Brit Tzedek v'Shalom

Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace

Educational Resources

US Foreign Policy

1. Sharon is saved from the threat of peace
   by Aluf Benn, Ha'aretz, September 4, 2003
   Benn argues that the President Bush's fading political fortunes and the growing quagmire in Iraq are closing "the window of opportunity" for peacemaking opened up by the Iraq War. Benn believes Bush is now shelving the Road Map, because he fears the domestic political repercussions of pressuring Israel and the Palestinians during an election year. And Sharon couldn't be happier that he has been saved from "the threat of peace."
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2. A Classicist's Legacy: New Empire Builders
   By James Atlas, New York Times, May 4, 2003
   This article describes the intellectual legacy of the neo-conservatives currently running American Foreign Policy, which seem to derive in large part from the ideas of University of Chicago Professor, Leo Strauss. Strauss taught about the immutability of moral and social values derived from the classics of Western culture. These ideas seem to have been appropriated by the neo-conservatives as a basis for their hawkish, nationalistic approach to American foreign policy.
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3. Israel, the United States, and the United Nations
   By Stephen Zunes, Tikkun, May/June 2003
   Zunes agrees that while the charge of anti-Israel bias is applicable when applied to the UN General Assembly, but that this body is ultimately less important than the UN Security Council. In the UN Security Council, the US has usually protected Israel and blocked resolutions critical of Israeli policies and actions.
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4. Spiritualizing Foreign Policy
   By Peter Gabel, Tikkun. May/June, 2003
   Gabel presents a thinking-outside-the-box argument against traditional thinking about foreign policy. He argues that we normally demonize and isolate the "foreigners" rather than humanizing and spiritualizing the "other." He suggests models of foreign policy conflict resolution such as the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the early days of the Oslo peace process that focus on dialoguing with and listening to the "other."
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5. The Weird Men behind Bush's War
   By Michael Lind, New Statesmen, April 12, 2003
   In this insightful article, Michael Lind argues that the Foreign policy of the Bush administration is being run by a group of known as the neo-conservatives (or usually neo-cons) which are at odds with the multilateral approach of most the American foreign policy establishment - including that of the first Bush administration. This group (including VP Cheney, Defense Secretary Rumseld, and his Deputy Paul Wolfowitz) favors a unilateralist foreign policy, advocated an invasion of Iraq long before 9/11, and has strong ties to the Israeli right-wing.
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6. Staff Changes means Mideast Policy Shift
   By Richard Sale, UPI, February 26, 2003
   UPI reports on the rise of Elliot Abrams to a senior position on the National Security Council with responsibility for the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Abrams, who was indicted and pardoned as part of the Iran-Contra scandal, is known to be an opponent of Oslo and supporter of Sharon. His rise and the removal of more moderate subordinates is an indication that the administration is becoming increasingly hostile to the two-state approach contained in the "Road Map."
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7. Bush and Sharon Nearly Identical on Mideast Policy
   By Robert G. Kaiser, Washington Post, February , 2003
   Kaiser reports that because of the aftereffects of the Sept 11 attacks and the "war on terrorism" for the first time "a U.S. administration and Likud government in Israel are pursuing nearly identical policies." The Bush administration has embraced Sharon's hard-line view of the peace process. [read more]
   
   
8. Lieberman's Precedent
   By M.J. Rosenberg, Israel Policy Forum, December 27, 2002
   Rosenberg analyzes the recent trip to Israel by Senator Joe Lieberman, the leading American Jewish politician and a potential Democratic Presidential candidate. Unlike most members of Congress, Lieberman is taking a balanced approach that gets beyond the black-and-white definitions of the conflict and criticizes both the Palestinians for terrorism and the Sharon government for its policy of settlement expansion. [read more] (Search archive for article)
   
   
9. Economist Tallies Swelling Cost of Israel to US
   By David R. Francis, Christian Science Monitor, December 9, 2002
   A short article describing the high cost of the US-Israel "Special Relationship" [read more]
   
   
10. Roadblocks on the Path to Peace
    By Gareth Evans and Robert Malley, New York Times, Oct 24, 2002
    An explanation of why the Bush Administration "Roadmap" is unlikely to bring an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement anytime soon. [read more]
    
    
11. George Bush & the World
    By Frances Fitzgerald, New York Review of Books, September 26, 2002
    Fitzgerald provides a detailed account of the transformation of Bush administration foreign policy after 9/11 and the growing influence that the neo-cons have had on a President without previous foreign policy experience. The administration has become increasingly hawkish and unilateralist as the neo-cons have won out over more moderate Colin Powell. [read more]
    
    
12. The Men from JINSA and CSP
    By Jason A. Vest, The Nation, September 2, 2002
    An explanation of how conservative policy Institutes have become extremely influential in shaping American foreign policy in the Middle East. These are the officials who are responsible for shaping the administration policies around the Middle East including the Road Map. [read more]
    
    
13. The Israel Lobby
    By Michael Massing, The Nation, June 10, 2002
    This brief article describes the power and influence of the pro-Israel lobby and analyzes why much of the media is hesitant to cover this important story. [read more]
    
    
14. America Can Persuade Israel to Make a Just Peace
    By Former President Jimmy Carter, 2002 Nobel Peace Prize winner
    The New York Times, April 21, 2002
    The former American President and 2002 Nobel Peace Laureate lays out an explanation of how the US can play a more constructive role in the Middle East. [read more]