A Policy-Oriented Think Tank Addressing Foreign Policy and National Security Issues for a Safe Israel

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Colonel (res.) Dr. Eran Lerman

Vice President of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security

Dr. Lerman was deputy director for foreign policy and international affairs at the National Security Council in the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office. He held senior posts in IDF Military Intelligence for over 20 years. He also served for eight years as director of the Israel and Middle East office of the American Jewish Committee. He teaches in the Middle East studies program at Shalem College in Jerusalem, and in post-graduate programs at Tel Aviv University and the National Defense College. He is an expert on Israel’s foreign relations, and on the Middle East. A third-generation Sabra, he holds a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics, and a mid-career MPA from Harvard University.

Missiles from Gaza towards Israeli jets

After Shield and Arrow, and facing Iran: Can Israel return to conflict management with the Palestinians?

With Operation Shield and Arrow in Gaza over, Israel must again focus on the challenge of Iran as a top priority. Given the urgency, now conveyed even by the US administration, the government must accelerate efforts to derail Tehran’s nuclear project. It is not the time to seek a defeat of Hamas or the collapse of the Palestinian Authority, but rather a continuation of conflict management. Israel should restore (albeit not fully trust) security cooperation with Ramallah, in the context of the process launched in Aqaba in late February; and in Gaza, to drive further the decoupling of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, an Iranian proxy, from the Hamas de facto government.

22/05/2023
Manufacture Of Umbrellas And Chairs In Egypt

The Egyptian Financial Crisis: Implications for the region, and for Israel too

Egypt continues to play an active role in regional affairs, including the Aqaba emergency meeting on the Palestinian situation (February 26) and the ongoing effort to prevent escalation in Gaza. At the same time, Cairo is in the middle of a significant financial crisis. The effects of the war in Ukraine – specifically, grain shortages – brought the Egyptian pound to more than 30 to the dollar, up from 20 in November and 15 in early 2022, facilitated by deliberate government action in response to demands by the IMF. Inflation still soars, and so does youth unemployment. All this could destabilize a nation of 105 million on our border, with dire consequences.

02/03/2023
Saudi Arabia and Israel flags Illustration

Progress toward a breakthrough in Saudi-Israeli relations: ‘Haste is from the Devil’

The positive and businesslike approach that marked the meeting of the Negev Forum Steering Committee and Working Groups in Abu Dhabi (January 9-10, 2023) proves that the drive to entrench and deepen the Abraham Accords is still ongoing despite the change of government in Israel. Hopes for a breakthrough in Saudi-Israeli relations are also still being nurtured, reflected in practical steps already taken. Moreover, the issue was raised with Jake Sullivan during his visit to Israel. Still, as the Arab saying goes, al-’ajalah min al-shaytan – haste is from the devil – and premature pronouncements have done more harm than good. The change will not come overnight: the Palestinian issue is still a stumbling block, and political dynamics in the Kingdom are complex, at least as long as King Salman still reins in some of his son’s ambitions.

29/01/2023

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