Decision Points

Decision Points is a Washington Institute podcast hosted by David Makovsky on key moments in Israel’s history and present. The first season focused on the history of U.S.-Israel relations, the second season examined key Israeli and Arab leaders, the third season explored Israel's contemporary policy dilemmas, and the fourth season highlighted books essential to understanding Zionism, Israel, and U.S.-Israel relations.

Season 5 dives into the Gaza war and explores the long-term implications for Israel, U.S.-Israel relations, and the Middle East region. In each episode, distinguished scholars, analysts, journalists, and officials will put the current conflict in perspective and discuss the road ahead.

Makovsky is the Ziegler Distinguished Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and Director of its Koret Project on Arab-Israel Relations. He is a former senior advisor to the U.S. Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations, as well as a sought-after expert on U.S.-Israel diplomatic relations and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Decision Points is both a history lesson and an exploration of contemporary policy decisions impacting Israel, the United States, and the broader Middle East.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Episodes

The Countdown to the 1967 War: From Embattled Siege to Military Breakthrough

This episode discusses the Johnson administration’s policy in the weeks leading up to the 1967 Six Day War. As that conflict drew near, two Israeli missions to the United States, led by Abba Eban and Meir Amit, encountered the same official focus on Vietnam, yet produced different results by asking different questions. In that sense, 1967 was a major turning point not only in Israel’s history, but also in the history of the U.S.-Israel relationship.   Host David Makovsky discusses this majo...

Nov 20, 2019•31 min•Season 1Ep. 4

The Nadir of U.S.-Israel Relations: Between Eisenhower and Nasser

This episode focuses on one of the lowest points in the U.S.-Israel relationship: the 1956 Suez Crisis. At the time, President Eisenhower felt betrayed by Israel, France, and Britain for initiating war after Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal. The episode highlights ties with allies alongside his desire to win support for Arab nationalist champion Gamal Abdul Nasser, the Egyptian leader whom the White House hoped in vain would be a bulwark against the Soviets in the Cold War. How did Eisenhower b...

Nov 13, 2019•28 min•Season 1Ep. 3

From UN Partition to Statehood: The Battle in the Truman Administration

This episode will focus on the moment when Britain was about to depart Mandatory Palestine and there was heightened uncertainty about whether the State of Israel would be formed. The episode highlights the battle between the personalities and policy differences of President Harry Truman and his advisors, and chronicles America’s dramatic path to recognizing the Jewish State. Host David Makovsky will be in conversation with Ronald Radosh, co-author of one of the preeminent books on Truman and 194...

Nov 06, 2019•34 min•Season 1Ep. 2

The Hidden U.S. Role in the Balfour Declaration

In this episode, we will discuss the United States’ little-known role in the Balfour Declaration, and the influence and prominence starting as early as America's founding fathers of the idea of a Jewish homeland in Palestine. Host David Makovsky will be in conversation with Michael Oren, the former Israeli ambassador to the United States and a former member of Knesset. Oren received his doctorate in Near East Studies at Princeton University. His book, Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Mi...

Oct 29, 2019•31 min•Season 1Ep. 1

Decision Points Trailer

We cannot fully appreciate the special bond between the U.S. and Israel without first understanding the highs and lows of this relationship over the past 70 years—how Israel’s first Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion believed it was possible that there would be a U.S. military strike against Israel; how the U.S. came to occupy such a central role in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process; or what the internal debate in the U.S. government looked like at the time of the Suez Crisis, the Six-Day War, ...

Oct 23, 2019•1 min

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