The Middle East Postwar Environment examines the psychological, military, and political fallout of the Gulf war and the reactions to it of the region's principal actors. In this sequel to The Gulf Crisis: Origins and Consequences, the author demonstrates how the war has exacerbated old problems,added new problems, and yet paradoxically, opened a window of opportunity for a more stable order in the Middle East. While providing a background to the current situation, the paper makes evident the...

The Middle East Postwar Environment examines the psychological, military, and political fallout of the Gulf war and the reactions to it of the region's principal actors. In this sequel to The Gulf Crisis: Origins and Consequences, the author demonstrates how the war has exacerbated old problems,added new problems, and yet paradoxically, opened a window of opportunity for a more stable order in the Middle East. While providing a background to the current situation, the paper makes evident the postwar trauma in the Arab world and the dangers it poses to regional stability. It addresses the impact of Iraq's devastation and of the resultant regional balance of power on the security of the Gulf states and Israel. The author argues that the military neutralization of Iraq affords the United States a unique opportunity to press for a just and durable resolution of the Palestine problem and the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Walid Khalidi is a graduate of London and Oxford universities. He has been a Research Associate at Princeton University, and has taught at Oxford, the American University of Beirut, and at Harvard University. He is currently a Research Fellow at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Harvard, and is a leading authority on regional and international aspects of the Middle East