Retired general to speak Saturday
By From staff reports
Published in News on January 13, 2011 1:46 PM
Karl Eikenberry
Retired Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, a Goldsboro High School graduate and the United States ambassador to Afghanistan, will speak Saturday at the Arts Council of Wayne County on the U.S. presence in that country.
The event is part of Wayne County Reads, which this year is focused on two books about Afghanistan by author Greg Mortenson.
Eikenberry, a former lieutenant general in the U.S. Army, was appointed ambassador to the war-ravaged country in 2009 by President Barack Obama. Prior to that he served as deputy chairman of NATO's Military Committee in Brussels, Belgium.
Eikenberry, who graduated from Goldsboro High in 1969 and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1973, served two tours of duty in Afghanistan, including one as the commander of the U.S.-led coalition forces fighting there.
Eikenberry holds a master's degree in Asian studies from Harvard University and a master's degree in political science from Stanford University.
Eikenberry will speak at 7 p.m. at the Arts Council at the corner of Spence Avenue and Ash Street. His topic will be U.S. goals and progress in the conflict.
Tonight, Duke University professor Tim Nichols will speak at Wayne Community College at 7 p.m. on U.S. policy in Afghanistan.