I guess it should maybe come as no surprise, but criticism of President Obama’s Middle East policy has come from an unlikely source – one of his special envoys tasked with carrying it out. Ha’aretz is reporting that in his new book, Dennis Ross opposes a comprehensive view of bringing peace to the Middle East. From the article “Dennis Ross vs. Obama: No link between Iran, Mideast peace“:
Dennis Ross, the U.S. Secretary of State’s special adviser on Iran, says in a new book that the United States will not make progress toward peace in the Middle East with the Obama administration’s new plan. . .
In the second chapter, entitled “Linkage: The Mother of All Myths,” Ross writes: “Of all the policy myths that have kept us from making real progress in the Middle East, one stands out for its impact and longevity: the idea that if only the Palestinian conflict were solved, all other Middle East conflicts would melt away. This is the argument of ‘linkage.'”
Ross has written the new book with David Makovsky from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. WINEP is an institution closely identified with the Israel lobby, and one that Ross himself has worked for. Maybe this is why there was so much trepidation with a possible Ross appointment in the new administration? Ha’aretz says “Ross’ appointment has been controversial because he is an observant Jew and is considered a strong supporter of Israel.” I think it was the latter.
