#daniel kurtzer

[plitnick]

The U.S. double standard on nuclear power is dangerous

Although Joe Biden’s pathetic and desperate effort at Israeli-Saudi normalization is almost certain to fail, the fact that he’s willing to even consider helping Saudi Arabia develop its own, independent nuclear enrichment program (something it is legally entitled to, but the US is by no means required to help with) reveals much about nuclear double standards and hubris in the region as well as…

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[eretzyisrael]

How to Understand the US Failure in the Middle East, by Mitchell Bard

Miller and Kurtzer revert to the notion that the United States must be “evenhanded” to play a role in the peace process, placing our democratic ally, Israel, on par with the anti-American, corrupt, terror-sponsoring autocrats from the Palestinian Authority. Again, that approach has a nearly eight-decade record of catastrophe.

Their assertion that Trump’s decision flouts international law is also wrong as I documented in my previous column. To briefly recap, one Carter administration official speciously concluded that settlements were illegal. Numerous legal scholars disputed this, as did Israel’s Supreme Court and President Reagan. John Kerry called them “illegitimate” and abstained but did not vote for the UN resolution labeling them illegal (which is irrelevant anyway since the UN gives political opinions not legal ones).

People like Miller and Kurtzer never admit that the policies they advocate, the same ones they pursued at the State Department, were disastrous. It kills them to see Trump finally place the onus for the absence of peace where it belongs — on the Palestinians. Instead of whitewashing Palestinian irredentism and terror, Trump is the first president to punish them for their destructive behavior. By recognizing Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, he has accepted the reality Miller and Kurtzer continue to deny, that Israel will not withdraw from either place. They still cling to the paradigm of two-states with a divided Jerusalem.

One thing Miller and Kurtzer are correct about is that the settlement decision appeals to the president’s base. That, however, does not make it wrong.

[midnightfunk]

White House announces Jared Kushner's former 'coffee boy' as new Middle East envoy

The new US-Middle East peace envoy will be a 30-year-old White House administrative assistant, President Donald Trump announced yesterday.

The appointment “demonstrates a lack of seriousness” in the administration’s approach to the peace plan and Mr Kushner’s complete dominance over the process, former Middle East advisor to the US defence department Jasmine El-Gamal told The Telegraph. “They are not even pretending otherwise by hiring a qualified person as an envoy.”

[wprbnews-blog]

Former Ambassador Daniel Kurtzer on Intervention in the Middle East

This week, the Senate voted to end US military support for Saudi war effort in Yemen in the wake the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Jalen Salmon spoke to former US ambassador Daniel Kurtzer about what the United States’ role is and should be in the Middle East, and what possibilities might exist for diplomatic intervention.

[jbginsberg]

Israelis may regret welcoming the coming presidency of Donald Trump.

[justprincetonthings]

KURTZER: The latest on Egypt

Daniel Kurtzer speaks on "The Takeaway" about the situation in Egypt:

#Egypt may be sliding into constant #violence that could lead to civil war. @Princeton Prof. says it's a real worry. http://t.co/2vYKh3r80C

— The Takeaway (@TheTakeaway) July 26, 2013

"Given a chance, the interim government may actually prove itself," says @Princeton Prof. on #Egypt. http://t.co/2vYKh3r80C

— The Takeaway (@TheTakeaway) July 27, 2013

[justprincetonthings]

KURTZER: U.S. right to press for Middle East compromises

Daniel Kurtzer discusses Secretary of State John Kerry's efforts to revive Middle East peace talks. He tells Voice of America that Washington is right to press Israelis and Palestinians to make compromises for peace.