Epstein Secrets

s, has provoked unprecedented criticism of US policy from two of its strongest Middle East allies: Israel and Saudi Arabia. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has called on his ministers and his supporters in the US to lobby Congress to oppose the agreement. Meanwhile, Saudi officials have accused the US

Benjamin Netanyahu, who traveled to Moscow to lobby the Kremlin to stop the Geneva deal from going forward. This may have been wishful thinking on Netanyahu's part, but he evidently thought it worth a try. "The Russians have already surprised us in the past," one senior Israeli official told YNet, "and

it in him. We all envy him." When Putin traveled to Israel in June 2012, he was the guest of honor at an unveiling ceremony in the coastal city of Netanya. What was unveiled was the first monument to the Red Army ever to be constructed since the fall of the Soviet Union. This memorial, which underscor

resuscitate Idriss' Free Syrian Army, seeking a rapprochement with the Islamic Front and working to keep diplomatic talks alive. Frederic C. Hof of the Atlantic Council, another Syria expert, calls that "the moonwalk option" — the illusion of forward motion while standing in place — and it's the most likely outcome

gainst it. The third fact — and this one is hard for many to swallow — is that neither a negotiated settlement nor the air strikes long favoured by Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, can offer the rest of the world a watertight insurance policy. It should be possible to construct a deal that acts as a p

statements from those involved in the talks (Iran and the P5+1) indicating that the obstacles to an interim accord are being overcome have incensed Netanyahu. And he has made his displeasure known—publicly and without pulling punches—even though the first-step agreement with Iran couldn't be reached in t

e Anne and Bernard Spitzer Professor of Political Science at the City College of New York/City University of New York, nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, and the author, most recently, of The End of Alliances (Oxford University Press, 2007). NYT French Muscle, American Cheese Roger Cohen Novemb

toward supporting independence for Kurdistan, a position that would put it at odds with the United States over the partition of Iraq. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for it a week ago Sunday. And while Israel's foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, back-pedalled from the comment on Monday, analysts here sa

alled for it a week ago Sunday. And while Israel's foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, back-pedalled from the comment on Monday, analysts here say Netanyahu is just recognising what is already taking place. Mr. Netanyahu's call last Sunday for Kurdish independence came just days after Israel bought a del

sh official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of political sensitivities. Ramzy Mardini, an Iraq expert and nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council, said he believes the Kurds are pushing for economic gains and greater control, without having to shoulder the responsibilities of full statehood.

orts that on Wednesday, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin tasked opposition leader Yair Lapid with forming a new government a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "failed to cobble together a governing coalition by a midnight deadline." According to the AP, Rivlin "spent the day consulting with all of the par

f the left, right and centre 'that will reflect the fact that we don't hate one another.' But Lapid, 57, has ruled out serving in a government with Netanyahu, citing the criminal indictment against the prime minister." Axios (5/5, Ravid, 1.26M) says Rivlin "held consultations with Israel's political part

resentatives Committee Work Day Cabinet Officers: • EU-U.S. Future Forum continues (virtual) - EU-U.S. Future Forum continues, hosted virtually by the Atlantic Council in partnership with the Delegation of the European Union to the United States, to develop a new transatlantic agenda and momentum for EU-U.S. cooper

orts that on Wednesday, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin tasked opposition leader Yair Lapid with forming a new government a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "failed to cobble together a governing coalition by a midnight deadline." According to the AP, Rivlin "spent the day consulting with all of the part

of the left, right and centre `that will reflect the fact that we don't hate one another.' But Lapid, 57, has ruled out serving in a government with Netanyahu, citing the criminal indictment against the prime minister." Axios (5/5, Ravid, 1.26M) says Rivlin "held consultations with Israel's political par

resentatives Committee Work Day Cabinet Officers: • EU-U.S. Future Forum continues (virtual) - EU-U.S. Future Forum continues, hosted virtually by the Atlantic Council in partnership with the Delegation of the European Union to the United States, to develop a new transatlantic agenda and momentum for EU-U.S. coope