On July 20, 2010, the Nixon Center sponsored a debate between Washington Institute executive director Robert Satloff and former U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia Chas Freeman on the question of whether Israel is an asset or liability to U.S. strategic interests.
According to Dr. Satloff, a cost-benefit analysis of the U.S.-Israel relationship over the past thirty-six years -- since the bilateral relationship began to take off after the October 1973 war -- shows that Israel has provided a "strategic bonanza" to the United States, "both in objective terms and compared to any other Middle Eastern relationship we have." The U.S.-Israel relationship, he argued, is "not just an asset, but a bargain."
Download Dr. Satloff's opening remarks (PDF).
Read Ambassador Freeman's opening remarks at the Nixon Center website.
Download a PDF containing their prepared statements, rebuttals, and discussion.