The overarching question imparting urgency to this exploration is: Can U.S.-Russian contention in cyberspace cause the two nuclear superpowers to stumble into war? In considering this question we were constantly reminded of recent comments by a prominent U.S. arms control expert: At least as dangerous as the risk of an actual cyberattack, he observed, is cyber operations’ “blurring of the line between peace and war.” Or, as Nye wrote, “in the cyber realm, the difference between a weapon and a non-weapon may come down to a single line of code, or simply the intent of a computer program’s user.”
Third session of Middle East Initiative Senior Fellow Robert M. Danin's study group "How Should the Next President of the United States Handle the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?"
Having explored both past US policy towards the conflict and examined the Israeli-Palestinian situation today from various vantage points, this session focuses first on identifying both potential diplomatic approaches towards the conflict as well as policy tools that the United States could use. How important is the conflict? Why is it important today? Should the U.S. invest political and diplomatic capital towards resolving this conflict? Should other regional conflicts be addressed first, in parallel, or after? Would resolution of this conflict contribute to stabilizing a region in which the state system is crumbling? Should the next president devote time to this? If so, what elements would be necessary to craft an effective approach, and how should it be pursued?
Readings:Click to Download Reading List
Please note: this event is part of a three-session study group open by application only. Applications are no longer being accepted to this group. No additional participants will be accepted.