Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Ira Weiner Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and a doctoral candidate in Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania, where he is writing his dissertation on Egyptian opposition parties
Tensions Rise between Israel and Her Regional Allies In the aftermath of Friday's attacks on Israel's Egyptian embassy, Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Erdogan is visiting Cairo. In an address to the Arab League, he said recognizing Palestinian statehood is "not a choice but an obligation." The Middle East is changing fast as Israel faces the loss of crucial allies and Turkey moves to exert leadership of the Muslim world. What's in store for American interests in the region and at the United Nations?
The 'Arab Spring' and Diplomacy in the Middle East Next week, the UN General Assembly may be asked to recognize a Palestinian state, with the potential for isolating both Israel and the United States. Meantime, Israel is in trouble with its only regional allies. In Egypt Friday, mobs attacked the Israeli embassy, sending a message to the shaky military regime. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan is visiting Cairo with harsh words for Israel's attack on the Gaza flotilla and support for Palestinian statehood. In an address to the Arab League, he said recognizing Palestinian statehood is "not a choice but an obligation." We hear why Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu sees a "political earthquake" he compares to "a new world order."
Ex-FBI Director Comey tells his side of the story Today, former FBI Director James Comey came close to calling the President who fired him a liar. The White House denied the claim and called it insulting, but Republican Senators did not challenge Comey’s truthfulness. Many questions remain: did the President try to obstruct a federal investigation? Later, we’ll go behind the “velvet rope” for a look at 5-Star health care for the richest Americans.
Trump plays scolder-in-chief with NATO allies At the opening of NATO’s dramatic new headquarters in Brussels today, President Trump acknowledged that Article 5 — promising that “an attack on one nation is an attack on all” -- has only been invoked one time: in the aftermath of September 11. But the President failed to provide what 27 other Alliance members have been waiting for: a re-commitment by America’s new leader to Article 5. Instead, they got a scolding.
What happens when America retreats from the world? Is President Trump taking his "America First" agenda to extremes, withdrawing the country from the international stage on trade and climate change, distancing America from its traditional allies across the Atlantic and even threatening to physically isolate the country through the building of a wall along its southern border? León Krauze guest hosts.