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October 19, 2001/Cheshvan 2, 5762, Vol. 54, No. 6
AIPAC's Rosen provides answers
BARRY COHEN
Editor
The Jewish community has an opportunity to get answers to questions concerning the United State's war on terrorism, the coalition President George W. Bush is attempting to build, and U.S.-Israel relations.
AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, is sponsoring a community-wide program featuring Steve Rosen, director of foreign policy, at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 25, at Temple Solel, 6805 E. McDonald Drive, Paradise Valley.
"It is our responsibility to make sure people are armed with answers," said Rosen.
Rosen feels people should be able to provide - whether at work or on the golf course - answers to such questions as, "Isn't Israel the cause of all the problems in the Middle East?" or "Didn't the Sept. 11 attacks happen because of the money and support the United States gives to Israel?"
According to its Web site, AIPAC was founded in the 1950s and currently has 50,000 members nationwide advocating for a strong connection between the United States and Israel.
But one issue concerning this relationship is to what degree Israel should be involved in the president's anti-terrorist coalition.
"To say Israel has been cut out of the coalition altogether is not really true," said Rosen.
Though not on the "front line," Israel is playing a "significant role in the campaign to maintain security at American airports," he said. Israel is also providing intelligence to aid American military training, he added.
Another question is how Syria can be welcomed into the anti-terrorist coalition when it is on the State Department list of terrorist nations.
Rosen said the Bush administration's goal is "to get Syria out of the terror game." The United States is trying not to ostracize Syria but "to pressure them to change their behavior," he explained.
Rosen said he plans to field questions from the audience to provide a forum of an exchange of ideas.
Another question concerns why the president has recently accepted the notion of Palestinian statehood.
"The concept of statehood is not all that controversial," said Rosen. "However, the timing was controversial, since the violence (between Palestinians and Israelis) is still continuing."
"Statehood cannot be granted for free," he added. For the Palestinians to achieve a state, they are going to have to begin by changing their behavior, such as honoring a cease-fire, said Rosen.
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