Essays

The conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran marks a deepening division between regional powers and international hegemons in the Persian Gulf. The Saudis and Iranians have to learn to cooperate or risk further confrontation.

Creators Meet Censors

By Joseph Fahim

Winter 2018

Since the 2011 uprising, the freedom and mood of Egyptian cinema and television have changed considerably. A story of the growing standoff between creators and censorship in post-2011 Egyptian drama.

Flawed Diplomacy in Libya

By Elissa Miller and Karim Mezran

Winter 2018

For years, many actors have tried to mediate peace efforts for the Libyan crisis, but instead of an end to hostilities, conflicts remain.

India’s Teflon Man

By Michael Kugelman

Winter 2018

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi may be a global pop star, but at home he
is struggling. Yet, despite many domestic challenges and crises, he has managed
to maintain his popularity in India.

Lord Balfour’s Burden

By Mahmoud Abbas

Fall 2017

A century ago, the Balfour Declaration paved the way for the creation of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. The President of the State of Palestine asks the United Kingdom’s government to apologize for a document that set off a century of suffering and dispossession for the Palestinian people.

Israel at a Crossroads

By Shlomo Ben Ami

Fall 2017

Israel’s occupation of the West bank raises the question of whether the Jewish state wants peace. Fifty years later, apartheid policies pose a threat not only to the future of the Palestinian people, but also of Israeli democracy.

Palestine and the Law of Nations

By Nabil Elaraby

Fall 2017

The United nations holds a “sacred trust” to establish Palestinian statehood and independence. Yet repeated failures to enforce decisions against Israel’s occupation have shaken the credibility of international law and the universal human rights it upholds.

A European Call for Palestinian Independence

By Miguel Ángel Moratinos

Fall 2017

Europe’s role in the Middle East has evolved from colonial overlord into a partner for peace between Jews and Arabs. European leaders should no longer delay in showing equal respect to Palestinian and Israeli national aspirations: they should recognize Palestinian statehood now.

Global Palestine

By Nasser S. Judeh

Fall 2017

The Arab World should accept responsibility for its leading role in achieving peace in Palestine, but global leaders should remember that the “Palestinian question” remains central to both regional and international relations.

Palestine, an Arab Issue

By Nabil Fahmy

Fall 2017

Arab leaders are confronted by the peace process’ legacy of failure. Today, they face the urgent task of achieving a two-state solution before it is too late.

Waiting for Uncle Sam

By Daniel C. Kurtzer

Fall 2017

For decades, the United States has billed itself as an “honest broker” in the Palestinian-Israeli peace talks. Ten principles for renewing confidence in U.S. leadership, and the Arab-Israeli peace process.

Trump’s Toughest Deal

By Khalil Shikaki and Shai Feldman

Fall 2017

President Donald Trump has boasted “We will get this done” on peace in the Middle East. Negotiations between wary Israeli and Palestinian leaders might need a provocative jolt in order to stop the slide toward a “one-state reality.”

A Century’s Legacy of Conflict

By Abdel Monem Said Aly

Fall 2017

Understanding the lessons of a conflict deeply steeped in history is essential to resolving it. The strength of facts on the ground, the futility of “might makes right,” and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict’s persistent role in the region’s instability are all part of a legacy that must be acknowledged to achieve peace.

Peace versus the People

By Khalil Shikaki

Fall 2017

Palestinian and Israeli leaders could never reach an agreement on a permanent peace settlement. But what do public opinion surveys reveal about popular, and increasingly ambivalent, support for the peace process’ promised two-state solution among Palestinians and Israelis?

Modi in Israel

By P. R. Kumaraswamy

Fall 2017

Narendra Modi was the first Indian prime minister to visit the Jewish state. Now India, Asia’s rising giant, is stuck between a rock and a hard place: caught at once between its historical support for the Palestinian cause, and its rapidly growing business and technology relations with Israel.

Beyond “Land for Peace”

By Allison Hodgkins

Fall 2017

Peace negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis in the last quarter-century were never designed to support the establishment of a two-state solution. Brokers of the conflict should look beyond the “land for peace” formula and return to some of the finer details of UN General Assembly Resolution 181 on the partition of Palestine.

Trump versus Globalization

By Cathleen Cimino-Isaacs and Gary Clyde Hufbauer

Summer 2017

As a presidential candidate, Donald Trump campaigned on promises that would reverse years of trade liberalization. Whether or not he triggers a global trade war, his policies are undermining America’s standing as the preeminent world leader.

The Case for Open Markets

By Dany Bahar

Summer 2017

Is the free trade party over? Competition certainly has its losers. But the widespread discontent with globalization misses a crucial point: only more trade, not less, will reverse the slowdown in world productivity.

Anti-Trade Alliance

By Pietra Rivoli

Summer 2017

Who’s afraid of globalization? Everybody from Donald Trump to Bernie Sanders, it seems, and environmentalists and factory workers in between. An unlikely coalition of skeptics from across the political spectrum is driving the anti-trade movement.

Speed Bumps on the Silk Road

By Rebecca Liao

Summer 2017

China has unveiled a “win-win” policy paper to guide its approach to the Middle East. Its $1 trillion One Belt One Road infrastructure initiative will extend all the way to North Africa. But can trade buy Beijing political clout in the region?