The U.S. and the Israeli-Syrian Peace Process admin, February 1, 2000January 9, 2025 Posted February 1, 2000 at StephenZunes.org and published by Foreign Policy in Focus/Institute for Policy Studies, October 12, 2005 Also at TheFreeLibrary.com, February 15, 2000 – Key Points * The U.S. role as a superpower with strong strategic and economic interests in the region often conflicts with its role as mediator in the Israeli-Syrian peace process. * Syria has moderated its once-belligerent posture toward the Israelis and is now closer to accepting the existence of Israel and living in peace. * The United States has maintained its strong support for Israel’s negotiating position, even though Israel now takes a more hard-line posture than its autocratic neighbor. For the past three decades, the United States has taken the primary facilitating role in the Arab-Israeli peace process, marginalizing the Russians, the European Union, and the United Nations. Washington has therefore had to balance its narrow strategic and economic interests in this important region with its efforts to appear as an honest broker. This often contradictory role has at times been problematic… [Source] Foreign Policy in Focus FPIF Analysis Israel Israel and Palestine Syria US Middle East Policy