Policy Analysis

"There can be no lasting peace if the Israelis, for whatever reason, feel like they must accept an agreement because it makes us [Americans] happy." --Bush, as reported in the Associated Press, September 6, 2000 "If elected president, I will begin the process of moving the U.S. ambassador to the

With the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, Russian superpower presence in the Middle East faded, and since 1991, a vision of Russian national interest in the region has been missing. Pushed by a succession of narrow domestic corporate and bureaucratic interests, as well

With talks completed between senior Israeli and Palestinian negotiators at a northern Virginia hotel, following Monday evening's tête-à-tête between Ehud Barak and Yasir Arafat, this week has marked the beginning of the Clinton administration's last big push to achieve Israeli-Palestinian peace. As the countdown to January 20, 2001 proceeds, the

A UN approved Jordanian "humanitarian" flight into Baghdad today punctuates a month of air travel to Iraq unprecedented since 1991. The flight, following similar flights in recent weeks by France and Russia, is significant as Jordan is a key U.S. ally and a recipient of substantial U.S. foreign assistance. The

Does this week's summit of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, mark the return of OPEC as a force in world politics and economics? Not really, though oil market conditions this winter may put OPEC members in a powerful position. Background: OPEC's Role In

Iraqi actions of recent weeks-- renewed threats against Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, violations of Saudi air space by Iraqi combat aircraft, and a belligerent speech by President Saddam Husayn inciting OPEC against the U.S.-- have stoked concerns that Iraq may seek to foment a crisis this autumn while American attention

On September 16, 2000, Shimon Peres, Israeli minister for regional cooperation, former Israeli prime minister, and the longest serving member of the Israeli Knesset, delivered a keynote address at The Washington Institute's Weinberg Founders Conference. The following is a rapporteur's summary of his remarks. Israel needs to make three different

The wishes of the Palestinian and Israeli peoples and the situation in which they find themselves mandate a resolution to the conflict. The fact that all three parties--Americans, Palestinians and Israelis--are motivated to reach a deal quickly makes this goal more readily attainable. However, in spite of the wish to

While Philippine soldiers may not have succeeded in freeing Western hostages--including American Jeffrey Schilling--the ongoing standoff in the faraway Pacific has provided one more opportunity for Libyan leader Mu'ammar Qaddafi to rehabilitate his tarnished international image. Qaddafi's latest humanitarian effort--ransoming hostages--reflects Libya's "new" diplomacy of offering to mediate regional conflicts

The political status of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem is the subject of final status negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. According to press reports, at one moment in the Camp David negotiations last July, senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat asked his Israeli counterpart: "How do you know that your

It gives me great pleasure, and I am indeed honored, to be invited to this very important function at this very crucial time. Although it is quite risky to talk about current negotiations, I will try not to be trite and historical. I will try my best to reveal as

Thank you for inviting me to participate in this session. The preceding speakers, Nabil Sha'ath and Shimon Peres, would seem to be a hard act to follow, with all their bright ideas and beautiful language, but I will do what I can. At the same time, following them makes my

Israelis have to make three different sorts of peace. The first, surprisingly, is with ourselves; the second is with our neighbors; and the third is with the age in which we live. The three cannot be separated. The Arab reaction and that of the press have nothing to do with

Keynote addresses by Winston Wiley, Shimon Peres, and Nabil Sha'ath. With Faisal Husseini, Reuven Merhav, Ephraim Yaar-Yuchtman, Walid Abu Zuluf, Robert Hunter, Robert Blackwill, and others.

It is a pleasure for me to deliver the keynote address to The Washington Institute. During the last several years, many of us in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) have found the Institute's publications and policy fora highly useful, if for no other reason than they give us the chance

Unlike the nearly two hundred other world leaders who spoke at last week's Millennium Summit, virtually every Arab head of state delivered a speech that avoided the conclave's main theme--meeting the economic and political challenge of globalization. Instead, they spoke about preserving Arab rights in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian

Last Sunday, the world breathed a sigh of relief as the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council voted to postpone a declaration of statehood until at least November 15, 2000. Less noticed, however, has been the internal battle over what is perhaps the second most important political issue on the

At a time when U.S. global power seems absolute, the presidential candidates are assiduously avoiding thorny international security issues. Such complacency is misguided because the U.S. faces a greater terrorist threat now than at any point in the past. The next president will have to confront not just the challenge

The stunning success of several prominent opposition candidates in Lebanon's recent parliamentary elections has been portrayed by much of the Western press as a "defeat" for Syrian interests in Lebanon, and a "loosening" of Syria's grip over its smaller neighbor. Now that the elections are over, the next step in

Only Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (and the breakaway Chechen government) recognize the Taliban state, but the self-styled Islamic Emirate is a fact of life. Taliban rule began in 1994, when students from madrasas (Islamic seminaries) in Pakistan and Afghanistan took up arms to end civil strife