Premier U.S. historian of the Middle East, Rashid Khalidi dissects the impact that Cold War-era rivalries had in shaping the dynamics of current Middle Eastern conflicts. What role did the Cold War play in establishing the American presence in the Middle East? How do the long shadows of the United States and Soviet Union continue to affect of view of Middle Eastern politics? This is part of his lecture at the Cambridge Forum in Boston, Ma on March 18 2009.