Iran of course is Shiite, while the bulk of the Arabs are Sunni, that is a problem or could be a problem. Also, there is the simple fact that Iran is non-Arab and most of the Muslims in the Middle East are Arab.

In the coming decades, questions of identity, meaning cultural heritage, language, and religion will play a central role in politics.

Every civilization sees itself as the center of the world and writes its history as the central drama of human history.

I've been to Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait for brief visits at conferences, and they are very interesting countries.

A lot of people tend to think I'm a dogmatic ideologue, which I'm not.

Fundamentalist tendencies and movements existed, so far as I know, in all societies and civilizations.

When I think of countries that I enjoyed visiting, that I would want to go back to, Italy would be one, Japan would be another. I've only been to Indonesia once or twice and it seems like such a fascinating country. I guess India certainly.