Advisory Board
As part of our strategic vision, LMEC has assembled a non-political advisory board comprised of distinguished subject-matter experts who will provide invaluable insights and expertise. The board's role is crucial in ensuring that our initiatives are informed by a deep understanding of the complexities and nuances of the Middle East & North Africa and its relationship with the United Kingdom.
Baria Alamuddin
Baria Alamuddin is an award-winning journalist and broadcaster in the Middle East and the UK. Beginning her career as a news anchor in Lebanon, she has gone on to interview numerous high-profile figures, from Benazir Bhutto to Margaret Thatcher, Yasser Arafat to Fidel Castro, and was the last journalist to interview Indira Gandhi before she was assassinated.
Baria is a passionate advocate for women’s rights in the Middle East, earning a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2018 Commonwealth Businesswomen Awards and receiving an Arab Women of the Year Award for Achievement in Media.
She is currently the Editor of the Media Services Syndicate and a columnist for Arab News having previously been Editor at Large at Al-Hayat.
Sir John Sawers
Sir John Sawers is a former diplomat and intelligence officer who now advises on foreign policy and international security.
Sir John held a variety of senior positions in his career as a civil servant: he served as the Foreign Affairs Advisor to the Prime Minister, the UK ambassador to Egypt and the United Nations, the Political Director at the Foreign Office, as well as Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6).
As well as serving as a non-executive director at BP, Sir John is a visiting professor at King’s College London, and a senior advisor at Chatham House.
Hatice Beton
Hatice Beton advises on sustainable finance and global health. She is currently the CEO of Sovereign Strategy, and previously worked in New York as part of Germany’s Permanent Representation to the United Nations.
Hatice also serves as the Executive Director of the G20 & G7 Health Development Partnership, an advocacy organisation that represents over 27 global health organisations.
Farouk Soussa
Farouk Soussa is an Economist at Goldman Sachs International, responsible for the MENA region. Prior to joining Goldman’s, Mr Soussa had been Head of Middle East Economics at Citigroup, and head of government ratings for the Middle East and Africa at Standard & Poor’s, both in Dubai and London.
Mr Soussa started his career at the Bank of England and has spent time with the UK Financial Services Authority and as a Jean Monnet Fellow at the European University Institute in Florence. He speaks fluent Arabic and currently lives in London.
Lord Robertson of Port Allen
Lord George Robertson is a Labour Party politician who served as the 10th Secretary General of NATO from 1999 to 2004.
He was Secretary of State for Defence from 1997 to 1999, before becoming a life peer as Baron Robertson of Port Ellen, of Islay in Argyll and Bute.
Robertson first entered the House of Commons as the Labour MP for Hamilton in 1978 and won five subsequent general elections. He served as Chairman of the Labour Party in Scotland and was appointed to the Privy Council.
Prof Gareth Stansfield OBE
Professor Gareth Stansfield is an academic specialising in the Middle East. Since 2002 he has been a Professor of Middle East Politics at the University of Exeter, and has received fellowships from the Royal Society of Arts and the Academy of Social Sciences.
Recognised for his expertise, he was appointed OBE in the 2024 New Year’s Honours List and holds esteemed positions in various academic and policy institutes, including the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and the University of Oxford.
Stansfield’s extensive fieldwork spans the Middle East and Islamic World, informing his advisory roles in governmental and private sectors on issues like post-Islamic State governance and regional security dynamics.