Peace Process

Abstract

As I studied the near-verbatim records of early RCTF meetings for this analysis, two insights emerged. I must state them at the outset so you may sense, as fully as possible, the deeper roots of Sustained Dialogue. First, what I brought to the table from my government work experience played a significant role in shaping Sustained Dialogue. I refer especially to my intense involvement as a senior diplomat in the Arab-Israeli peace process (from 1973 to 1981) and to my tangential exposure to the political process called détente — the effort to “substitute negotiation for force” — in the Soviet-U.S. relationship during the first Nixon administration. I worked closely with National Security Advisor, and later Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger and periodically interacted with the Soviets to prevent the Arab-Israeli conflict from igniting a nuclear holocaust. Détente was a peace process of sorts, although not called such.