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Rethinking the Two-State Solution
PolicyWatch #1408 : Special Forum Report Rethinking the Two-State Solution Featuring Giora Eiland and Martin Indyk October 3, 2008 On September 23, 2008, Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Giora Eiland and Ambassador Martin Indyk addressed a Policy Forum luncheon at The Washington Institute. General Eiland is former head of the Israeli National Security Council and currently a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv. Ambassador Indyk directs the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution. The following is a rapporteur’s summary of their remarks. GIORA EILAND Within the Israeli-Palestinian conflict lies a paradox. Although the two-state solution is well known and widely accepted, and although there is international consensus regarding the need for it, little progress has been made to that end. This means that neither side desires the solution nor is willing to take the necessary risks to move forward and come to an agreement. Ultimately, the most the Israeli government can offer the Palestinians -- and survive politically -- is far less than what any Palestinian leadership can accept. As such, there is a gap between the two sides that continues to widen as the years go on. In many aspects, the current situation is worse than it was eight years ago. In 2000, there were three leaders who were both determined and capable of reaching an agreement: U.S. president Bill Clinton, Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. That type of leadership is missing today. In addition, while the two sides enjoyed a reasonable level of security, cooperation, and trust in 2000, the subsequent intifada has created a completely different situation on the ground today. -
U.S. Policy in the Middle East Martin Indyk
U.S. Policy in the Middle East Martin Indyk s much as the Obama administration would challenge to the Alawite regime in Syria but has now like to disengage from the Middle East and spread viciously to Iraq and could well spread to the Ashift its focus and energies to Asia—above all Gulf where a majority Shiite population in Bahrain to India and China—it finds itself constantly sucked is controlled by a Saudi-backed Sunni monarch, and back into the vortex as the region grows ever more in Yemen, where Shia Houti tribesman are challeng- volatile, chaotic, and dangerous . President Obama has ing a Sunni regime in Sana’a . Saudi Arabia—the been determined to end American involvement in the world’s largest oil producer—now faces instability country’s two longest-running wars—Iraq and Afghan- on almost all its borders . istan—and to avoid involvement in any other region- al conflicts, especially the Syrian civil war . And yet, In Egypt, the traditional leader of the Arab world, a the surprising success of the Islamic State of Iraq and military-backed regime has deposed and suppressed the Levant (ISIL) in taking control of broad swathes the Muslim Brotherhood party, generating an ad- of Syrian and Iraqi territory and the threat it poses to ditional schism across the region between Islamist Baghdad in the south, Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan, and po- and moderate Sunnis . This tension recently spilled tentially Jordan in the west, have forced the president’s over into the Arab-Israeli arena where Hamas, the hand and led him now to order air strikes on northern stepchild of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, at- Iraq . -
Meeting with MK Yossi Beilin
Meeting with MK Yossi Beilin On the evening of Thursday, March 22, 2007, Meretz Chairman Yossi Beilin addressed the Meretz USA board. He discussed current events surrounding the Winograd Commission, the formation of the Palestinian Unity government, and what the US should be doing, among other issues. Below is our staff summary of his remarks, supplemented by my observations– Ed. Winograd Commission & Government Corruption Dr. Beilin spoke first about an event that occurred on Thursday. Following a petition from Meretz MK Zahava Galon, the Israeli Supreme Court decided to publish the minutes of the Winograd testimonies. On Thursday, Shimon Peres’ testimony was made public. In it, Peres said he had been against the Lebanon war from the beginning , a fact that is also reflected in the Government Cabinet meeting minutes. Today, a rally of students asked him why, if he was against the war, did he vote for it? Peres answered that, as the Deputy Prime Minister, he did not feel that he could vote against the Prime Minister. In response, Dr. Beilin released a statement saying that those individuals who saw the danger of the war, but voted for it anyway, misled the country. Dr. Beilin also predicted upcoming changes in the Israeli government, although he said he did not believe there would be new elections. He indicated that most parties currently in the Knesset would not benefit by risking an election now. If Prime Minister Olmert is forced to step down by the corruption inquiry against him or by the Winograd Commission findings on the conduct of the recent war with Hezbollah, either Peres or Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni might replace him. -
United Nations International Meeting in Support of Israeli-Palestinian Peace
UNITED NATIONS INTERNATIONAL MEETING IN SUPPORT OF ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN PEACE The two-State solution: a key prerequisite for achieving peace and stability in the Middle East Moscow, 1 and 2 July 2015 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY PLENARY II International efforts to achieve the two-State solution Paper presented by Ms. Alla Shainskaya Member, Executive Committee and Presidium of the Congress of Meretz Party Tel Aviv CPR/IM/2015/12 2 Honorable Chairperson, Excellences – Ambassadors, Distinguished Delegates, Firstly, let me express my warm sentiments of gratitude for being invited to this UN forum, and for the opportunity to speak to you from this challenging podium. It is a great honor to me. Let me introduce myself. I am a scientist, an immigrant from the Former Soviet Union, from South – East of Ukraine. I am not a politician, but from my first steps in Israel, I was and still is a dedicated member of Israeli left camp. In a year 2003 I was a part of Israeli delegation in Geneva where the Geneva Accord was presented and symbolically signed by two sites. This agreement was and is the most detailed and practically most welcome by both sides, as we heard yesterday in excellent talk by Mr. Nidal Foqaha. It is hard to describe by words the atmosphere and the excitement of people during this only ONE day of the virtual peace! At this day we did not know yet, that Geneva Accord, like many others that followed and preceded it, like Clinton Parameters and Annapolis Agreement, The Road Map etc. will become a memory. -
Likud and the Oslo Process: Implications of a Hebron Accord
MENU Policy Analysis / PolicyWatch 114 Likud and the Oslo Process: Implications of a Hebron Accord Jan 3, 1997 Brief Analysis f negotiators overcome eleventh-hour Palestinian demands and conclude an agreement on Hebron I redeployment, this accord would mark a milestone in the Middle East peace process: the first signed agreement between a Likud government and the Palestinians. With significant U.S. encouragement, the two sides will have managed to overcome the intense acrimony and bitterness that only three months ago claimed scores of lives and took the peace process to the precipice of collapse. The nearly hundred days of haggling since the Washington Summit -- sparked by the Netanyahu government's demand for improved security arrangements for the some 400 Israeli residents of Hebron and then fueled by Arafat's desire to take advantage of global sympathy to win concessions on non-Hebron issues -- may come to be seen by future historians as a critical turning point in the peace process, i.e., the moment when the Likud abandoned elements of its core ideology for the sake of accommodation with the Palestinians. The Hebron Conundrum: Israel's redeployment in Hebron completes the implementation of IDF withdrawals from the seven major Palestinian population centers, as called for in the September 1995 PLO-Israel accord (Oslo II). For the agreement's original Israeli negotiators, Hebron was such a thorny issue that its provisions outlining IDF redeployment from the city were separate and significantly more complex than those delineating withdrawal from other cities and towns in Gaza and the West Bank. Indeed, pulling IDF troops out of four-fifths of Hebron was seen as so potentially explosive and politically costly, that the Labor government of Shimon Peres balked at fulfilling that provision of the Oslo II accord. -
Reimagining US Strategy in the Middle East
REIMAGININGR I A I I G U.S.S STRATEGYT A E Y IIN THET E MMIDDLED L EEASTS Sustainable Partnerships, Strategic Investments Dalia Dassa Kaye, Linda Robinson, Jeffrey Martini, Nathan Vest, Ashley L. Rhoades C O R P O R A T I O N For more information on this publication, visit www.rand.org/t/RRA958-1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this publication. ISBN: 978-1-9774-0662-0 Published by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif. 2021 RAND Corporation R® is a registered trademark. Cover composite design: Jessica Arana Image: wael alreweie / Getty Images Limited Print and Electronic Distribution Rights This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited. Permission is given to duplicate this document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions. The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. Support RAND Make a tax-deductible charitable contribution at www.rand.org/giving/contribute www.rand.org Preface U.S. -
U.S. Military Engagement in the Broader Middle East
U.S. MILITARY ENGAGEMENT IN THE BROADER MIDDLE EAST JAMES F. JEFFREY MICHAEL EISENSTADT U.S. MILITARY ENGAGEMENT IN THE BROADER MIDDLE EAST JAMES F. JEFFREY MICHAEL EISENSTADT THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY WWW.WASHINGTONINSTITUTE.ORG The opinions expressed in this Policy Focus are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Washington Institute, its Board of Trustees, or its Board of Advisors. Policy Focus 143, April 2016 All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publica- tion may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing fromthe publisher. ©2016 by The Washington Institute for Near East Policy The Washington Institute for Near East Policy 1111 19th Street NW, Suite 500 Washington, DC 20036 Design: 1000colors Photo: An F-16 from the Egyptian Air Force prepares to make contact with a KC-135 from the 336th ARS during in-flight refueling training. (USAF photo by Staff Sgt. Amy Abbott) Contents Acknowledgments V I. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF U.S. MILITARY OPERATIONS 1 James F. Jeffrey 1. Introduction to Part I 3 2. Basic Principles 5 3. U.S. Strategy in the Middle East 8 4. U.S. Military Engagement 19 5. Conclusion 37 Notes, Part I 39 II. RETHINKING U.S. MILITARY STRATEGY 47 Michael Eisenstadt 6. Introduction to Part II 49 7. American Sisyphus: Impact of the Middle Eastern Operational Environment 52 8. Disjointed Strategy: Aligning Ways, Means, and Ends 58 9. -
De Tijd Dringt Kairos Palestina: Een Uitdaging Tot Vrede
De tijd dringt Kairos Palestina: een uitdaging tot vrede NO WAR NO WALL Want hij is onze vrede, hij die de twee tot één heeft gemaakt en de muur van vijandschap heeft afgebroken (naar Efeziërs 2:14) Student: Carla J.M. Borgers e-mail: [email protected] 13 februari 2019 Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Faculteit der Godgeleerdheid Theology and Religious Studies Masterspecialisatie ‘Peace, Trauma, and Religion’ Begeleiders: Dr. Katja Tolstaja Prof. Dr. Fernando H.H. Enns VERKLARING 1 Hierbij verklaar ik dat deze scriptie een origineel werk is. De scriptie is het resultaat van mijn eigen onderzoek en is alleen door mijzelf geschreven, tenzij anders aangegeven. Als informatie en ideeën uit andere bronnen zijn overgenomen, wordt dat expliciet en volledig vermeld in de tekst of in de noten. Een bibliografie is bijgevoegd. Delden, 13 februari 2019 VERKLARING 2 Hierbij stem ik ermee in dat mijn scriptie na goedkeuring beschikbaar wordt gesteld voor vermenigvuldiging en interbibliothecair leenverkeer, en dat de titel en samenvatting beschikbaar worden gesteld voor externe organisaties en door de Vrije Universiteit mogen worden gepubliceerd. Delden, 13 februari 2019 2 Inhoudsopgave Motivatie ............................................................................................................................................6 1. Inleiding ......................................................................................................................................7 1.1. Relevantie van het onderzoek ..............................................................................................7 -
The Labor Party and the Peace Camp
The Labor Party and the Peace Camp By Uzi Baram In contemporary Israeli public discourse, the preoccupation with ideology has died down markedly, to the point that even releasing a political platform as part of elections campaigns has become superfluous. Politicians from across the political spectrum are focused on distinguishing themselves from other contenders by labeling themselves and their rivals as right, left and center, while floating around in the air are slogans such as “political left,” social left,” “soft right,” “new right,” and “mainstream right.” Yet what do “left” and “right” mean in Israel, and to what extent do these slogans as well as the political division in today’s Israel correlate with the political traditions of the various parties? Is the Labor Party the obvious and natural heir of The Workers Party of the Land of Israel (Mapai)? Did the historical Mapai under the stewardship of Ben Gurion view itself as a left-wing party? Did Menachem Begin’s Herut Party see itself as a right-wing party? The Zionist Left and the Soviet Union As far-fetched as it may seem in the eyes of today’s onlooker, during the first years after the establishment of the state, the position vis-à-vis the Soviet Union was the litmus test of the left camp, which was then called “the workers’ camp.” This camp viewed the centrist liberal “General Zionists” party, which was identified with European liberal and middle-class beliefs in private property and capitalism, as its chief ideological rival (and with which the heads of major cities such as Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan were affiliated). -
Annapolis, November 2007: Hopes and Doubts Contents
The Middle East Institute Policy Brief No. 2 November 2007 Annapolis, November 2007: Hopes and Doubts Contents Introduction 1 By Paul Scham The Immediate Parties: Israel and the Palestinians 2 The Arab States 8 The Rejectionists: Hamas and Iran 11 Executive Summary The United States 12 Preparations for the Annapolis meeting on the Middle East, scheduled for November 26 but still subject to change, are taking place in an atmosphere Success: Impossible or Merely containing hints of unprecedented compromise combined with deep skepti- Elusive? 13 cism on the part of the respective populations and of most analysts. The meeting will be immediately followed by months of negotiations where, it is envisioned, the difficult and perennial issues of borders, settlements, Jerusa- lem, the Right of Return, and security will be dealt with. Even if the leaders can reach a compromise, there are significant concerns as to whether their agreement will be accepted by their own societies. For 60 years, the Middle East Institute has been dedicated to increasing Americans’ knowledge and understanding of the region. MEI offers program activities, media outreach, language courses, scholars and an academic journal to help achieve its goals. The mission of the Middle East Institute is to promote knowledge of the About the Author Middle East in America and strengthen understanding of the United States by the people and governments of the region. For more than 60 years, MEI has dealt with the momentous events in the Middle East — from the birth of the state of Israel to the invasion of Iraq. Today, MEI is a foremost author- ity on contemporary Middle East issues. -
The Geneva Accord Summary
ACCORD SUMMARY Accord principles: • End of conflict. End of all claims. • Mutual recognition of Israeli and Palestinian right to two separate states. • A final, agreed upon border. • A comprehensive solution to the refugee problem. • Large settlement blocks and most of the settlers are annexed to Israel, as part of a 1:1 land swap. • Recognition of the Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and recognition of the Arab neighborhoods of Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital. • A demilitarized Palestinian state. • A comprehensive and complete Palestinian commitment to fighting terrorism and incitement. • An international verification group to oversee implementation. Description The Geneva Initiative is a model permanent status agreement between the State of Israel and the State of Palestine. The accord presents a comprehensive and unequivocal solution to all issues vital to ensuring the end of the conflict. Adopting the agreement and implementing it would bring about a solution to the historical conflict, a new chapter in Israeli-Palestinian relations, and, most importantly, the realization of the national visions of both parties. 1. Mutual recognition: As part of the accord, the Palestinians recognize the right of the Jewish people to their own state and recognize the State of Israel as their national home. Conversely, the Israelis recognize the Palestinian state as the national home of the Palestinian people. 2. Borders and settlements: • The border marked on a detailed map is final and indisputable. • According to the accord and maps, the extended borders of the State of Israel will include Jewish settlements currently beyond the Green Line, Jewish neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, and territories with significance for security surrounding Ben Gurion International Airport. -
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 1, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 1, 2008 Nongovernmental peace effort after the Annapolis Conference GENEVA INITIATIVE TACKLES DIFFICULT ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN WATER ISSUE As Israeli and Palestinian governments struggle with the “track I” peace negotiations, nongovernmental (NGO) representatives have made great strides in a “track II” dialog on a central conflict between their people: how water resources fairly should be divided with cooperation to face drought and other environmental problems. “I’ve participated in other meetings on these problems for 18 years and I’ve never felt we’ve been this close to a working agreement,” eminent Israeli engineer Hillel Shuvall proclaimed. Fadia Daibes-Murad, a Palestinian engineer and advisor to the Palestinian Water Authority agreed, “We are so much closer together than any time before.” Palestinian and Israeli engineers, as well as representatives with close ties to the Israeli government and Palestinian National Authority, met for three days of intense discussions on the difficult water issues between August 18 and 21, 2008. The water dialog was arranged by the Geneva Initiative (“GI”)– a Palestinian and Israeli NGO– and by a Quaker group – Annapolis Friends Peace and Justice Center– after informal discussions outside the Bush Administration’s November 2007 Annapolis Conference. Retired U.S. Ambassador John McDonald, who mediated the dialog, commented “When you get good engineers together to work on problems, they speak the same language no matter what countries they come from.” GI water experts will finalize the draft within the coming three months. The draft water agreement will then be offered to official government negotiators as a possible framework for water cooperation in the "final status agreement" that would bring peace to Israelis and Palestinians.