By
– December 28, 2011
In this important contribution to the study of statecraft the author seeks to provide “a monographic analysis and evaluation of Israeli statecraft with the help of…concepts and frames.” Yehezkel Dror is a professor of political science at the Hebrew University and a former staff member of the RAND Corporation. He has been an advisor to several Israeli governments and he uses his extensive experience to detail both the history of Israeli statecraft and his advice for how the country might improve. “This book is in part based on personal observation which provides insights not otherwise available,” writes Dror.
Statecraft, as defined here, is “the sense of coherent, long-term, and broadband political-security paradigms, assessments, frames of appreciation…dealing with issues of much importance to national security.” In this sense it includes both the historic legacy of the Jewish people as well as major threats to Israel’s security, such as Iran’s development of nuclear weapons, and broad historical-religious trends in the region. In this book, which serves as a sort of primer to understanding Israel’s position, numerous scenarios and security issues are detailed in various short lists (forty-four in all) of contingencies, responses, and models. For instance, one list examines “statecraft errors” which include “inadequate integration of the Arab minority into Israeli society” and “great difficulties with the United Nations and its bodies.
The book is accurate, original, and a unique contribution to this wide-ranging subject. However, it suffers from a choppy style of writing and a fast-paced approach that forces the reader, who is expected to have prior knowledge of the subject, to move quickly between various types of theories and real life scenarios affecting the country. The author argues persuasively for reforms to the way Israel views international bodies, suggesting that Israel work more closely with them. Dror also suggests that Israel’s defense establishment has had too much influence over Israel’s statecraft. Acknowledgements, bibliography, index, notes.
Statecraft, as defined here, is “the sense of coherent, long-term, and broadband political-security paradigms, assessments, frames of appreciation…dealing with issues of much importance to national security.” In this sense it includes both the historic legacy of the Jewish people as well as major threats to Israel’s security, such as Iran’s development of nuclear weapons, and broad historical-religious trends in the region. In this book, which serves as a sort of primer to understanding Israel’s position, numerous scenarios and security issues are detailed in various short lists (forty-four in all) of contingencies, responses, and models. For instance, one list examines “statecraft errors” which include “inadequate integration of the Arab minority into Israeli society” and “great difficulties with the United Nations and its bodies.
The book is accurate, original, and a unique contribution to this wide-ranging subject. However, it suffers from a choppy style of writing and a fast-paced approach that forces the reader, who is expected to have prior knowledge of the subject, to move quickly between various types of theories and real life scenarios affecting the country. The author argues persuasively for reforms to the way Israel views international bodies, suggesting that Israel work more closely with them. Dror also suggests that Israel’s defense establishment has had too much influence over Israel’s statecraft. Acknowledgements, bibliography, index, notes.
Seth J. Frantzman received his Ph.D. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem where he currently holds a Post-Doctoral Fellowship. He is a columnist for the Jerusalem Post and Fellow at the Jerusalem Institute of Market Studies.
