Policy Analysis

On November 5, 1998, Gal Luft, a lieutenant colonel in the reserves of the Israel Defense Forces and a research associate of The Washington Institute, addressed the Institute's Special Policy Forum on the findings of his new Policy Focus Research Memorandum, The Palestinian Security Services: Between Police and Army. The

On November 10, 1998, Gen. Fahad al-Amir, deputy chief of staff of the Kuwaiti Armed Forces, addressed The Washington Institute's Special Policy Forum. The following is a rapporteur's summary of his remarks. Read a full transcript. Kuwait's participation in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is strong and committed. Members of

The Clinton administration is debating how to respond to Iraq's August 5 limits on the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq (UNSCOM) and its October 31 cessation of any cooperation with UNSCOM. To understand why force is being considered again requires examining each of the major problems facing the United

In response to last week's Hamas suicide attack on a school bus of Jewish children in Gaza, the Palestinian Authority (PA) has inaugurated its most comprehensive security crackdown since the aftermath of the wave of suicide bombings in February and March 1996. Shaykh Ahmed Yassin, founder and spiritual leader of

On October 26, 1998, Zeev Schiff, military editor of Israel's Haaretz newspaper and a visiting fellow at The Washington Institute, and Abbas Kelidar, consulting adviser to the Office of Jordanian Crown Prince Hassan and a visiting fellow at the Institute, addressed the Institute's Special Policy Forum, along with Robert Satloff

After years of running from the legacy of the last Southern Democrat to serve in the White House, Bill Clinton follows in Jimmy Carter's footsteps this week by hosting the first Middle East peace summit in the United States in 20 years. As at Camp David in 1978, the outcome

In the last decade, a revolution has swept through the Arab world. Long accustomed to exercising control over what their publics knew and when they knew it, Arab governments are finding that new technologies based on satellites and telecommunications have given rise to new kinds of regional media that are

The State Department's 1997 Patterns of Global Terrorism report lists five Middle Eastern states as sponsors of international terrorism: Iran, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Sudan. The report does not enumerate the specific actions that earned each state inclusion on the list, however. This Research Note is intended as a complement

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Some Middle East governments expressed satisfaction at the Wye agreement. For instance: "Describing the Middle East peace process as a historical opportunity in order to protect peace and stability in the region, Turkey expresses gratification over the agreement which she believes in that it will overcome the deadlock in the

The issue of Caspian Sea oil is often entangled with many political considerations. In determining the actual importance of Caspian Sea oil, however, one needs to determine how much oil there is, how to extract the oil, and finally, how to get it to market. The answers to these question

Concern about potential terrorist attacks from Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda organization have led the U.S. government to suspend activities or increase security at embassies from West Africa to Europe to Central Asia. To what extent might Bin Laden followers also target the Arab-Israeli peace process, which has

Is the Wye River Memorandum mediated by President Clinton another Camp David -- a historic breakthrough toward Middle East peace -- or a technical accord tying up the loose ends of previous unimplemented agreements? The answer is "both." The rustic plantation site and the near-constant involvement of the president offered

Renowned for their secrecy and bland public pronouncements, Saudi Arabia's leaders almost never make news. But, when the kingdom's number-two man, Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, visited Washington last month, he dropped a bombshell. Meeting with executives from seven major U.S. oil companies, Abdullah shocked them by asking for

On October 26, 1998, Washington Institute executive director Robert Satloff addressed the Institute's Special Policy Forum, along with Zeev Schiff and Abbas Kelidar. The following is an expanded version of his remarks. Read a summary of Mr. Schiff and Mr. Kelidar's remarks. History will judge the Wye River Memorandum by

Today's meeting between Taliban representatives and U.S. officials to discuss the extradition of Osama Bin Ladin highlights the centrality of state-sponsorship and official safe-haven extended to the Saudi terrorist and his organization. In September and early October, the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, unsealed two documents in

Because I will not be speaking about the events occurring at the Wye Plantation, "Wye Not" might be the title of my address today. Hassan Asfour and I are operating under considerable constraints following the President Bill Clinton's request that we not talk publicly about developments at Wye in the

Despite unconfirmed reports of Syrian willingness to expel PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan and close PKK bases, Turkish-Syrian tensions are likely to persist; Syria's track record of reneging on pledges to cease supporting the PKK will make Ankara skeptical about the durability of any agreement. For this reason, Turkish military action

Keynote addresses by Richard Clarke and Martin Indyk. With Silvan Shalom, Hassan Asfour, Ze'ev Schiff, Hanna Siniora, Nasser al-Kidwa, Joel Singer, Herbert Hansell, and others.

On October 14, 1998, Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott delivered The Washington Institute's Second Annual Turgut Ozal Memorial Lecture at the Willard Inter-Continental Hotel. The following are excerpts from his remarks. Read a full transcript. "The association of this event with the name of Turgut Ozal made this truly