Middle East

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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....

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...

Horror and surprise have characterized recent events in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Thanks to CNN, the horror entered living rooms worldwide— notably the scenes of a 12-year-old Palestinian boy killed in a crossfire, two Israeli soldiers lynched by a mob,...

Before we can see clearly the way ahead from the horrible events of September 11, we need to look backward to sources— for if we do not understand how these events came about, we will be hard pressed to...