United States, Europe, and the Wider Middle East

摘要

Middle East policy continues to be dominated by what one analyst has termed 'the usual suspects,' that is, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), Iraq security, and other chronic security problems. At the same time, however, the region and, by extension, the United States and Europe face a variety of new policy challenges, including the spread of Islamist extremism, the growth of al-Qa'ida and affiliated groups, and the growing rift between the West and the wider Middle East. This combination of new and perennial challenges served as the backdrop for an informal discussion among a group of experts who gathered to explore a set of five topics: (star) the insurgency in Iraq * the Arab-Israeli situation (star) the terrorist threat (star) internal security in Saudi Arabia (star) Iran and the proliferation of WMD. None of these issues was considered in isolation. Rather, each was addressed with an eye toward understanding their implications for the region as a whole and exploring what the broader consequences might be for American and European policy. The following summary reflects the rapporteur's sense of the conversation, which was conducted on a not-for- attribution basis.