Clinton parameters

If I forget thee, O Jerusalem

Jerusalem does not have good public relations. In the last few months, since President Obama raised his demand to freeze the settlements, attention has been directed towards the West Bank - to the construction in the illegal outposts, the expansion of settlements and the dismantling of roadblocks. Jerusalem almost never appears on the radar screen, neither in Israel nor anywhere else in the world.

USIP's Lasensky: US- Israel tension "totally overblown"

Scott Lasensky, the Senior Research Associate of the Center for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at the United States Institute of Peace, co-authored "Negotiating Arab-Israeli Peace" last year with former US Ambassador to Israel Dan Kurtzer.  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 US administration following the Bush II White House should engage in Arab-Israeli diplomacy. 

More than 7 months into the Obama administration, I wanted to get Lasensky's take on the state of peacemaking efforts. Below are his responses to a few of my questions:

The Best Hope–Still?

Despite large obstacles, Obama is right to push the two-state solution 

A core element of President Barack Obama's much-anticipated speech in Cairo was an old idea: a two-state solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As expected, he argued strongly on its behalf, saying it "is in Israel's interest, Palestine's interest, America's interest, and the world's interest." He pledged to "personally pursue this outcome with all the patience and dedication that the task requires."

Interview with Gilead Sher: A very typical first meeting

Earlier today, The Pulse interviewed Gilead Sher, former Chief of Staff and Policy Coordinator for Israel's Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Ehud Barak.

Pulse: How do you think the meeting went this week between President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu?

Sher: Diplomatically speaking, it was OK.  It was polite, well organized and nothing unexpected occurred. It was very typical of first meetings between a newly elected Prime Minister and the President of the United States.  But in terms of substance the differences and divergences are quite evident.