Chuck Freilich
Senior Fellow, International Security Program
Contact:
Telephone: 617-495-8898
Fax: 617-496-0606
Email: chuck_freilich@harvard.edu
AP Photo
September 14, 2011
"Keep the Peace Between Israel and Egypt"
Op-Ed, Los Angeles Times
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"An Israel worried about the future of peace with Egypt will be understandably less inclined to go forward with the Palestinians, but the need for a major diplomatic initiative, together with military restraint, is greater than ever. The Palestinians must ensure that the U.N. vote becomes a basis for negotiations, not conflict. The U.S. must bring all of its influence to bear on the Palestinians to encourage them to do so, and on Egypt to ensure that it continues to pursue a peaceful course. Responsible Egyptians must make their voices heard."
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June 9, 2011
"Much Ado About Very Little"
Op-Ed, BitterLemons-International.org -- Middle East Roundtable, issue 16, volume 9
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"Denuded of the boilerplate rhetoric, the president's message was clear: the United States will continue to pursue the same policy it has adopted since the Arab spring began. Events in each country will be treated as discrete policy issues, not as part of a broad regional vision or normative commitment, and the US will support reform where it serves its interests and as long as the price—politically, economically and especially militarily—is minimal. No clarion call for democracy, no broad strategic vision, just reactive realpolitik, with best wishes."
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May 23, 2011
"Waiting for the Tsunami"
Op-Ed, Foreign Policy
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"Israel should declare its immediate willingness to negotiate with the new, unified Palestinian Authority on the terms of a provisional Palestinian state as long as it accepts the internationally accepted criteria: renunciation of terrorism and recognition of Israel's right to exist and of the existing bilateral agreements. The Palestinians would be hard pressed to justify a refusal to even negotiate a concrete proposal such as this."
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April 11, 2011
"Focus on Iran"
Op-Ed
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
As the popular uprisings sweep through the Middle East, attention has been diverted from Iran, in which all of the components of the revolutionary situation exist as well, writes Chuck Freilich. Regime change in Iran, he says, "should be the number one priority in the Mideast today and is an issue on which virtually all U.S. allies, in the region and beyond, can agree."
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December 16, 2010
"The Sparks That Light the Fires"
Op-Ed, BitterLemons-International.org -- Middle East Roundtable, issue 24
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"The even worse news is that we may badly need the improved firefighting and other civil preparedness capabilities in the coming years. In the three primary scenarios for military conflict in the coming years—a further round with Hizballah, a strike against Iran and renewed strife with the Palestinians—the home front is likely to be hit hard."
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November 30, 2010
"A Three-State Solution?"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"Rather than an imminent two-state-solution, the reality is that a de-facto three-state solution is evolving (Israel, West Bank and Gaza). The ongoing focus on settlements obscures the truth, that until the PA becomes a functioning, united entity, a final breakthrough is not feasible."
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July 23, 2010
"Inscrutable Face of Egypt's Future"
Op-Ed, Washington Times
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"Now or in the not-distant future, we will face the question of Egypt's course in the post-Mubarak era. Will his son, Gamal, the most likely successor, or some general from the ruling junta, succeed in gaining and retaining power, in which case Egypt's policies presumably will continue as known? Or will there be a battle for power, with the radical Muslim Brotherhood, the only opposition of consequence, the likely winner?"
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June 15, 2010
"Prime Minister Ibib"
Op-Ed, The Jerusalem Post
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"Bibi rightly takes an uncompromising position regarding security. Ibib grossly mishandled the Gaza flotilla fiasco, enraged international opinion, led to an end to the Egyptian embargo of Gaza and now to a partial termination of Israel's. Justified as the embargo may have been, it failed to achieve its objectives and should have been lifted long ago simply for reasons of cost effectiveness. Now we are being forced to do so under international pressure. Bibi wanted to isolate Hamas; Ibib succeeded in isolating Israel. Hamas, Iran and Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Turkey came out the victors."
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May 6, 2010
"Missiles, Missiles Everywhere"
Op-Ed, BitterLemons-International.org -- Middle East Roundtable, issue 8, volume 11
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"Far more worrying than the missiles themselves is the expression of Syrian intent, whether calculated or not. Provision of the missiles, the above notwithstanding, is clearly a provocative act, one that Syria knows will be of deep concern to Israel, especially coming on top of both its and Iran's already massive supply of weapons. Lebanon is a tinderbox as is and Syria is stoking the fire."
AP Photo
April 28, 2010
"Israel Must Prepare for Nuclear Terror Threat"
Op-Ed, Haaretz
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"Nuclear terrorism is one of the gravest threats to the world's security — so says United States President Barack Obama, who recently convened an international conference on the issue. In Israel, sunk in its own troubles, nuclear terrorism has elicited little interest until now. Beyond the dimensions of the threat, nuclear terrorism poses two unique problems in terms of deterrence. One is that the elements liable to employ nuclear terrorism are nihilist in nature — they are prepared to pay any price for Israel's destruction and are therefore not given to deterrence. The other is the absence of an "address" for purposes of deterrence and retaliation."
