A Nation Must Think Before it Acts
Middle East
A nation must think before it acts.
Middle East
The American Encounter with Islam
Most analyses of terrorism and Islam following the September 11 attacks have stressed the thousand-year conflict with Christianity and the West. Although Muslims define themselves and the Christian West in terms of religion, Western countries view relations among themselves...
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Islam in America
Though most of us think of the American relationship with Islam as a modern phenomenon, the encounter in fact goes back to the very first days of the nation. That encounter was from its first a troubled affair and...
Read more »The Road to Palestine
On June 4, 2003, President George W. Bush personally renewed the latest American quest for Arab-Israeli peace. Presiding over a summit at the Jordanian port of Aqaba, with King Abdullah of Jordan, Prime Minister Sharon of Israel, and the...
Read more »War
On Wednesday evening, March 19, 2003, George W. Bush announced the beginning of operation “Iraqi Freedom.” He preceded this terse announcement two days earlier by demanding the departure of Saddam Hussein and his sons, while offering a broad justification...
Read more »Taking Democracy Seriously in Iraq
Americans share two misperceptions of Iraqi politics and society. One is that ethnic conflict is endemic to Iraqi society. Another is that Iraqis lack a tradition of civil society, cultural tolerance, and political participation. Both perceptions are contradicted by...
Read more »The Turkish Factor in the Geopolitics of the Post-Soviet Space
As the U.S.-led war on terror gains momentum and the Bush administration contemplates military operations against Iraq, Turkey gains in geostrategic importance. America’s ally and a NATO member since 1953, Turkey’s location, right in the middle of the Southern...
Read more »The Turkish Problem — and Hope
On November 3, Turks elected a new parliament. Turkey’s citizens had 18 parties to choose from in the elections, 3 of which had been in the previous government. Not one of those, nor 13 other parties, met the 10...
Read more »Bush’s Palestine
Ever since the failed Camp David Summit of July 2000, the Arab-Israeli conflict has been shaped by a striking anomaly. All the parties— Arab, Israeli, European, and American— have concluded that a peaceful Palestinian state must be part of...
Read more »Next Steps in the Middle East
The American war against terrorists and the states harboring them achieved a notable victory in Afghanistan. A politically isolated Taliban-al Qaeda regime was overthrown by an American-led coalition (notably Pakistan and Russia) that used primarily American and local forces....
Read more »How to Unseat Saddam
This essay is a condensed version of an essay that appears in the Winter 2001/2002 issue of The National Interest(www.nationalinterest.org). With respect to what is sometimes characterized as taking out Saddam, I never saw a plan that was going to...
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