On Tuesday June 9th 2009 in Ramat Gan, the Minister of Defence, Mr. Ehud Barak addressed a packed audience of the Council for Peace and Security. The meeting was presided over by Council President Maj Gen (Ret.) Danny Rothschild.

The speaker began by saying that he was personally acquainted with many of the old soldiers present in the audience.

Mr. Barak discussed nuclear proliferation and world-wide terror. He dwelt upon Israel's relationship with the United States, and briefly reviewed relationships between the countries of the Middle East. He spoke of the prospects of an Israeli-Palestinian peace, and enlarged upon some aspects of the mechanism of a peace process. Such a peace, he said, would be part of an overall regional settlement.

The talk was followed by a round of questions from the floor, to which the speaker responded.

A Report covering the period January to April 2009 has been issued by the Director, Police Maj Gen (Ret.) Shaul Givoli. It was a time of great activity in Israel. There was the military campaign "Cast Lead" in Gaza. Then the country embarked upon a national election campaign followed by elections and formation of a new government. The Council met frequently, deliberating the issues and mode of action.

Read a Summary of the Report

In the view of the Council it is in Israel's vital interest to separate from the Palestinians and establish a clear dividing border.

A Meeting of the Council on Monday, March 30 2009, attended by some two hundred Members and guests, heard a presentation by Mr Gilead Sher of an orderly plan for carrying out the separation. This was followed by a review by Maj Gen (Ret.) Uri Sagi. He stressed the importance of making peace with Syria.

This preliminary review, written by Col (Ret.) Shaul Arieli, Senior Member of the Council, has been published by Senat as Political Issues Paper No 363, February 2009

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After Bibi's Speech A Shift to Quiet Talks

The Obama administration now seems to be poised to ease its public pressure on Israel, following Netanyahu's acceptance of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Discussions over the settlement issue are now shifting to quiet working-level talks.

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Did Netanyahu really mean it when he said "Palestinian State"?

Netanyahu's speech aligned him with the Israeli political right: accepting the concept of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but on conditions that render it ridiculous.

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Obama is Right

The American President offers a refreshing approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He stresses that the issues concern all the moderate Arab States of the region, and a solution requires not only bilateral Israeli-Palestinian agreement but a comprehensive regional settlement. Obama is right in seeing the Israeli settlements in the Territories as obstacles to peace. The entire enlightened world has decided not to let this situation continue.

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Israel-Palestine A brief History of the Negotiations

The history of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians is outlined, beginning with the meeting in Lausanne in 1949. Shaul Arieli concludes that a permanent agreement necessitates deep, intensive and sincere involvement of countries that support it.

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Obama makes Bid for Middle East Peace

Serious discussions are beginning between US President Barrak Obama and Binyamin Netanyahu of Israel, Honsi Mubarak of Egypt and Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Obama is reported to have plunged into the depths of the issues, but experts doubt a breakthrough. The issues are extraordinarily complex and on both sides there are weak leaders and breakdown of trust. The current effort will climax when Obama delivers his speech in Egypt outlining his plans to make progress.

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Will Israelis ever accept the Arab Peace Initiative?

While the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002 represents a revolution in Arab attitudes, the majority of Israelis are hesitant about it. Many see the Initiative as offering recognition and security only after Israel has fulfilled its provisions. It is asserted that both recognition and security are prerequisites to a process that aims to create peace. There may be ways to bridge the gap between these two positions. Without such a bridge the Arab Peace Initiative will fade away into the piles of other Middle East peace initiatives.

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It's all in the Final-Status Agreement

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's demand that Israel be recognized as a "Jewish State" is an attempt to avoid negotiations. Such recognition has been accorded long ago by the Balfour Declaration and by the League of Nations and the UN. The current Zionist imperitive is disengagement from the Palestinians.

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