Two diplomats from two of the countries serving on the United Nation Security Council are scheduled to visit Mississippi State University next week.
U.S. Ambassador Gerald Wesley Scott and French Counselor Vincent Floreani are expected to arrive at MSU Thursday, Feb. 13, and leave the following Saturday, Feb. 15. They were invited to visit the campus by the Mississippi Model Security Council for its annual program.
Director of the MMSC Hannah Britton discussed some of the events on the agenda for the event. An opening ceremony and speech from the U.S. diplomat is planned Thursday from 1 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. in the Union Ballroom and is opened to the public. Later that day, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Union Ballroom, both diplomats have been asked to conduct a question and answer session. This is also opened to the public.
A banquet followed by a speech from the French diplomat is scheduled for Friday at 6:30 p.m. The banquet is closed to the public.
Limited seating for the question and answer session on Thursday might pose a problem, Britton said. “There are 400 seats in the ballroom and 300 are already taken.” Despite this difficulty Britton remains optimistic about the upcoming visitation by the two diplomats.
Ambassador Scott’s career in the U.S. Foreign Service has carried him from cities such as New York, Washington and Rome to a variety of countries such as Morocco, Zaire, Kenya and Vietnam. He retired from his position in 2000, but has since remained in the international arena by serving as the senior advisor to the U.S. permanent mission to the United Nations.
Counselor Floreani has held a position in the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he was responsible for the reform of the Security Council and the cooperation between the members of the European Union serving on the Security Council. He was also in charge of matters regarding Libya, the Western Sahara and Iraq.
Counselor Floreani now holds the office of Foreign Affairs Counselor of the Permanent Mission of France to the United Nations.
Britton feels that the current international events will make this year’s program interesting.
“I think it’s an exciting year for the program. This is the first time two diplomats are coming from the permanent five,” she said in reference to the five nations that hold the veto power in the Security Council. The United States and France are in the permanent five along with Great Britain, Russia and China.
Colonel Jeff Donald, one of the organizers for the MMSC program this year, echoed Britton’s sentiments concerning the two nations represented at the upcoming events.
“We have two permanent five members, two different perspectives,” Donald said.
Donald added that the MMSC is an excellent program that helps people understand the number of players in the global community, the complexity of national security and the complexity of foreign affairs.
Those interested in the organization are encouraged to enroll in the MMSC since it is an accredited college course.