Policy Analysis

Finally, after four months of pre-campaign maneuvering, the fireworks of Israel's 51st Independence Day last week marked the welcome opening of the real campaign for this country's May 17 elections. Until now, Israelis have witnessed a surreal campaign, dominated by polls for an electoral contest that will never happen (that

Two threads have run through the Iranian government's attitudes toward the current crisis in the Balkans. The first is Iran's self-perceived role as leader of the Islamic community. This sentiment has existed since the 1979 revolution, and it was reinforced in 1997 when Iran assumed the leadership of the fifty-five-member

In the longer run, Kosovo will have a dramatic impact on the U.S.-European relationship. Kosovo has raised questions about the powerlessness of Europeans in the face of Kosovo-like conflicts as well as the dangers Europe must confront. Kosovo will be the catalyst for the overdue post-Cold War debate over the

In making two strongly nationalist parties the top vote-getters in this weekend's elections, Turks showed the assertiveness of a nation that feels itself emerging as a regional power and the defensiveness of one still embittered by Western Europe's rejection. The secular establishment can take only slight solace in the decline

The flight of refugees from the predominantly Muslim ethnic Albanian community in Kosovo, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) continuing airstrikes against Serbia, have produced varied reactions in the Middle East. The following is a sample of responses. Support for NATO in the Arab World "We must encourage the

The most likely outcome of the elections will be a three- or four-party, right-left, secular coalition government under the incumbent prime minister, Bulent Ecevit, who will probably receive the most votes among secularists. Whatever the results, the half-civilian, half-military National Security Council will continue to determine the major lines of

On April 18, Turkish voters will choose a new national government and new municipal governments. These early elections for the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TGNA) are unlikely to bring order to a political scene that has been unstable since 1995, when the Republican People's Party (RPP) withdrew support for its

With the 1999 elections, Algeria is the only Arab country to have had two presidential elections that included more than one candidate. The seven candidates running in the 1999 presidential elections represent a wide range of views, minus the two most extreme, that is, the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) and

NICHOLAS ROSTOW May 4, 1999, should not be viewed as a "Sword of Damocles." No matter what happens on May 4, both Israel and the Palestinians are obligated by international law to pursue and achieve a negotiated peace within the framework of United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338

In the run-up to Israel's May 17 election, the issue of Jerusalem is returning to the political center stage. Just last month, the European Union -- via a letter to the Israeli Foreign Ministry by the German ambassador to Israel, Theodor Wallau -- sparked a mini-furor by reaffirming an idea

Recently, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced in Vienna its most substantial production cuts in years. But as important as this rare demonstration of solidarity -- and the resultant hike in long slumping oil prices -- is what the meeting reveals about the emerging Saudi-Iranian cooperation and

Libya today handed over two suspects in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. Having worked out a deal that insulates the regime from any further blame, Tripoli finally accepted the offer of a trial to be held at a neutral site under Scottish rules. Less obvious, given Libya's

Pages: 30

Change in Jordan has come swiftly and remarkably smoothly. The new king--Abdullah II--has adopted as his mantra the promise of "continuity" of his father's policies, yet he has already displayed ingenuity and cunning, especially on internal matters. Nevertheless, the challenges to Abdullah remain acute. Once this honeymoon period ends, Abdullah

Last December's Operation Desert Fox resulted in the death of the UN Special Commission on Iraq (UNSCOM). This leads to the question of how to deal with the issue of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) capabilities. Status of Iraqi WMD Between 1991 and 1998, UNSCOM achieved considerable results in

Election Background. Over the last thirty years, Israeli elections have primarily focused on the Arab-Israeli conflict. Although this issue remains important not only vis-a-vis the Palestinians but also Lebanon, this election has so far focused more on Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu's leadership. The Wye accords de-ideologized Israeli politics. The

Accomplishments of the Current Israeli Government The current Israeli government has presided over three important historical achievements: Oslo and the Peace Process. Prior to the current government's ascension to power in 1996, the Oslo process belonged to the Israeli left. Over the last three years, however, the Binyamin Netanyahu government

The issue of what will happen on May 4, 1999, likely will be central to President Bill Clinton's meeting with Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Yasir Arafat tomorrow. There is a widespread view that the Oslo accords between Israel and the Palestinians will terminate on May 4, and Palestinian Liberation Organization

Oil ministers from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) are due to meet in Vienna, Austria on 23 March to agree formally on production cuts that will bolster the flagging price of oil. The current weak oil prices have benefited the industrialized economies of the world but have created

On March 8, 1999, Undersecretary of State Stuart Eizenstat delivered The Washington Institute's Third Les Aspin Memorial Lecture honoring the late chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, secretary of defense, and member of the Institute's Board of Advisors. The following is a rapporteur's summary of the forum's question-and-answer session