Regional Policy: Publications, Events and More

Daniel Levy in Reuters | 'U.S. Assesses Isolation Policy of Syria'

Articles — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 14:24:00 -0400

New America in the News:

Part of the move to reexamine Syria policy is also to lay the groundwork for the next administration, either led by Republican John McCain or Democrat Barack Obama.

"They want to get involved now so that it does not look like a reversal," said Syria expert Daniel Levy, a senior fellow at the New America Foundation.

"The time was right a long, long time ago to do this ... the policy of isolation has not worked," he added. LINK

Daniel Levy on Foreign Exchange with Daljit Dhaliwal | 'Tzipi Livni'

Articles — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 14:29:00 -0400

New America in the News:
This week Foreign Exchange features a look at potential Israeli prime minister, Tzipi Livni, with Daniel Levy of the New America Foundation. LINK to video

An Alternative to Paralysis

Articles — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 06:43:00 -0400

If Tzipi Livni becomes Israel's next prime minister, she will bring to that office a belief in the urgency of reaching an extensive, two-state solution with the Palestinians. This in itself distinguishes Livni from her two main rivals. Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu disputes the very framework of two viable, independent states, while Labor leader Ehud Barak parts ways on how pressing the need is to get there. Livni will inherit the Annapolis peace process -- and that is where her problems begin. Annapolis is constructed on a flawed logical edifice; it is broken. But because Livni is heavily invested in these latest peace talks, she may… more

U.S.-Cuba Policy Initiative in Scripps News | 'October Surprise?'

Communications — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:39:00 -0400

New America in the News:
Could there be an October surprise headed our way from the Caribbean? That's what some Cuba watchers are warning.

After being pummeled by four hurricanes, Cuba is a wreck, with 500,000 homes damaged, 200,000 people homeless and 30 percent of all crops ruined. Schools and hospitals are out of commission, the electrical grid is damaged and food is scarce.

What better time for another boat exodus from the communist island?

That's the thinking of Lawrence Wilkerson, who was chief of staff for Colin Powell when he was secretary of state. Wilkerson now is chairman of the U.S.-Cuba Policy Initiative at the New America Foundation. LINK

The New Face of Israel?

Articles — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 10:16:00 -0400

On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert handed in his resignation. Israel’s Foreign Minister and the newly elected leader of the Kadima party, Tzipi Livni, has now been formally given the mandate by Israeli President Shimon Peres to build a governing coalition and thereby become prime minister. Olmert has faced ongoing corruption investigations, but the cloudy circumstances did not prevent him from leaving on a playful note. In convening the cabinet to inform them of his resignation, Olmert explained that there were a number of items on the agenda, and proceeded to give a rosy update on a series of Israeli weekend sporting successes--in the Para-Olympics, Davis Cup… more

Benchmarking the Mess and Trauma of Occupation

Communications — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 08:00:00 -0400

A New America Event
09/25/2008 - 10:00am

Jessica Montell, the executive director of B’Tselem, an Israeli NGO dedicated to rectifying what it recognizes as human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories, spoke at the New America Foundation in conjunction with the opening of a satellite office in Washington.

The organization seeks to provide credible information on claims of abuse in the Palestinian territories, in part by distributing cameras in the West Bank and Gaza. The group was awarded the Carter-Menil Award for Human Rights in 1989. “The only thing the Israeli army is afraid of is YouTube,” Montell told the audience.

“The official rhetoric around settler violence is that these are hoodlums and criminals who we must reign in, but on the ground we see almost no enforcement.”

Montell also suggested that camera distribution has had unexpected consequences: “Palestinians walk around with the cameras (we’ve given them) no matter what. The batteries run out, it doesn’t matter….The camera is actually a deterrent…settlers who see Palestinians holding cameras often won’t attack.”

Daniel Levy on Real News Network | 'Livni Poised to be Next Israeli PM'

Communications — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 12:40:00 -0400

New America in the News:
DANIEL LEVY, POLITICAL ANALYST: Tzipi Livni as prime minister on the Palestinian track: Livni has been the head of the negotiation team with the Palestinians. What we can say is that Tzipi Livni is certainly not averse to negotiating with Palestinian leadership, not averse to conducting serious negotiations, not averse to showing flexibility on core issues. But we don't yet know if she can continue to travel to the place where you could actually strike a workable two-state solution. She is unequivocally in support of a two-state solution, but the details here matter a great deal, and unless there is clarification—and we don't have that clarification yet—on what the bottom line would be regarding the exact territorial dimensions, the exact land swap, Jerusalem, and being able to show some, at least, empathy on the refugee issue, which is not clear yet, and Livni has been quite careful on this issue, not just about the practical arrangement of Palestinians entering Israel, but also being able to understand that this is a very important narrative. If you don't see that flexibility, then I don't think we would be able to get a deal. LINK to video and transcript

Cuba's October Surprise

Articles — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 10:55:00 -0400

If you live in Galveston, Texas, Hurricane Ike will be remembered for its destruction. But history may remember the ninth named storm of the 2008 season for swinging the 2008 presidential campaign.

That's because Ike devastated a little island off Florida named Cuba. In fact, Cuba sustained damage from four hurricanes: Fay, Gustav, Hanna and Ike. Gustav hit the Western end of Cuba as a Category 4 storm. Ike entered the east of Cuba as a strong Category 3 then shredded the full length of the island for three days. There were reports of walls of water 50 feet high hitting the north shore.

In a country of more than 11 million… more

Richard Clarke Says Cuba Not a State Sponsor of Terror

Communications — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 06:31:00 -0400

From The Havana Note: Richard Clarke: Cuba Not a State Sponsor of Terror As Congress comes to grips with the magnitude and political implications of the devastation across Cuba from Hurricanes Fay, Gustav and Ike--it is vitally important to make sure that Washington understands something Cuba is not. Cuba is not a state sponsor of terrorism and hasn't been at least since the Clinton Administration conducted a formal review of the list in the late 1990s. more

Daniel Levy on Livni's victory in the Kadima primaries

Communications — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 05:26:00 -0400

Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has just won a primary election for the leadership of the governing Kadima party. Livni will now try to form a governing coalition. Daniel Levy discusses the political process in Israel in the weeks ahead, the coalition vs. election options and what a Livni premiership might mean for regional issues. Daniel Levy is a senior fellow and director of the New America Foundation/Century Foundation Middle East Policy Initiative. To watch a video analysis, please click here. To arrange… more

Patrick Doherty in Council on Foreign Relations Daily Analysis | 'Seeds of Economic Reform on Cuba's Farms'

Communications — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 10:08:00 -0400

New America in the News:
"Cuba has a chance to be a real role model for Latin America, as the region tries to figure out how to survive the coming global economic transition from high waste to high efficiency," writes Patrick Doherty of the New America Foundation. But he cautions that "economic change has to come faster than Raul is presently orchestrating." LINK

RNC Event: America's Next Foreign Policy

Communications — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:00:00 -0400

A New America Event
09/03/2008 - 9:00am

Panelists will discuss the challenges the next president will face in building a new equilibrium in the Middle East.

The dialogue will moderated by Steve Clemons and will be advanced by four short provocations delivered by foreign policy experts.

Light breakfast fare and coffee will be served beforehand.

Ghaith al-Omari and Daniel Levy in the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs | 'Making Sense of the Arab-Israeli Nightmare'

Articles — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 14:46:00 -0400

New America in the News:
In a June 27 panel entitled “Making Sense of the Arab-Israel Nightmare” held at the New America Foundation in Washington, DC, speakers discussed the lessons to be learned from past administrations and prospects for the Bush administration in its final months, as well as prospects for the next administration. Ghaith al-Omari, a former policy adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Daniel Levy, former senior policy adviser in the Israeli prime minister’s office, and Aaron Miller, author of The Much Too Promised Land, addressed the Arab-Israeli conflict largely as an inherited problem. LINK

Daniel Levy in the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs | 'AIPAC’s Role in the 2008 Election'

Communications — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 10:21:00 -0400

New America in the News:
Many prominent Israelis view AIPAC as a negative and counterproductive influence and have joined JStreet’s advisory council. One of these is Daniel Levy, who was part of the Israeli delegation to the January 2001 Taba Summit. “The mainstream pro-Israel camp,” he states, “has decided so brazenly to throw its lot in with neoconservative ideologues within this administration and with the far right dispensationalist Christian Zionists, and this unholy triangle has pulled things so much to the right-wing direction that we are desperately in need of a corrective...I think other groups that care about this issue feel more comfortable expressing a sensible position on the Middle East when there is also a very credible and hopefully very loud Jewish voice saying, ‘This is the most pro-American and pro-Israeli position you can take’...just like you can be a pro-American patriot and be against bombing Iran and staying in Iraq for l00 years.”

Daniel Levy in the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs | 'U.S.-Arab Business Relationships Encouraged at USAEF Conference'

Communications — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 09:39:00 -0400

New America in the News:
“It is neither moral, nor human, nor Jewish, I argue, to maintain this siege,” said Daniel Levy, senior fellow with the New America Foundation and the Century Foundation. Israel’s de-industrializing of Gaza through its unrelenting control of the borders has all but collapsed businesses in the Strip. “What we’ve done to Gaza’s economy in one year may take decades to recover,” Levy said. LINK

Diminishing Returns for Rice in Israel

Articles — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 11:39:00 -0400

US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice just completed her seventh visit to Israel-Palestine since the Annapolis conference nine months ago. You remember Annapolis, when after almost seven years of neglect the Bush administration committed itself to securing an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal during its last year in office and to dramatically improving the day-to-day situation on the ground.

Displaying admirable consistency and tenacity, albeit a disconnect from reality, Rice reiterated that goal during her visit this week. The Israeli and Palestinian leaders she met with were polite in their encouragement. Yet even among those who desire a deal, most consider the clock to have run out on this administration. Israeli foreign… more

There Are Better Options

Articles — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 10:32:00 -0400

Israel's response to the Iranian challenge has been out of synch with developing realities for some time. Recently though, it has become dangerously counter-productive, anchored as it is in denial. As Israel intensifies its role as threatener-in-chief, and clings to a "more sticks, bigger sticks" line, events all around are moving on. The supposed logic behind Israel's escalating threats, suggesting it is ready to go it alone militarily, is threefold. It pressures Iran, thereby increasing international leverage in negotiations; a nervous world feels compelled to up sanctions and deliver results; and the path is smoothed to international acceptance of possible future Israeli action.… more

DNC: Can the Next President Make the Middle East Irrelevant?

Communications — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 23:33:00 -0400

A New America Event
08/27/2008 - 9:00am

Panelists will discuss the challenges the next president will face in building a new equilibrium in the Middle East.

The dialogue will be moderated by Steve Clemons and will be advanced by five short provocations delivered by foreign policy experts.

Light breakfast fare and coffee will be served beforehand.

Civil War in Gaza Isn’t in Israel’s Interests

Articles — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:57:00 -0400

When a bomb exploded in the Shaja’iyyah district of Gaza last month, killing four Hamas operatives and a 5-year-old girl, Hamas blamed Fatah, and moved violently against its remaining Gazan enclaves. Fatah forces then pursued retribution against Hamas in the West Bank. Another round of intra-Palestinian conflict and bloodletting ensued, with the leading pro-Fatah family in Gaza, the Hilles clan, fleeing to Israel in the hopes of making it to the West Bank.

Think that Palestinians nearing civil war and the ongoing collapse of a central Palestinian governing entity serves Israel’s security interests? Think again.

Those who are taking comfort in the televised images of Palestinian-on-Palestinian violence or in the “propaganda coup”… more

Cuba, Latin America and U.S. Grand Strategy

Communications — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 12:45:00 -0400

The U.S.-Cuba Policy Initiative talks a lot about the need for a new policy towards Cuba. And we should. Fifty years of failure is a shameful, bi-partisan indictment of how policy is made in Washington. As we will continue to show, more people, like Senator Arlen Specter, recognize that a change in Cuba policy is on the way. But change for change's sake is foolish, and could easily backfire on the United States. Fortunately, the emerging consensus on changing our relationship with Cuba coincides with another consensus in Washington, that America needs a major overhaul of all our… more