Ghassan Salamé

Ghassan Salamé (* 1951) is a Lebanese political scientists, politicians and UN consultant. He belongs to the Catholic religious community in Lebanon.

Life

After studying political science and literature at the University of Saint Joseph in Lebanon, he became a professor at the American University of Beirut and at the University of Saint Joseph. In 1987, he was (also known as Institut d' études politiques de Paris) where he worked as a professor CERI -CNRS Research Director at Sciences Po Paris.

As a scientist, he is concerned with the policy in the Middle East, the local democratization and religious- political conflicts. He is currently conducting research on the role of culture in international relations and on practical experience of the Arab and Islamic world.

In 1999 he was Minister of Culture in Lebanon. In this role he was also chairman of the Ministerial Conference of the Francophonie. He was the closest advisor of UN Sérgio Vieira de Mello, the UN special representative in Iraq. Unlike this Salamé survived the attack on the UN building in Baghdad. A re- nomination as Minister of Culture in the Government of Lebanon Najib Miqati in April 2005, he refused for political and professional reasons.

Since 2011, Ghassan Salamé serves on the Board of the Swiss Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue.

Works

• Democracy Without Democrats? The Renewal of Politics in the Muslim World, IB Tauris & Company, 1994 ( ed.)
• International Summit on Democracy, Terrorism and Security, 2005 ( ed.)
• Appels d' Empire. Ingérences et à l' âge de la Résistances mondialisation, Fayard, Paris 1996.
• Démocraties sans démocrates. Politiques d' ouverture dans le monde islamique, Fayard, Paris 1994. ( Translations in English, Arabic and Spanish. )
• Proche - orient. Les exigences de la paix, Complexe, Paris 1994.
• The Foundations of the Arab State, Croom Helm, London 1990.
• The Politics of Arab Integration, Croom Helm, London 1990.