Interviews with Malley, Miller & Lasensky on Arab-Israeli Diplomacy

In the past week I corresponded with three leading analysts - Rob Malley, Aaron David Miller and Scott Lasensky - who have provided some of the most high-profile analyses of the current state of the peace process and recommendations for the Obama administration's Mideast team.

Rob Malley, a former Special Advisor to President Bill Clinton, co-wrote with Hussein Agha a controversial op-ed published in The New York Times on August 10 titled "The Two State Solution Won't Solve Anything." 

Some analysts criticized Malley for essentially writing an epitaph for the peace process while others - on the right and the left - hailed the piece as evidence that a two-state solution would indeed not "solve anything."  Some interpreted the piece to suggest support for a one-state solution.

In my email exchange with Malley shortly after the op-ed was published, he wrote that the title of the Times op-ed was "unfortunate" and that it was "absolutely not" his intention to advocate for a one-state solution:

Far from arguing against the two-state solution, we are seeking to understand why, despite years of efforts, attempts to achieve it have failed.  And we are suggesting that this has less to do with disagreements over the precise territorial boundaries than with something deeper that must be grappled with rather than ignored.

Click here to read the full exchange with Rob Malley

Aaron David Miller, a former Mideast advisor to six secretaries of state, authored the book "The Much Too Promised Land" in 2008.  In it, he describes Henry Kissinger, Jimmy Carter and James Baker as the American statesmen who had what it took to be successful in Arab-Israeli diplomacy. 

In a phone conversation we had earlier this week, I asked Aaron if he thought Obama had the necessary ingredients for success:

The administration has demonstrated that it's prepared to make the Arab-Israeli issue a top priority.  It is unclear to me yet whether or not the administration's efforts will be able to include the other elements that I think are essential for success. And it's complex because the Obama administration has inherited a tougher, more complicated hand than Kissinger, Carter or Baker.

He also says the two-state solution is on the Obama administration's watch:

I think that the reason this administration differs from the others - and why the stakes are so much higher now than they ever have been before - is the fundamental reality that it is on this administrations' watch - whether it's 4 or 8 years - that the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will either come to fruition or become part of the trash can of history.

Click here to read the entire interview with Aaron David Miller

Scott Lasensky, a Senior Research Associate at the United States Institute of Peace, co-authored with Ambassador Daniel C. Kurtzer, the 2008 book "Negotiating Arab-Israeli Peace," prior to the election of President Obama.  Their book includes a detailed account of previous US peacemaking efforts, a collection of documents and primary sources related to the Mideast peace process, and recommendations for how the current US administration should engage in Arab-Israeli diplomacy.

In our exchange, Lasensky said that the reported tension between the governments in Washington and Jerusalem has been "totally overblown":

Don't be fooled, there's no crisis in U.S.-Israel relations. Apologies to those former advisors to Bush or Sharon who are trying to whip up a maelstrom. There's been a lot of heated rhetoric, especially from the Israeli side, but this will soon pass, as cooler heads prevail.

Israeli politics are a blood sport, just read the Israeli press or watch a Knesset debate. Some Israeli political figures have taken to act similarly toward President Obama and members of his Administration, which is a mistake, and they are quickly learning how self-defeating such an approach can be, especially on an issue like settlements, which the Israeli public long ago abandoned.

That said, there's no doubt the Administration is paying careful attention to the public discourse, they understand that our influence is greatest when Israelis have confidence in Washington, and when we act to reassure Israelis, particularly when they are being asked to take difficult steps.

For the U.S., the best way forward is to produce quick and visible achievements, which is what they seem to be going for. Progress and momentum will give Israelis greater confidence in President Obama, and will also make it easier for the current Israeli government to move forward.

Click here to read the full exchange with Scott Lasensky