The Middle East was the topic when Elliott Abrams, former deputy assistant to the president and former deputy national security adviser for global democracy strategy, met with Hoover Institution fellows on January 23.
In addition to Abrams, the roundtable included Yehuda Blum, former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, and many Hoover fellows. They discussed the Israeli/Palestinian issue, lasting peace, and building the institutions (police force, justice system, schools, etc.) of a democratic society in the Palestinian territories.
The roundtable believes opportunities for a democratic Palestine are high because of the admirable literacy rate and the desire for self-rule, but the timetable for a democratic Palestine has to come from within; it cannot be forced or rushed from the outside.
