Policy Analysis

The Arab-Israeli conflict is generally considered a political and military confrontation between Israeli and neighboring Arab countries. Negotiations and agreements between the two sides therefore tend to concentrate on official matters such as diplomatic recognition, security measures, and other formal aspects of interstate relations. Unlike their Israeli counterparts, Arab citizens

On March 13, 1996, Michael Eisenstadt, Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute, and Dr. Geoffrey Kemp, Director of Regional Strategic Programs at the Nixon Center for Peace and Freedom, addressed The Washington Institute's Policy Forum. Mr. Eisenstadt presented the findings of his forthcoming Policy Paper, Iran's Military Power: Capabilities and

With U.S. diplomats focused on ways to buttress the Arab-Israeli peace process amid a wave of anti-peace terrorism, a key Arab partner -- Jordan's King Hussein -- arrives in Washington today for talks with President Clinton. Terrorism, however, will occupy only part of their discussion. According to reports here in

Five years after Operation Desert Storm, Iraq once again may not be far from producing an atomic bomb. With its known nuclear infrastructure largely dismantled, restrictive sanctions greatly complicating the acquisition of sensitive technology abroad and scores of UN weapons inspectors combing the countryside, how can this be? The fact

On February 21, 1996, two days before the killing of Iraqi defector Hussein Kamel, H.E. Sheikh Saud Nasir al-Sabah, Kuwaiti Minister of Information, addressed The Washington Institute's Policy Forum. He spoke about Kuwait, the Gulf, and U.S. policy on the fifth anniversary of the Gulf War. The following is a

While the pursuit of Arab-Israeli peace justly remains the dominant U.S. interest in the Levant, it is important to assess Syrian politics through a wider political lens. Since coming to power in 1970, Assad has imposed a brutal, authoritarian police state that has brought an unprecedented measure of stability to

On Tuesday, January 30, 1996 Mr. Peter Rodman, director of National Security Studies at the Nixon Center for Peace and Freedom, and Dr. Robert Freedman, acting president of Baltimore Hebrew University and author of Moscow and the Middle East, addressed a session of The Washington Institute's Policy Forum on the

Even as attention is focused on the outcome of Syrian-Israeli talks at Wye Plantation, potentially ominous developments are taking place on Syria's northern border, where the regime of Hafiz al-Assad has upped its challenge to Turkey. While tensions between the two states go back a half century, simmering largely beyond

In the run-up to today's fifth anniversary of the Gulf War, the United States took an important step toward re-defining its Iraq policy when Secretary of Defense William Perry, speaking in Amman on January 7, openly endorsed King Hussein's ambitious ideas for a post-Saddam regime of reconciliation and national unity

Just a year after forging peace with Israel, King Hussein of Jordan has embarked on what many observers consider a "mission impossible" -- uniting the Iraqi opposition against Saddam Hussein, Jordan's pre-Gulf War ally and the king's erstwhile personal friend. In outlining a post-Saddam vision of reconciliation among Iraq's major

As the United States and its Western allies prepare to invest treasure and troops in Bosnia in order to support stability in the Balkans, European Parliamentarians in Strasbourg have the opportunity to support regional stability merely by raising their hands to vote in favor of a customs union agreement with

Speculation about the health of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia has been rife ever since the news last week that he had been taken into the hospital for "some ordinary medical check-ups." The absence of any information of what might be wrong was matched by a flurry of goodwill messages

The long, tortuous history of the Arab-Israeli and Palestinian-Israeli conflicts has witnessed numerous tragic episodes, but rarely a moment as hopeful as the handshake between the leaders of the State of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization on September 13, 1993. Sadly, however, the conflict lives on and terror still

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As Israelis mourn the death of Yitzhak Rabin and contemplate the renewal of a peace process that has divided their nation, Arab states and leaders will play a critical role in shaping Israel's decision. Nothing so persuades Israelis of the merits of risk-taking for peace than visible signs of Arab

Prime Minister Tansu Ciller faces a parliamentary vote-of-confidence this Sunday likely -- but not certain -- to win approval for her renewed coalition government. This would be a notable turn-around for Ciller, who has been struggling to assemble a new government since her first government collapsed six weeks ago. In

As Secretary Christopher meets Syrian Foreign Minister Shar'a in New York, it is clear that a deep chill has descended over Syrian-Israeli peacemaking in just the few weeks since the chorus of calls, at the Oslo B signing ceremonies, for President Assad to join the expanding "circle of peace." Encouraging

One year ago last week, Iraq's military buildup near its border with Kuwait triggered the deployment of nearly 30,000 solders, sailors, and airmen to the Persian Gulf. This robust reaction to threatened Iraqi aggression underscored the high degree of commitment, flexibility and readiness that characterizes U.S. defense policy in the

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to Amman for this policy conference. Many of you have come a long way to be here with us, which is entirely appropriate, for the whole Middle East has come a long way in the past five years. The very fact that

Download this conference report, featuring remarks by Jordanian Crown Prince Hassan bin Talal.