Track-II talks in the Middle East—unofficial discussions among Israeli and Arab scholars, journalists, and former government and military officials—have been going on since soon after the 1967 Six Day War and have often paved the way for official negotiations. This book, a unique collaboration of Israeli and Palestinian authors, traces the history of these unofficial meetings, focusing on those that took place in the 1990s beginning just after the Gulf War. These talks were carried on without media coverage, and this book is the first sustained account of what took place.
Although Israel and its Arab neighbors have taken many steps toward peace in recent years, the Middle East remains an uncertain and volatile region. Stretching from Morocco to Iran, the area has seen numerous international and internal conflicts in recent decades. Understanding the dynamics of these conflicts requires detailed information on the military capabilities of the region's countries.