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482 Annals Am. Acad. Pol. & Soc. Sci. 9 (1985)

handle is hein.cow/anamacp0482 and id is 1 raw text is: PREFACE The Middle East is an area of great importance and considerable danger in world politics. Abundant in a resource vital to the economies of nations, the Middle East is also beset with multiple conflicts whose repercussions are felt throughout the globe: the unresolved problem of the Palestinians, continuing wider Arab-Israeli hostility, the war in the Gulf, the invasion of Afghanistan, the ongoing tragedy in Lebanon. As a region in which the boundaries between the superpowers are not clearly marked, it is also an area for active competition for influence by the United States and the Soviet Union as well as a source of potential confrontation between them. Although many of the problems of the area are of long duration, the Middle East appears to be entering a period of change that will alter many of the underlying power relationships. It is on these changes, which are taking place at several levels, that the present volume focuses. Discerning signs of movement toward solution of the Palestinian problem, the Egyptian ambassador to the United States, El Sayed Abdel Raouf El Reedy, expresses mild optimism that the peace process begun at Camp David will go forward. Progress on this difficult issue could, he argues, eventually open the way to peace between Israel- and the Arab states. For there to be a real chance for negotiations to take place, however, the United States must be actively involved. Philip H. Stoddard agrees that the United States is in a unique position to act as a catalyst, but he sees a necessity for this country to define clearly its concept of engagement in the Middle East. Does the administration want to try to shape the process of resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict, or does it wish to stand aside? Pointing to one of the difficulties that inhibit the formulation of effective policy, Jack G. Shaheen analyzes the stereotype of the Arab in Western media and asserts that fair portrayals and accurate information are essential to appropriate foreign policy decisions. The Soviet Union also has a major interest in the Arab-Israeli conflict and is seeking to expand its role throughout the Middle East. According to Robert O. Freedman, the Soviet Union has engaged in what it perceives to be a zero-sum competition with the United States for influence. However, despite the provision of arms aid on a large scale, the USSR has so far been unable to realize the objective of creating an enduring anti-imperialist Arab alignment, and its influence remains limited. Although the Arab-Israeli conflict has long dominated politics in the Middle East, water is emerging as a problem that Frederick W. Frey and Thomas Naff predict is likely to become a major disruptive issue unless changes in current patterns of use and management of this resource are altered quickly and significant- ly. Water can be a potent source of conflict or of cooperation among the region's actors, depending on whether or not present policies are altered. Drawing from examples of several river systems in the region, Frey and Naff construct a theoreti- cal framework for analyzing this complex issue. 9

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