On Wednesday, President Biden landed in Israel for his first trip to the region since taking office. During his visit, the president is meeting with Israeli elected officials, including the Israeli President, Prime Minister, Defense Minister and Opposition Leader, as well as a meeting with Palestinian Authority President in the West Bank. His visit to Israel is followed by a visit to Saudi Arabia to meet with the Saudi Crown Prince, in addition to a summit with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Egypt, Jordan and Iraq. Please join us for a conversation as we analyze President Biden’s visit with Orna Mizrahi, Senior Research Fellow at INSS and David Makovsky, Ziegler distinguished fellow at The Washington Institute, moderated by Matt Mandel, Israel Commission Co-Chair at the JCRC of Greater Washington.
Location
Online
Speakers
Orna Mizrahi Senior Research Fellow, INSS
Orna Mizrahi is a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS). She joined INSS in December 2018, after a long career in the Israeli security establishment: 26 years in the IDF (ret. Lt. Col.) and 12 years in the National Security Council (NSC) in the Prime Minister's Office, serving under 8 heads of NSC. In her last position (2015-2018) as Deputy National Security Adviser for Foreign Policy, she led strategic planning on regional and international policy on behalf of the NSC for the Prime Minister and the Israeli Cabinet, and was responsible for preparing the papers for the Prime Minister's meetings with leaders in the international arena. During her service in the IDF she served as an intelligence analyst in the Military Intelligence Research Division and as a senior officer in the Strategic Planning Division. She specialized mainly in research and strategic planning on regional issues, with an emphasis on the countries of the first circle and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Ms. Mizrahi holds an M.A. (cum laude) in History of the Middle East from Tel Aviv University and two B.A. degrees from Tel Aviv University: one in History of the Middle East and the other in General History and the Bible (summa cum laude). She is active in Forum Dvorah, which promotes the inclusion of women in the political-security establishment.
David Makovsky Ziegler distinguished fellow, The Washington Institute
David Makovsky is the Ziegler distinguished fellow at The Washington Institute and director of the Koret Project on Arab-Israel Relations. He is also an adjunct professor in Middle East studies at Johns Hopkins University's Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). In 2013-2014, he worked in the Office of the U.S. Secretary of State, serving as a senior advisor to the Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations. Before joining The Washington Institute, Mr. Makovsky was an award-winning journalist who covered the peace process from 1989 to 2000. He is the former executive editor of the Jerusalem Post, was diplomatic correspondent for Israel's leading daily, Haaretz, and is a former contributing editor to U.S. News and World Report. He served for eleven years as that magazine's special Jerusalem correspondent. He was awarded the National Press Club's 1994 Edwin M. Hood Award for Diplomatic Correspondence for a cover story on PLO finances that he cowrote for the magazine. Mr. Makovsky is the Author of numerous Washington Institute monographs and essays on issues related to the Middle East Peace Process and the Arab-Israeli conflict, and is the coauthor, with Dennis Ross, of the 2019 book “Be Strong and of Good Courage: How Israel's Most Important Leaders Shaped Its Destiny” and the 2009 Washington Post bestseller “Myths, Illusions, and Peace: Finding a New Direction for America in the Middle East”.
Matt Mandel Israel Commission Co-Chair at the JCRC of Greater Washington
Matt Mandel is the Senior Vice President, Government and Public Affairs at The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA), overseeing WIA’s outreach to federal, state, and local government officials regarding the need to accelerate the deployment of wireless infrastructure facilities and other issues that drive the wireless infrastructure industry’s legislative agenda. He also oversees WIA’s public affairs and communications efforts. Prior to joining WIA, Matt served as Vice President, Government Relations at the Glover Park Group, where he specialized in public policy advocacy and strategic planning on behalf of corporations, non-profits, and associations. His work was instrumental in helping companies achieve their marketplace and public policy goals on a wide range of wireless technology issues, including broadband deployment, spectrum management, cybersecurity, online privacy and data security, and intellectual property. Previously, Matt served 10 years as a legislative aide in the House of Representatives, most recently as Legislative Director to former Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Matt was Rep. Stearns’ chief legislative adviser on issues before the committee, including telecommunications, technology, and consumer protection. Prior to this, Matt served as a Legislative Assistant to former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) and in the legislative department at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Matt holds a master’s degree in Political Science from American University and a bachelor’s degree in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland. Matt is also an Adjunct Professor in the Government Department at American University.