Daniel Freedman: Israel, Peace, and the Necessity of Leverage

October 21, 2010

Forbes
By Daniel Freedman

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Israelis are currently transfixed by recently released top secret documents from the eve of the 1973 “Yom Kippur” war. They make an interesting read, but the most valuable lesson from that period for today’s diplomats is not what led to the war, but how U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger manipulated events once the war started. That’s a lesson in the necessity of creating leverage.

On October 6, 1973, Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack against Israel. (October 6 that year fell on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar.) Israel’s leaders were not expecting an attack, and the Arab armies also performed much better than Israeli war games had predicted. As a consequence Israeli border units were overwhelmed, and the Syrians advanced into the Golan Heights and the Egyptians into the Sinai Peninsula.

The previously top secret cabinet meetings minutes tell the story of Israeli leaders humbled by their miscalculations. Moshe Dayan, Israel’s fierce eye-patching defense minister told his colleagues: “I misunderstood the enemy’s strength, I overestimated our own forces. The Arabs are much better soldiers than they used to be.” The minutes show Prime Minister Golda Meir similarly downcast.

The minutes are fascinating to read, but in terms of lessons learned about the causes of war, there’s not much new…

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To read the full article please click on the link below:http://blogs.forbes.com/danielfreedman/2010/10/21/israel-peace-and-the-necessity-of-leverage/

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