Stephen M. Walt
Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
Member of the Board, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Contact:
Telephone: (617) 495-5712
Fax: (617)-495-8963
Email: stephen_walt@harvard.edu
AP Photo
December 14, 2012
"The Interview: Stephen M. Walt"
Op-Ed, The Diplomat
By Zachary Keck and Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"The United States is out of Iraq and is getting out of Afghanistan, but the big question is whether we can keep ourselves from being dragged back into the Middle East quagmire in the future. The best course in the Middle East would be to act as an "offshore balancer": ready to intervene if the balance of power is upset, but otherwise keeping our military footprint small. We should also have normal relationship with states like Israel and Saudi Arabia, instead of the counterproductive "special relationships" we have today. Steps like these would free up the resources for a more robust presence in Asia, should that become advisable down the road. But we should act like an "offshore balancer" in Asia as well...."
AP Photo
March 4, 2012
"Mr Obama Must Take a Stand against Israel over Iran"
Op-Ed, Financial Times
By John J. Mearsheimer, Editorial Board Member, Quarterly Journal: International Security and Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"...[F]orce cannot produce a meaningful victory. Israel's air force cannot destroy all Iran's nuclear facilities; even a successful US attack could not eliminate the knowledge on which the programme is based. Iran would simply rebuild its facilities in less vulnerable locations, as Iraq did after Israel bombed the Osirak reactor in 1981."
AP Photo
November 8, 2010
"Delusion Points"
Op-Ed, Foreign Policy
By Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"George W. Bush's presidency really was that bad — and the fact that Obama has largely followed the same course is less a measure of Bush's wisdom than a reminder of the depth of the hole he dug his country into, as well as the institutionalized groupthink that dominates the U.S. foreign-policy establishment."
AP Photo
March 2010
"The Challenge of Mutual Security"
Report Chapter
By Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"A workable solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must provide adequate security for Israelis and Palestinians alike. This objective will not be easy to achieve even in the context of a two-state solution, as each state will be comparatively small and the two sides will have to coordinate border controls, access to water and key religious sites and other potentially contentious issues. The long history of conflict will magnify security concerns, and both sides are bound to worry that concessions made in the context of a final-status agreement might one day be opened up for further negotiation. Despite these challenges, a two-state solution offers the best chance of mutual security for Israelis and Palestinians alike, both now and for the foreseeable future."
AP Photo
July 7, 2009
"Obama's Style Trumps Substance, Again"
Op-Ed, The Daily Beast
By Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"The tone of U.S.-Russian diplomacy was much improved, and Obama is returning to Washington with several concrete agreements, but the summit did not yield a significant breakthrough on any major issue. In fact, like much of Obama's foreign policy to date, the Moscow summit was as much a triumph of style and attitude as an achievement in terms of substance. Russian-American relations may now be headed in the right direction, but both sides have a long way to go."
AP Photo
November 8, 2010
"Delusion Points"
Op-Ed, Foreign Policy
By Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"George W. Bush's presidency really was that bad — and the fact that Obama has largely followed the same course is less a measure of Bush's wisdom than a reminder of the depth of the hole he dug his country into, as well as the institutionalized groupthink that dominates the U.S. foreign-policy establishment."
February / March 2005
"In the National Interest: A New Grand Strategy for American Foreign Policy"
Journal Article, Boston Review, issue 1, volume 30
By Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"...how can the United States maximize the benefits that primacy brings and minimize the resistance that its power sometimes provokes?"
February 2, 2003
"Keeping Saddam in a Box"
Op-Ed, New York Times
By John J. Mearsheimer, Editorial Board Member, Quarterly Journal: International Security and Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"...Iraq has never gone to war in the face of a clear deterrent threat."
February / March 2005
"In the National Interest: A New Grand Strategy for American Foreign Policy"
Journal Article, Boston Review, issue 1, volume 30
By Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"...how can the United States maximize the benefits that primacy brings and minimize the resistance that its power sometimes provokes?"
February 2, 2003
"Keeping Saddam in a Box"
Op-Ed, New York Times
By John J. Mearsheimer, Editorial Board Member, Quarterly Journal: International Security and Stephen M. Walt, Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Affairs; Faculty Chair, International Security Program
"...Iraq has never gone to war in the face of a clear deterrent threat."
