Since 1967 the Arab-Israeli confrontation has been shaped by both war-making and peacemaking. What have we learned about the balance of power, the internal politics of the main actors, and the role of outside powers? What lessons from negotiations—both successful and not—can be applied to today’s situation? Join us as four seasoned observers of the Arab-Israeli conflict share their views on these and other matters.
Key Quotes:
Jane Harman:
"Our goal today is not to re-fight or re-litigate the conflict… but to look forward and identify, with the benefit of a half-century of perspective, the lessons learned, particularly with regard to mediating and peacemaking."
Aaron David Miller:
"New documentation and new interviews… purport to show that, in case of impending defeat, the Israelis were prepared to detonate a nuclear weapon in [the] Sanai as a demonstration of their resolve in an effort to turn back further gains on the part of the Egyptians."
Ziad Asali:
"The fact is, the Palestinians have ended up with a situation where they are incapable on their own to come up with a solution for the political and economic and social and cultural problems.”
Hussein Ibish:
“The takeaways from the past 50 years begin, I think, with the observation that the 1967 War and its aftermath have bookended the ambitions of both sides.”
Lucy Kurtzer-Ellenbogen:
“What we’ve seen over the past 50 years is that the absence of mechanisms of accountability have enabled continued bad behaviors.”
Natan Sachs:
“If we are looking in the long term, but are worried about the short term, we need to measure, very carefully, what it is about the interim that is harmful for our long-term goals.”
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