A New EastMed Friendship, with US Support

The prospective EastMed pipeline would be the flagship project of the Cypriot-Greek-Israeli collaboration, a developing friendship that enjoys deep foundations. The US has now made its support for that partnership official.

Mariupol: An On-Site Report

Although Vladimir Putin has not articulated the final objective of his proxy war in eastern Ukraine, his actions seem to indicate that he is determined to create a land bridge from Mariupol to Odessa – two major seaports vitally important to Ukraine's economy. Putin's overall strategy in Ukraine seems to be to strangle it economically by disrupting shipping between the Odessa and Azov Sea ports, with the aim of eventually subjugating Ukraine to Russia.

Russia Positions Itself as Final “Judge” in Syria Amid Escalating Israeli-Iranian Tensions

Yaakov Lappin
April 8, 2019
Paper No. 1135

Russia holds the cards in Syria. Jerusalem and Tehran must spell out their desires for the Syrian arena to Moscow, who in turn must find a way to leave each side with “half its desires.”

Lessons from the Failed “Gaza Initiative” of 1949

Seventy years ago, while the Arab-Israeli Lausanne peace talks were deadlocked, a pioneering and creative diplomatic initiative was aired to deal with the fate of Gaza and its Palestinian Arab refugees. This US initiative was a serious effort to bring about a settlement between Egypt and Israel while contributing to a solution to the Palestinian refugee problem. Though it ended in failure, it provided valuable lessons.

Israeli Attitudes Towards American Jews

As the Israeli elections approach, cleavages are revealing themselves in Israeli attitudes towards American Jews. This is unfortunate, as Israel does not exist in a vacuum. A deeper understanding is required of what Jews face outside of Israel. The State of Israel faces many challenges regarding American bipartisan support. Just as Israelis don’t want American Jews to make Israel a partisan issue, Israeli leaders should not push American Jews away.

Handing Gaza to Abbas Will Solve Nothing

Overthrowing Hamas and handing rule in Gaza to Mahmoud Abbas will not bring about a solution to the Gaza problem. In fact, it was Yasser Arafat, Abbas’s predecessor as PLO leader, who transformed Gaza into an ineradicable terrorist hotbed by flouting the Oslo Accords that he had signed. The solution to the Gaza problem does not lie in Ramallah but rather in the Strip’s historic hinterland – the Sinai Peninsula.

Chinese Pressure Tactics

Recent Chinese pressure on Myanmar to approve a controversial dam project and the arrest in Kazakhstan of a human rights activist suggest that China, in a seemingly tone-deaf pursuit of its interests, is forcing governments to choose between heeding increasingly anti-Chinese public sentiment and pleasing Beijing to ensure continued political and economic support.

The Deeper Meaning of China’s Base in Tajikistan

Emil Avdaliani
April 2, 2019
Paper No. 1129

It is au courant among analysts and scholars to compare modern-day China to early 20th-century Germany, in that it too is a rising power that desires a larger role for itself in world affairs. But a better comparison might be with the United States of the late 19th-early 20th century. The US of that era presented itself as non-interventionist, but it also proclaimed a “manifest destiny” to expand its influence.

Whitewashing Antisemitism

Major cases of antisemitism are usually accompanied by attempts at whitewashing. Yet the whitewashing of antisemites and antisemitism is rarely looked at as a widespread international issue. There are many ways one can cover up antisemitism. Politicians, media, the legal system, Jewish organizations and Jews abroad (mainly from the left), Israeli Jews, and Arabs have all participated. Still, the whitewashing of today's antisemitism pales in comparison to the whitewashing of national antisemitism during the Holocaust.

Beyond Realpolitik: Israel’s Strategic Imperatives

For all nation-states, but especially the most powerful or influential, success must be measured along two separate dimensions: present and future. Although Israeli leaders may correctly calculate that their country is doing reasonably well under classic geopolitical criteria of realpolitik, that judgment is likely to collapse in the longer term. There is a great need for a new world politics of cooperation and acknowledged interdependence.

Perspectives Papers