Many commentators contend that the economic situation in the US is the key issue that will determine the outcome of the November 2012 election. How will an outcome, which is determined primarily by internal issues, influence American external strategies? Will it have an impact on Iran’s policy? Will a Republican president take a different approach from a Democratic president on issues such as the Peace Process and other foreign policy issues? Will American alleged “foreign policy fatigue – "resulting from the economic crisis and the high price paid by the US in Iraq and Afghanistan – still continue after the elections? What are the implications of these issues for Israel?

Moderator:

Mr. Shmuel Rosner, Israel: Political Editor, The Jewish Journal; Columnist, Ma'ariv daily newspaper, The International Herald Tribune; Editor and writer, Rosner's Domain; Non-fiction Editor, Kinneret-Zmora-Bitan-Dvir Publishing House; Fellow, The Jewish People Policy Institute. Author: Shtetl, Bagel and Baseball: On the Dreadful, Wonderful State of America's Jews (Hebrew, 2011). 

Participants:

Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat, USA: Co-chairman, Jewish People Policy Institute; Partner, Head of International Trade and Finance, Covington & Burlington LLP; former Chief White House Domestic Policy Advisor (President Carter); former US Ambassador to the EU, Under Secretary of Commerce, Under Secretary of State, Deputy Secretary of Treasury, Special Advisor to the President on Holocaust-Era Issues (President Clinton).

Ambassador Dore Gold, Israel: President,  Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs; former Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations (1997-1999); former Foreign Policy Advisor. Author:The Fight for Jerusalem: Radical Islam, the West, and the Future of the Holy City (2007); The Rise of Nuclear Iran: How Tehran Defies the West (2009).

Dr. Richard Haass, USA: President, Council on Foreign Relations; former Director, Policy Planning, Department of State; U.S. Coordinator for the Future of Afghanistan; US Special Envoy for Northern Ireland. Author: War of Necessity, War of Choice (2009). Recipient: State Department's Distinguished Honor Award; Presidential Citizens Medal.

Professor Dominique Moisi, France: Founder, Senior Advisor, IFRI (French Institute for International Relations); Professor, College of Europe (Warsaw), FordhamUniversitySchool of Business (New York), King's College (London). Columnist, The Financial Times, Les Echos.

Mr. Robert Wexler, USA: President, S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace; former Congressman for Florida (seven terms); former Chair, Subcommittee on Europe, former Member, Subcommittee on Middle East and Southern Asia, United States House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, Co-founder, Caucus on United States-Turkish Relations, Taiwan Caucus, Indonesia Caucus, USHR.

The panel will be simultaneously translated into Hebrew.