New York, USA—The summer 2017 issue of Dialogue & Alliance, a journal of UPF, is now available. The theme of this issue is “Prospects for Peace in the Middle East”.
Our Summer 2017 issue of Dialogue and Alliance (Volume 31, Number 1) gives attention to some of the critical issues of our time, with particular emphasis on challenges facing the Middle East, including Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Palestine. Many of the articles included in this volume derive from UPF conferences convened recently, the first being a conference held in Larnaca, Cyprus, on December 17-19, 2017 exploring prospects for “opening lines of communication” that might lead to a truce in Syria, a country where more than 400,000 have lost their lives in a protracted and immensely destructive war that has also given rise to a humanitarian crisis of unthinkable proportions, with refugees and displaced persons numbering in the many millions, contributing to a wider crisis and destabilizing strains in the region.
UPF’s Middle East Secretary General, David Fraser Harris, who spent more than a dozen years living in Damascus, offers a thoughtful and helpful executive summary of the conference in Cyprus, describing its purpose, the general theme, the contributors and some of the essential interventions. The conference was convened with a sense of realism, and full awareness of the overwhelming challenges, while at the same time, holding up a light of hope that through dialogue and “soft power” efforts some progress is possible.
To view the table of contents, please see below.
Dialogue & Alliance
Vol. 31 No. 1, Summer 2017
Prospects for Peace in the Middle East
Introduction
Prospects for Peace in the Middle East
Syria: Opening Lines of Communication and Soft Power Approaches to Peace
Mr. David Fraser Harris, Secretary General, UPF Middle East and North Africa
Toward a Truce and the Formation of a Constituent Assembly in Syria
Amb. Dr. Sami Khiyami, Former Syrian Ambassador to the United Kingdom (2004-2012)
Possible Building Blocks for a Truce in Syria
Amb. Robert Vandemeulebroucke, Former Ambassador of Belgium (1971-2008)
Toward a Two-State Solution
Hon. Hilik Bar, Deputy Speaker, Knesset of Israel
Religions and Their Leaders Must Acknowledge Their Responsibility in Wars and Peace Processes
Jocelyn Y. Hattab, MD, Member, Jerusalem Forum for Understanding and Cooperation Among Religions, Israel
A Response to Jocelyn Y. Hattab
Dr. Hanoch Ben Pazi, Member, Jerusalem Forum for Understanding and Cooperation Among Religions, Israel
A Response to Jocelyn Y. Hattab
Dr. Nurit Hirschfeld, Director, Jerusalem Forum for Understanding and Cooperation Among Religions, Israel
Global Perspectives on Peace, Security and Human Development
Overcoming Poverty, Extremism and Environmental Degradation
Hon. Jose De Venecia, Jr., Co-Chair of the International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace, International
Empowerment of Women and Youth
Hon. Chandrani Bandara, Minister, Ministry of Women and Child Affairs, Sri Lanka
Good Governance and Development
Hon. Michael Aguinaldo, Chairman of the Commission on Audit, Philippines
The Challenge of Globalization for Small Island Developing States
Hon. Kessai Note, Senator and Former President (2000-2008), Marshall Islands
The 21st Century Is the Age of Balance
Hon. Prof. Akiko Yamanaka, Former Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs (2005-2006), Japan
The Role of Control Yuan in Promoting Good Governance and Protecting Human Rights in Taiwan
Hon. Dr. Po-Ya Chang, President, the Control Yuan, Taiwan
Addressing the Critical Challenges of Our Time: a European Perspective
Hon. Paulo Pisco, Assemblyman, Assembly of the Republic of Portugal
Overcoming Radicalization and Religious Intolerance in Lebanon
Hon. Amb. Khodr Habib, Assemblyman, National Assembly of Lebanon
Geopolitical Discrimination
Hon. Dr. Olga Bogomolets, Member of Supreme Council, Ukraine
Peace, Security and Human Development in Cambodia
Gen. Dr. Sowath Nem, Cabinet Director, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Cambodia
Is Eurasian and European Integration Possible?
Dr. Vladimir Petrovskiy, Far Eastern Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences Institute, Russia
A Vision for Peacebuilding In the 21st Century
Hon. Erna Hennicot-Schoepges, Former President, Chamber of Deputies (1989-2009), Luxembourg