Author: Michael Sharnoff

Russia, Syria

Why Russia will Prevail in Syria [Interview]

Michael Sharnoff
putin-2847423_960_720The US does not have a coherent strategy in Syria. At times Washington has advocated different agendas such as humanitarian relief, Assad’s resignation, and the defeat of Islamic State. Russia, on the other hand, has always had a clear and consistent strategy:  defending its ally, Assad. In 2015, Russia deployed military force in support of the government which has ensured that the Western-backed opposition in Syria would be defeated.

Assad is here to stay and Russian influence has prevailed.

Read the full interview with the Lebanese daily An-Nahar [Arabic] Newspaper.

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Book Review in the Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs

Michael Sharnoff

RIFAReviewed in the Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs by David Sultan, former Israeli Ambassador to Egypt.

What was Gamal Abdel Nasser’s attitude toward Israel? Did it change as a result of his country’s stunning defeat in the Six-Day War? Was the Egyptian president willing to achieve a political settlement with Israel? Did Israel miss an opportunity to reach an agreement with Nasser? These are some of the questions with which historians and political commentators have been grappling for decades, while offering views that differ in terms of nuance, or more fundamentally, from the canonical version of events.

Read the full review in the Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs.

Check out what other readers are saying here!

Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia

Iran has Driven Israel and the Gulf Arab States Together

Michael Sharnoff

Published in the Washington Post.

Quietly since 2002, several Sunni Arab rulers have shifted away from their long-standing hostility toward Israel to focus on the threat posed by Iran.

They have acted in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative, also known as the Saudi peace plan, which called on the Arab League to terminate belligerency with Israel. It also envisioned a comprehensive peace agreement with Israel in exchange for Israel withdrawing to the June 4, 1967 lines and agreeing to “a just solution to the Palestinian refugee problem” that accorded with “UN General Assembly Resolution 194 while rejecting all forms of patriation.”

Continue reading the full article in the Washington Post.

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Special Book Discount for Christmas!

Michael Sharnoff

Nassers Peace

Order your copy of Nasser’s Peace in Hardback or eBook at a special discount for delivery before Christmas!

See what early readers are saying here!

Jordan

The Pervasiveness of anti-Semitism in Jordanian Media

Michael Sharnoff

Published in Foreign Policy Research Institute.

The Kingdom of Jordan relies on American support to prevent terrorist infiltration from Islamic State and other Salafi-Jihadist threats; alleviate the economic burden strained by a massive influx of Syrian refugees; and achieve a diplomatic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The U.S. perceives Jordan as a strategic partner—an island of stability in an unstable region. In 2016, Jordan received $1.4 billion in economic and military assistance from the United States. This aid is part of a three-year memorandum of understanding whereby Washington will allocate $1 billion in aid to Jordan annually, up from $660 million in recent years. As a result of Jordan’s unique geostrategic position, the U.S. has refrained from publicly critiquing its human rights abuses.

Continue reading “The Pervasiveness of anti-Semitism in Jordanian Media” →

Egypt

Nasser’s Peace Reviewed in the Times of Israel

Michael Sharnoff

Published in The Times of Israel by Sheldon Kirshner, a Toronto-based journalist.

Egypt’s crushing defeat at the hands of Israel in the Six Day War created a crisis of confidence in the Egyptian government. Bouncing back from the depths of despair, President Gamal Abdel Nasser reacted to Israel’s victory by political and military means.

In Nasser’s Peace: Egypt’s Response to the 1967 War With Israel (Transaction Publishers), Michael Sharnoff, drawing on recently declassified primary sources, expertly examines his policies before and after that seminal conflict.

Read the full interview in the Times of Israel.

Check out what other readers are saying here!

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What Readers are Saying about Nasser’s Peace

Michael Sharnoff

Gamal Abdel Nasser was arguably one of the most influential Arab leaders in history. As President of Egypt from 1956 to 1970, he could have achieved a peace agreement with Israel, yet he preferred to maintain his unique leadership role by affirming pan-Arab nationalism and championing the liberation of Palestine, a common euphemism for the destruction of Israel.

Drawing on recently declassified primary sources, Michael Sharnoff thoroughly inspects Nasser’s post-war strategy, which he claims was a four-tiered diplomatic and media effort consisting of his public declarations, his private diplomatic consultations, the Egyptian media’s propaganda machine, and Egyptian diplomatic efforts. Nasser manipulated each tier masterfully, providing the answers they desired to hear, rather than stating the truth: that he wished to maintain control of his dictatorship and of his foothold in the Arab world.

Continue reading “What Readers are Saying about Nasser’s Peace” →

Arab Nationalism, Egypt

A Humiliated Arab World Turns to Islamism

Michael Sharnoff

Published in the Jewish Chronicle.

During the 1950s and 60s, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser guided and shaped Arab public opinion.

Nasser emerged as the undisputed leader of the Arab world by championing pan-Arabism — a secular ideology that advocated Arab unity and freedom from Western influence. It also championed the liberation of Palestine, a euphemism for the creation of a Palestinian Arab state on the ruins of Israel.

Continue reading “A Humiliated Arab World Turns to Islamism” →