Washington Institute for Near East Policy/Sandbox

The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (TWI; known informally as WINEP) is a Washington, D.C.-based think tank focused on United States foreign policy in the Middle East. Established in 1985 as a "pro-Israeli alternative" to other conservative think tanks, its founders were largely American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) board members, including AIPAC president Larry Weinberg, his wife and AIPAC vice president Barbi Weinburg, and AIPAC deputy director of research Martin Indyk. In CONTRAST to AIPAC's partisan image, WINEP positioned itself as "friendly to Israel but doing credible research on the Middle East in a realistic and balanced way."

According to its website,

While AIPAC attempts to influence the U.S. Congress through campaign contributions, WINEP is focused on influencing the media and U.S. executive branch. Its activities include annual conferences, a Military Fellows Program that "brings together senior officers from the armed forces of the United States and key Middle Eastern allies", a Presidential Study Group it describes as a "bipartisan, blue-ribbon commission charged with drafting a blueprint for the next administration's Middle East policy", closed-door policy forums, and various publications and research programs.

Robert Satloff is the institute's Executive Director, a post he assumed in January 1993. Several current and former members of WINEP have served in senior positions in the administrations of Presidents George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

Members of its Board of Advisors include Warren Christopher, Lawrence S. Eagleburger, Alexander Haig, Max Kampelman, Samuel W. Lewis, Edward Luttwak, Michael Mandelbaum, Robert McFarlane, Martin Peretz, Richard Perle, James Roche, Cheryl Halpern, George P. Shultz, R. James Woolsey, and Mortimer Zuckerman.

Policy orientation

WINEP is regarded by some as having a pro-Israel tilt, It is described by the US foreign policy scholars John Mearsheimer, political science professor at the University of Chicago, and Stephen Walt, academic dean of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, as "part of the core" of the Israel lobby.

Discussing WINEP's establishment in The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy Mearsheimer and Walt state:

Criticism

In October 2003, the Zionist Organization of America criticized WINEP for "embracing" a delegation of representatives of "the Fatah [...] movement".

In an interview on Al-Jazeera in December 2003, Palestinian-American professor Rashid Khalidi sharply criticized the institute, stating it is "the fiercest of the enemies of the Arabs and the Muslims."

Discussing WINEP's establishment in The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, Walt and Mearsheimer wrote that "Many of its personnel are genuine scholars or experienced former officials, but they are hardly neutral observers on most Middle East issues and there is little diversity of views within WINEP's ranks."

Support

The WINEP is said to have "bipartisan credentials" and its "Mission" page features prominent quotes from both Al Gore and columnist Charles Krauthammer. Martin Kramer has expressed strong support for the WINEP, noting that it is run by Americans, and accepts funds only from American sources. He also criticized Khalidi for his remarks, stating that "it is outrageous for Khalidi to denounce the Arabs who have come to The Washington Institute as blundering dupes." Kramer noted that the institute hosted a group of Palestinian Fatah activists associated with the Tanzim in the Fall of 2003, despite the fact that this invitation resulted in criticism of the institute from pro-Israel sources. Kramer also noted that in for its annual 2003 conference, the Institute flew in three members of Iraq's Governing Council. The institute has also hosted Egyptian playwright, Ali Salem, who has been detained for his collaboration with democracy activist Saad Eddin Ibrahim.

Notable current and former scholars

• Patrick Clawson
• Martin Indyk
• Mehdi Khalaji
• Martin Kramer
• Joshua Muravchik
• Dennis Ross
• Robert Satloff
• Moshe Ya'alon
• Soner Cagaptay
• Andrew Exum
• Mehdi Khalaji
• Ze'ev Schiff
• Paul Wolfowitz
• David Makovsky

See also

• Turkish Research Program

External links

• Washington Institute for Near East Policy Homepage
• The myth of the "Jewish lobby" in the Frontline (India's National Magazine) Volume 20 - Issue 20, September 27 - October 10, 2003.
• Profile of Washington Institute for Near East Policy on Right Web
• US thinktanks give lessons in foreign policy, Brian Whitaker, Guardian Unlimited, August 19, 2002
• Robert Satloff talks about Among the Righteous: Lost Stories from the Holocaust'’s Long Reach Into Arab Lands (video) November 2006
• Voices on Antisemitism Interview with Robert Satloff from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

de:Washington Institute for Near East Policy es:Washington Institute for Near East Policy fa:انستیتو سیاست خاورمیانه واشنگتن tr:Washington Yakın Doğu Araştırmaları Enstitüsü