Gen. James Mattis, a four-star general and commander of military personnel in the Middle East, waits to answer questions prepared by University of Wyoming students.
A four-star general and commander for the United States military in the Middle East shared his experiences with a packed auditorium at the University of Wyoming on Thursday.
Gen. James Mattis, who has been involved in the Middle East since 1979, is a war veteran involved in such military undertakings as Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
UW President Tom Buchanan introduced Mattis as having “redefined how the U.S. military combats complicated counterinsurgencies.”
Mattis commands 203,000 military personnel in the central region, which includes Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan and areas of Siberia.
“Our real job is to try to help keep the peace, or what passes for peace, in the Middle East—for one more year, one more month, one more week, one more day, one more hour, one more minute—while our diplomats try to find diplomatic solutions to some rather difficult problems,” Mattis said.
The general said some of his main objectives are to promote economic modernization in other countries and to find a new peace process between Israel and Palestine, where he supports a two-state system.
“The Middle East is on a revolutionary path and it is never going to go back to what it was,” Mattis said. “If you look at the French Revolution in 1789, just substitute the word Cairo for Paris and you will have a pretty good idea of what is going on.”
Mattis made a plea for young people with new ideas and unregimented viewpoints to consider military and other forms of public service.
He also touted the importance of teachers. “Teachers are a bigger threat than even a marine with a rifle to a tyrant that wants to control people’s minds. Once you open a mind with books and teaching, it’s very hard to close it,” he said.
As for the idea that anti-Americanism runs rampant in other countries of the world, Mattis said it’s not as prevalent as students might think. He cited longstanding relationships with other countries based on friendship, such as the United Arab Emirates and Jordan.
Finally, the general gave some advice. “If you get into a scrape, you will often fall back on your education,” he said.
He also advised that “surprise is forever going to be a companion in your life,” and to make the most of it.
