New Thinking for a New World - a Tallberg Foundation Podcast - Deal of the Century?

Deal of the Century?

05/31/24 • 33 min

New Thinking for a New World - a Tallberg Foundation Podcast

Neil Quilliam discusses a U.S.-backed peace agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel as a potential solution to Middle Eastern turmoil.

It’s been an amazing, terrifying eight months in the Middle East. The horror of October 7th; the endless pounding of Gaza ever since; civilian deaths, casualties and lives disrupted, mostly in Gaza but also in Israel, the West Bank, and Lebanon; Red Sea shipping attacks; Iran and Israel’s exchange of massive missile and drone attacks; rising anti-Semitism and growing Israeli isolation around the world. What if it could all be ended by one audacious diplomatic masterstroke?

That sounds too good to be true, but it is exactly what American diplomats are trying to make happen. Their idea is a three-way agreement with a formal U.S. defense guarantee for Saudi Arabia who would sign a peace treaty with Israel (while also rolling back their recently strengthened economic and tech relations with China) who would end the Gaza war and firmly commit to the two-state solution with the Palestinians. In other words, a complete reset of the dynamics of the Middle East.

Fantasy or real possibility? This episode of New Thinking for a New World explores the contours of a possible deal with Neil Quilliam, a British expert on Saudi Arabia and more generally the Arab Gulf, who is a fellow at Chatham House.

Can diplomacy trump hate? Please tell us what you think and leave a comment.

Neil Quilliam discusses a U.S.-backed peace agreement between Saudi Arabia and Israel as a potential solution to Middle Eastern turmoil.

Can diplomacy trump hate? Please tell us what you think and leave a comment.

Previous Episode

Truth, and Nothing But

Eliot Higgins, founder of Bellingcat, explains how his team uses online open-source investigation to distinguish fact from fiction.

We live in a world where facts are everywhere, recorded and shared ubiquitously. That ought to make this an era where arguments, journalism, and politics are routinely rooted in fact; unfortunately, it is more a world where too many people insist not only their own opinions, but on their own “facts.”

The problem is technology running amok, a bit like the broom in Goethe’s Sorcerer’s Apprentice (or the perhaps more familiar versions starring Mickey Mouse or Nicolas Cage). Wouldn’t it be a better world if endless open-source information and smart, widely distributed technology shed light instead of heat?

The good news is that there are people trying to do exactly that, starting with Eliot Higgins, founder of Bellingcat, an investigative collective focused on online open-source investigation. Listen to this episode of New Thinking for a New World, as he discusses how he and Bellingcat separate fact from fiction.

Next Episode

India Votes!

Vishakha Desai unpacks India's recent election and its consequences.

Like everything else about India, its democracy is complicated. Recent parliamentary elections—more than 640 million people voted (roughly two-thirds of eligible voters)—produced a contradictory, confusing outcome. On the one hand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP party won a plurality, giving him a historic third term. On the other hand, the BJP lost its majority and required coalition partners to maintain control. The political opposition, including much-maligned Rahul Gandhi and Congress, won a new life as a serious political force.

So, which is it? Did Modi, denigrated by some as a Trump-like autocrat, win or lose? Did the majority of Indian voters reject the Hindu nationalism that has been his trademark? Was this election about Modi, about religious extremism, about economics, or about something totally different? Is India more or less stable, more or less predictable?

It’s India, so definitive answers are elusive. But our guest today on New Thinking for a New World, can surely point us in the right direction. Vishakha Desai is a widely respected Asian scholar focused on art, culture, policy, and women's rights. Born in India and living in the United States, Vishakha moves seamlessly between the two countries and the two cultures. Listen as she explains the elections and their consequences—and then tell us what you think.