Vox Tablet

The Negotiator

Stephen P. Cohen weighs in on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

November 23, 2009

Psychologist Stephen P. Cohen has made his career as what he calls a “citizen diplomat.” He runs the Institute for Middle East Peace and Development, which he founded, and he’s been working for 40 years to try to help resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, participating in secret negotiations that have included Israel’s Shimon Peres and Moshe Dayan, Egypt’s Anwar Sadat, Jordan’s King Hussein, and senior leaders of the PLO and Hamas. In his new book, Beyond America’s Grasp: A Century of Failed Diplomacy in the Middle East, Cohen discusses the Arab world’s mistrust of the United States which began with Woodrow Wilson and which Barack Obama has endeavored, as witnessed by his speech in Cairo last June, to repair. He spoke with Vox Tablet host Sara Ivry about that enormous challenge, about the role of the Jewish-American and Arab-American communities in the peace process, and about the need to reconceptualize the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as one in which there are no victors.

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Vox Tablet is Tablet Magazine’s weekly podcast, hosted by Sara Ivry and produced by Julie Subrin. You can listen to individual episodes here or subscribe on iTunes.

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