The Decline of Sterling and the End of Empire in the Middle East

Steven Galpern is the author of Money, Oil, and Empire in the Middle East: Sterling and Postwar Imperialism, 1944-1971. His present position is Director, Office of Analysis for Near Eastern Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. In his own critique of the book, he will discuss the economic and other reasons for the abrupt British decision in 1967 to terminate the colonial empire—and the far-ranging consequences for the United States as well as Britain and other parts of the world.