Summary
With the end of the Cold War,
following the collapse of the USSR and the falling of the Berlin wall, many
people have become hopeful for a “new world order” of peace, democracy, and
economic plenty, which will gradually become the norm for a world headed by the
US, the sole superpower. In his famous article, Fukuyama called this "the end of
history". Ten years have gone by and the new world is characterized by
increasing disorder, in which the “New Middle East”, an unstable region at the
best of times, is generating an increasing threat to the countries and peoples
of the region. This is true both for the immediate region and for countries far
beyond its boundaries.
Israel faces
dangers which increasingly threaten its very existence in this New Middle East.
This is not Central Europe, and Israel's neighbors are not the Swiss. The
situation is one which is unfamiliar to the West. Israel must live with
neighbors such as Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Sudan, and the like. These are rogue
regimes, which are acquiring and developing various kinds of weapons of mass
destruction (WMD) – nuclear, biological, and chemical – with the capability of
delivering them via ballistic missiles. These regimes are all hostile to the
democratic Western world and its culture, values, and lifestyle. Some of them,
such as Iran, are motivated by extremist fundamentalist ideologies, that view
the West as a cultural enemy, the struggle against whom is a long-term affair.
Western civilization must be overcome and replaced by that of Islam. The regimes
do not trouble themselves with human rights and freedom, with the rule of law,
or with honoring signed agreements. They all lack cultural inhibitions regarding
the use of violence to advance their political aims, including the use of WMD.
For the complete text of this article in Hebrew, click
here.
