1st Edition
Routledge Handbook on Israel's Foreign Relations
This Handbook provides a comprehensive account of contemporary Israeli diplomacy and analyses the changing dynamics of Israel’s bilateral relations with other states and the international community over the past seventy-five years.
Research into Israeli foreign policy has been largely sidelined by debates over security, domestic politics and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. This Handbook addresses the gap in the literature. Comprising 31 essays written by leading scholars of Israel, the Handbook explicates how domestic, societal and economic interests, together with changing Israeli narratives of identity and location, shape and impact Israeli foreign policy. It illustrates how those factors have influenced foreign policy choices and the instruments – economic cooperation, arms sales, military training, and intelligence sharing – that Israel has utilized in order to promote its interests and build relationships with countries and actors throughout the world. Ultimately, the Handbook refutes Kissinger’s famous dictum that Israel has no foreign policy, and instead follows the whims of its domestic politics. By contrast, this Handbook highlights the rich, diverse and changing tapestry of Israel’s foreign relations.
Written in an accessible style, the book is designed for students taking courses in Israel studies and Middle Eastern studies, as well as a general readership interested in Israeli affairs.
Introduction
Israel’s Foreign Relations: An Overview
Joel Peters
Part I
Israel’s Foreign Relations: Thematic Issues
1. Energy Security and Israel's Foreign Relations
Gabriel Mitchell
2. Israel’s Security Imperative
Charles D. (Chuck) Freilich
3. The Israeli–Palestinian Conflict
Jeremy Pressman and Carol J. Gray
4. Maritime Issues and Israel's Foreign Relations
Ehud Eiran
5. Israel and the United Nations
Arie Geronik
Part II
Israel’s Foreign Relations: 1948–1973
6. Israel and the United States 1948–1973
David Tal
7. Israel and the Soviet Union 1948–1973
Guy Laron
8. Israel and Great Britain 1948–1973
Natan Aridan
9. Israel and France 1948–1973
Gadi Heimann
10. Israel and Germany 1948–1973
Lorena De Vita
11. Israel and the 'Alliance of the Periphery'
Noa Schonmann
12. Israel and Africa 1955–1973
Lynn Schler
Part III
Israel’s Foreign Relations: 1973–Present Day
13. Israel and the United States
Ilai Saltzman
14. Israel and Russia
Daniel Rakov
15. Israel and India
P. R. Kumaraswamy
16. Israel and China
Yoram Evron
17. Israel and Turkey
Nimrod Goren and Gallia Lindenstrauss
18. Israel, the Caucasus and Central Asia
Rob Geist Pinfold and Joel Peters
19. Israel and the Gulf States
Yoel Guzansky
20. Israel and Morocco
Michael M. Laskier
21. Israel and the Kurds
Ariel I. Ahram
22. Israel and the European Union
Sharon Pardo and Hila Zahavi
23. Israel and Great Britain
Azriel Bermant
24. Israel and France
Tsilla Hershco
25. Israel and Germany
Gisela Dachs
26. Israel and Central Europe
Irena Kalhousová
27. Israel and Poland
Joanna Dyduch
28. Israel and Africa
Yotam Gidron
29. Israel and Latin America
Daniel F. Wajner, Arie M. Kacowicz and Exequiel Lacovsky
30. Israel and Brazil
Guilherme Casarões and Samuel Feldberg
Biography
Joel Peters is Professor of Government and International Affairs and Associate Director of the School of Public and International Affairs at Virginia Tech. His research interests and publications cover Israeli politics and foreign policy, the Arab–Israeli peace process, regional cooperation in the Middle East, and Europe’s relations in the Middle East and the Mediterranean.
Rob Geist Pinfold is Lecturer in International Peace and Security at Durham University and a Research Fellow at the Peace Research Center Prague. He is also a Senior Fellow at Charles University's Herzl Center for Israel Studies. Rob holds a PhD in War Studies from King’s College London. He is a scholar of international security and his research intersects the study of strategy and territorial conflict.
"Peters and Pinfold have put together an extremely impressive and comprehensive volume covering Israel’s foreign relations from its foundation in 1948 until the present day. This wide-ranging collection contains thirty concise chapters covering Israel’s relations with major global powers, whole regions of the world, and individual states in the Middle East. For any student or researcher seeking to understand the development of Israel’s foreign relations, this will prove to be an indispensable guide."
Jonathan Rynhold, Department of Political Studies, Bar-Ilan University, Israel
"Israeli foreign policy is a topic that is frequently discussed, but not always understood. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the changing nature and dynamics of Israel’s foreign relations from 1948 until the present day. In doing so, it illustrates how Israel sees the world, why it has prioritized relations with certain states, and what means it has used to build international support. Drawing on a diverse range of contributors, Pinfold and Peters’ volume is a must-read for students, scholars and practitioners seeking to understand modern Israel and its place in the world."
Dov Waxman, The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation Chair in Israel Studies, Director of the UCLA Y&S Nazarian Center for Israel Studies, United States
