Begin's Foreign Policy, 1977-1983

Those involved in diplomacy with Israel would be well advised to become familiar with this study of former Prime Minister Menachem Begin's foreign policy, for it examines in well-documented detail the snares and obstacles that await any negotiator charged with confronting Begin's successors. . . . This study is well annotated with diverse and authoritative primary sources, and has an excellent bibliography and useful index. Journal of Palestine StudiesThis volume is an in-depth analysis of the ideological, psychological, and political origins of Israel's foreign policy during the stormy prime ministership of Menachem Begin. In a more general way, it is a commentary on and an interpretation of the psycho-ideological approach of the entire Israeli Right. Under Begin's leadership, Israel dramatically changed its role, adopting new policies not only toward the West Bank, but also toward the Arab countries and the superpowers. In this sense, the 1977 Israeli elections are seen as a historic watershed, and although Begin's ideology was based on the intellectual foundations laid by Vladimir Jabotinsky, the leader of the Revisionist movement, it also had many new elements. The author calls the 1977 elections The Neo-Revisionist Revolution, and the implications of this concept are thoroughly examined. A systematic effort is made to study Begin's foreign policy in its totality, and the book deals with such crucial issues as the Camp David accords, the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, the annexation of East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, the destruction of the Iraqi nuclear reactor, and the invasions of Lebanon.

?A study of the ideological background and the implementation of Menachem Begin's foreign policy during his tenure as Israel's Prime Minister. Peleg portrays Begin as a radical ultranationalist whose goals and policies departed sharply from those of earlier Labor governments of Israel. In place of an emphasis on peace and conciliation, and on trading territory for peace, Begin evinced an overwhelming obsession to annex the West Bank and Gaza at whatever cost. This obsession explains the Lebanon war, the annexation of the Golan Heights, the attack on the Iraqi nuclear reactor, and even the Camp David peace accords. President Reagan is faulted for not restraining Begin more effectively. The argument is persuasive, although some readers may regard it as partisan.... Recommended for all libraries.?-Choice, "A study of the ideological background and the implementation of Menachem Begin's foreign policy during his tenure as Israel's Prime Minister. Peleg portrays Begin as a radical ultranationalist whose goals and policies departed sharply from those of earlier Labor governments of Israel. In place of an emphasis on peace and conciliation, and on trading territory for peace, Begin evinced an overwhelming obsession to annex the West Bank and Gaza at whatever cost. This obsession explains the Lebanon war, the annexation of the Golan Heights, the attack on the Iraqi nuclear reactor, and even the Camp David peace accords. President Reagan is faulted for not restraining Begin more effectively. The argument is persuasive, although some readers may regard it as partisan.... Recommended for all libraries."-Choice

ILAN PELEG is Head of the Government and Law Department at Lafayette College, Easton, Pennsylvania.