Michael Dougall Bell

Michael Dougall Bell (September 10, 1943 – August 24, 2017) was a Canadian Foreign Service Officer with 36 years experience in the Department of Foreign Affairs, mostly focused on the Middle East. He was Canada's Ambassador to Jordan (1987–90), Egypt (1994–98), and Israel (1990–92 and 1999–2003). He was also Chair of the Donor Committee of the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq.

Michael Dougall Bell
Canada Ambassador to Jordan
In office
1987–1990
Preceded byGary Richard Harman
Succeeded byArthur Percy Sherwood
Canada Ambassador to Israel
In office
1990–1992
Preceded byJames Bartleman
Succeeded byNorman Spector
Canada Ambassador to Cyprus
In office
1991–1992
Preceded byJames Bartleman
Succeeded byNorman Spector
Canada Ambassador to Egypt
In office
1994–1998
Preceded byJacques T. Simard
Succeeded byMarie-Andrée Beauchemin
Canada Ambassador to Israel
In office
1999–2003
Preceded byDavid Berger
Succeeded byDonald Sinclair
Personal details
Born(1943-09-10)September 10, 1943
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
DiedAugust 24, 2017(2017-08-24) (aged 73)
Residence(s)Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Alma materUniversity of Windsor

Early life

Bell was born on September 10, 1943, in Windsor, Ontario. He attended Assumption College School from 1958 to 1962, and later attended the University of Windsor. At Windsor he received his B.A. Hons (1966) and M.A. (1967) in Political Science and Economic Studies.

Foreign Service

After completing his M.A. he joined the Canadian Foreign Service, holding early positions in Kingston, Jamaica (1968–1970), Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago (1970–1972), and Rome, Italy (1981–1983). He Also Served as the Senior Political Officer in Tel Aviv, Israel from 1975 to 1978. He was Executive Assistant for Middle East Affairs to the Honourable Robert Stanfield (1978–1979), and Director of the Middle East Relations Division (1983–1987), Director General for Central and Eastern Europe (1992–1994). He served as Canadian Ambassador to Egypt, Jordan and Israel (twice), as well as High Commissioner to Cyprus. He was also an Arms Inspector for UNSCOM for a short period.[1]

After the Foreign Service

Bell served as the Fellow at the Weatherhead Centre for International Affairs at Harvard University (1998–99) and from 2003 to 2005 he was Senior Scholar on Diplomacy at the Munk Centre for International Studies, at the University of Toronto.[1] Afterwards, Bell joined the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University and the Paul Martin (Sr.) Senior Scholar in International Diplomacy, University of Windsor, where he taught until his death.

Bell has been a contributor to The Globe and Mail. He has also published in the Literary Review of Canada, the Behind the Headlines series of the Canadian Institute of International Affairs, Ideas: the Arts and Science Review of the University of Toronto, the International Journal, and the Journal of International Law and International Relations.[1]

Later work

Michael Bell was the Paul Martin (Sr.) Senior Scholar on International Diplomacy at the University of Windsor, where he taught on the law and politics of the modern Middle East. He was also engaged in a major study on the future governance of Jerusalem's Old City. The project is designed to stimulate thinking amongst decision makers, respecting options for the future governance of the old city for possible use by negotiators, in the event of renewed negotiations for a comprehensive peace between Israelis and Palestinians.[2] Critics note that this activity was detached from regional realities, "misguided"[3] and unhelpful.[4][5]

He died of liver cancer on 24 August 2017.[6]

Political activity

Bell joined a Justin Trudeau initiative "to help him persuade voters he has the foreign policy chops to be prime minister in 2015", which was unveiled on 16 December 2014 in the lead-up to the 2015 Canadian election. The group of 14 experts included several candidates for office, a Calgary-based lawyer who advocates for Chinese state-owned enterprises, and another lawyer who wrote "lamenting the lack of diversity and women in positions of power in corporate Canada".[7] In the months between the two events, he was interviewed on the P5+1 Iran deal and said:[8]

It’s been clear for some time that Israeli intelligence did not agree with Netanyahu’s statements about Iran’s intentions. This revelation will now put Republicans in the U.S. and Netanyahu and his supporters in Israel on the defensive. What people need to remember is that Iran wants to be integrated into the international system. And I think we can trust the P5 countries to make sure any deal with Iran won’t allow it to develop nuclear weapons.

and he has written in The Globe and Mail pieces such as:

References
  1. University of Windsor - Research - Prof. M. Bell - Main
  2. uwindsor.ca: "Jerusalem Old City Initiative / About Us / Who We Are"
  3. CJN, The (2008-09-11). "A letter to Bob Rae - The Canadian Jewish News". Retrieved 2016-09-15.
  4. "Slander: Canadian former Ambassador Says Jews, Not Arabs, Stoned Leftist (UPDATE)". Algemeiner.com. Retrieved 2016-09-15.
  5. Ben-Dat, Mordechai (2009-01-08). "Free, but unhelpful advice - The Canadian Jewish News". Retrieved 2016-09-15.
  6. "Former ambassador Michael Bell was the face of Canadian diplomacy in the Middle East". The Globe and Mail. 2017-08-24. Archived from the original on 2022-12-24.
  7. globeandmail.com: "Trudeau unveils foreign policy team of ex-military officers, ambassadors", 16 Dec 2014
  8. theglobeandmail.com: "Leaked files show Mossad, Netanyahu differed on timetable for Iran nuclear program", 23 Feb 2015
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