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February 25, 2008 | EU Expansion to Israel and Palestine

Leon Hadar: The EU should put its money where its mouth is and work towards inviting both Israel and Palestine to join the EU. With the election of a new US president, Europe could gain more control in the Middle East, but only if it simultaneously accepts more responsibility.

February 22, 2008 | Transatlantic Security Agenda 2008

Benjamin Lucas Schoo: Vote now on what prominent security related issue the governments on both sides of the Atlantic should focus their attention on! We have identified 4 major tasks for 2008 and ask you to select which of these should be at the top of the transatlantic agenda. You can vote now on the right side.

November 28, 2007 | America Holds the Key to Mideast Peace

Anatol Lieven: I put the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into perspective and I argue that the greatest hope lies in American patriotism and the extent to which the US establishment takes the threat of Islamist terrorism seriously.

October 31, 2007 | Going to Annapolis: The Challenge

Colette Avital: For the Annapolis peace conference to be successful, the outcome must focus on the substance of a permanent peace. A mechanism of negotiations should be set in motion for the issues of borders, refugees, Jerusalem, and security, among others, and the peace process should be accompanied by tangible measures on the ground.

June 15, 2007 | Middle East Must Make Its Own Peace

Rudolf Adam: I warn that US influence on Israel is not enough to make peace. Forty years after the Six-Day War, domestic Israeli politics are the key to normalizing relations between settlers and Palestinians. The United States and EU should recognize that their powers here are limited.

August 18, 2008 | Burnish Legacies with Intensive Peace Effort

There is a wide gap between declarations that a two-state solution is vital for Israel’s security, and actually doing something about it. ++ Both Olmert and Bush have a few months left in offices: they will not go down in history as great leaders, but can still burnish their legacies by truly engaging in the peace effort. ++ They should freeze the expansion of Jewish settlements, cease

August 8, 2008 | Palestinian Civil Society is the Key to Peace

Regarding the issue of Palestine, Israel, the US, and the free world overemphasized the aim to have a strong partner in the peace process, and in doing so even supported corrupt and violent leaders. ++ But the path towards peace must pursue a radically different approach and must be linked to strengthening Palestinian civil society and the rule of law in the Palestinian territories. ++ The

August 6, 2008 | New Sect Widens Palestinian Dispute

As the chasm between Hamas and Fatah appears to widen, another organisation called Hizb ut-Tahrir emerges. ++ It has the aim to reestablish an Islamic Caliphate to govern the whole Muslim world under Islamic law, but opposes the use of violence and tries to gain supporters through education instead. ++ Even if Hizb ut-Tahrir does not stand in elections yet and is opposed by Fatah in the West

August 1, 2008 | Olmert's Resignation Will Disrupt Peace Talks

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert unexpectedly announced he will resign from his post in September. ++ The decision was a result of corruption accusations which made it increasingly difficult for him to fulfil his duties and prompted calls for his resignation. ++ The US State Department declares his departure will not affect American efforts to schedule some kind of peace agreement with PA by

July 25, 2008 | A One-State Solution for Israel and Palestine

Some scholars recently advocated a single-state solution, based on the idea of justice, during a public debate. ++ The delivery of justice would require conditions in which Palestinians could lead normal lives in their homeland. ++ But the realization of such an idea would mean the end of the Zionist project. ++ Moreover, it would require of Israeli society to face its heterogeneous character

July 8, 2008 | Global Nonpolarity: A New World Order

Globalization means that international affairs no longer occur in a bipolar, unipolar, or even multipolar world, but rather “under conditions of nonpolarity.” ++ In this nonpolar world, coordination between actors is increasingly difficult, and agreements are rarely reached. ++ The problem of Iran, currently Israel’s top concern, will unlikely motivate the international community to act in

June 26, 2008 | A Palestinian State From the Bottom up

Representatives at the Berlin Middle East Conference reaffirmed their commitment to the US-initiated peace process in Annapolis. ++ Yet the approach has been changed. ++ The creation of an efficient security mechanism aims at setting the preconditions for the Annapolis “two-state solution.” ++ A major investment in the Palestinian police and judicial structures would enable the creation of a

June 19, 2008 | The Paradox of Middle East Moderates

The guiding idea that empowering moderates in the Middle East will squelch the appeal of radicals is faulty reasoning. ++ First of all, defining a “moderate” is impossible. ++ A social “moderate” in Egypt, for example, calls for less religion in society, but condones suicide bombings as a legitimate means of diplomacy. ++ Secondly, the record has shown that moderates do

May 29, 2008 | Palestinian Concerns Over Syrian-Israeli Negotiations

Although the recent negotiations between Israel and Syria give an encouraging push to the peace process in the Middle East, some Palestinian faction leaders and analysts expressed concerns about this issue. ++ They believe that focusing on an Israel-Syria peace track would have a negative impact on both direct talks with the Palestinian National Authority and indirect talks with the Islamic Hamas

May 8, 2008 | Israel at 60, and Beyond

In a sort of ‘State of the Union’ address, the Jerusalem Post marks the 60th anniversary with the struggles, triumphs, and miracles that have brought about the first geographically defined Jewish civilization since millennia. ++ Accompanying these successes are, however, huge challenges for the next 60 years. ++ Israel struggles with its own definition of Jewishness, religious

May 8, 2008 | Carter Accuses Israel of Human Rights Violations

After a research visit to Israel, former US President Jimmy Carter implores the international community to condemn Israel for what he considers “terrorism” against Palestinians. ++ Recent strikes against civilians, massive plans for Israeli housing projects in Palestine, and increasing roadblocks on the West Bank suggest that Israel is not holding up its end of the peace process

May 6, 2008 | The Threat of the New Middle East

The old Middle East and the secular nationalism that went along with it is being replaced by a new, modern Middle East in which political Islam and anti-Western nationalism play a decisive role. ++ There is now a serious threat of “a confrontation between Iran and Saudi Arabia for sub-regional supremacy, and between Iran and the US for regional hegemony.” ++ The entire state system in the

April 30, 2008 | Negotiation Over Isolation

Policy in Washington favors punishing and boycotting governments and political factions who do not adhere to US mandates. ++ This approach gives leaders little incentive to moderate their policies. ++ “In the Middle East, as in Nepal, the path to peace lies in negotiation, not in isolation.” ++ Recently, after discussions with Jimmy Carter, Hamas leaders made progress towards enhancing the

April 30, 2008 | Israel: Peace at Home Vital for Regional Stability

Israel’s amazing development over the last 60 years into a regional leader necessitates ending the conflict at home. ++ A strategic alliance with moderate Sunni Arabs in the Middle East is contingent upon Israel’s ability to live peacefully alongside a Palestinian state. ++ At the same time, Palestine must accept and respect its Israeli neighbors. ++ Only in this manner will the

April 22, 2008 | Improving America's Image in the Arab World

Recent Arab public opinion polls confirm a “gap between the aims of American policies and Arab public perceptions of the US.” ++ They also highlight that the US could improve its image by brokering peace between Palestine and Israel and by withdrawing from Iraq and the Arabian Peninsula. ++ While US policies are clearly opposed, middle ground could be found regarding democratic values and

March 31, 2008 | Getting the US out of Iraq is the Smart Thing to Do

US disengagement in Iraq will increase long term stability in the region. ++ Al-Qaeda is not behind most of the insurgency. ++ Disengagement should include serious dialogues with Iraqi leaders and those of neighboring areas, including Iran. ++ Overall goal of US strategy should be to stabilize the Middle East by ending the war in Iraq, negotiating with Iran, and leading Israel and Palestine to

March 13, 2008 | Israel: Make Peace with Syria, Palestine Will Follow

Eventually the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be settled by the formation of two states. ++ Bringing Hamas into negotiations is one option to speed up process. ++ Making peace first with Syria would end confrontation with Hizbullah and Hamas, and create settlement with Palestinians. ++ The biggest obstacle towards a peaceful resolution is the Bush administration, which refuses to allow talks

March 11, 2008 | Creating the Conditions for Negotiations and Peace

Given the current logic of violent retaliation which dominates actions of the weak and divided political systems in Palestine and Israel, there is no foreseeable end to the conflict. ++ Yet if an end to the strangulation of Gaza, a cease-fire with Hamas, and security cooperation with Egypt and Abbas are achieved and followed by democratic elections, most Israelis will show moral commitment to

February 25, 2008 | Europe and Annapolis: A Focused Agenda

Failure to make the most of the Annapolis process would be fatal for both Israel and the international community. ++ The US needs to be “the major responsible supervisor of the negotiation process.” ++ The EU must move beyond its traditional role of paymaster and focus on state building and economic reconstruction in Palestine. ++ The EU must simultaneously demand concrete results from other

January 18, 2008 | Bush's Middle East Tour

In his visit to the Middle East, President George W. Bush, in an unusual note of diplomatic urgency, has insisted that Israel and the Palestinians conclude a peace accord before he leaves office in early 2009. Speaking with both Israeli and Palestinian leaders six weeks after hosting a conference in Annapolis, Bush tried to force the change that has yet failed to materialise on the ground.
In

October 29, 2007 | Route to Success in Annapolis

Henry A. Kissinger dampens hopes on the outcome of the meeting on the Palestinian peace process in Annapolis. Even if parties manage to agree on the Taba Plan of 2000—essentially Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 borders—the implementation remains uncertain. Israeli and Palestinian interlocutors have shaky domestic positions. Additionally, it needs to be clarified what the willingness by several

June 11, 2007 | Sarkozy and the Arab world: French policy at the crossroads?

New French president Nicolas Sarkozy could initiate a historic shift in French Middle East policy, says Pascal Boniface, director of the IRIS Institute for International and Strategic Relations.

For forty years, French policy has been viewed as pro-Arab, an approach which has been attributed to French commercial interests and a large Muslim population. According to Boniface, however,

April 12, 2007 | Yaakov Amidror Warns Israel's Defeat in Lebanon Will Come Back to Haunt Them

Since Israel failed to declare victory in the 2006 war in Lebanon, the Shi’a axis (Iran-Syria-Hezbollah) has only grown stronger and will continue to do so once the US withdraws its troops from Iraq, or Iran builds a nuclear warhead. So writes Yaakov Amidror of the Israeli Army in his account of the outcome of the war. Despite religious conflict with Sunni countries in the region, the revitalized