It appears that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is becoming more amenable to a U.S. plan that would halt settlements for an additional two months and during that time negotiations on final borders would commence.
This plan is interesting for two reasons. First, tieing the settlement freeze to metrics represents a clear timeframe that both parties know they must adhere to or face either the crumbling of peace talks or heightened U.S. pressure that could result in a more one-sided posture from the White House.
Secondly, an interesting analysis points to Netanyahu’s backing of a loyalty oath legislation as a a gift to the right (and Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beitenu party in particular) for not leaving the coalition over the a new settlement moratorium. Leiberman was Netanyahu’s kingmaker in the last election and his leaving the coalition would most certainly result in new elections because Tzipi Livni is unlikely to bring her Kadima party to the government’s rescue. Therefore, this loyalty oath measure, while controversial, could emerge as the peace process’ saving grace.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
