerstein
  Decision 2012 and National Security at 12:45 PM
• Jane Holl Lute, deputy Secretary of Homeland Security
  Michael Chertoff, former Secretary of Homeland Security
  Jim Loy, former acting and deputy Director of Homeland Security
  In conversation with TIME magazine's Editor-at-Large Bart Gellman
  The Department of Homeland Security: Past, Present, and Future at 4:15 PM
• Admiral Robert S. Harward, deputy commander, US Central Command
  In conversation with Wolf Blitzer, host of CNN's "The Situation Room"
  CENTCOM's Front and Center Role in Combating Threats to America's Interests at 5:30 PM

Additional topics discussed will include maritime security; mass transit security; critical infrastructure protection and "soft targets" security; cyber-security; legal issues in the war on terrorism; and the role and responsibilities of the media in reporting on sensitive homeland security/counterterrorism-related issues.

Forum sessions will be streamed live at www.aspeninstitute.org/live and posted after on http://aspensecurityforum.org/video-library. Updates will be featured on Twitter at twitter.com/aspeninstitute and #ASF2012, as well as on Facebook at facebook.com/aspeninstitute.

For media questions, please contact Jennifer Myers at [email protected] or 202-286-1680. For general information about the forum, please contact Josh Diamonstein at [email protected] or 202-736-2904. For sponsorship information, please contact Deborah Cunningham at [email protected]. All sessions will be on the record.

Sponsors for the 2012 Aspen Security Forum are AGT International, HFRX, IBM, The Robert R. McCormick Foundation, Target, and The CELL.

The Aspen Institute Homeland Security Program works to heighten public awareness as to the nation's continued vulnerability to terrorism, and to persuade the nation to take the necessary steps to close the gap between how secure we should be and how secure we actually are. For more information, please visit www.aspeninstitute.org/policy-work/homeland-security.

The Aspen Institute is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to foster leadership based on enduring values and to provide a nonpartisan venue for discussing and acting on critical issues. For more information, please visit www.aspeninstitute.org.

SOURCE The Aspen Institute