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Clyde Prestowitz delivered the keynote address entitled “Perils of Engagement, A Rogue Nation in the Middle East,” at the Middle East Institute’s 57th Annual Conference in Washington, DC. Prestowitz is the founder and president of the Economic Strategy Institute and author of Rogue Nation.

Prestowitz depicted the US as historically a globally respected nation that is steadily sliding into the status of a rogue state. Although the US may have good intentions, they have unfortunately resulted in failed policies. Highlighting a number of recent examples from Afghanistan to Iran where the US has fallen short in, Mr. Prestowitz sought to demonstrate that in the past few years the US has consistently “talked the talk” without subsequently “walking the walk.” In the context of the war on terror, Prestowitz spoke to the manner in which the US continues to fund terrorism through increasing oil consumption while demanding the crackdown on terrorist organizations by other nations.

Prestowitz argued that the US approach to the Arab-Israeli conflict is the issue most responsible for negative perceptions of the US in the Middle East. He condemned Palestinian suicide bombings unequivocally while at the same time calling on the US to be more balanced and recognize that both sides are responsible for the cycle of violence. Prestowitz suggested that the US and Israel rethink the premise that peace talks can only begin with the cessation of terrorist attacks arguing that such a position gives terrorist groups the power to halt the peace process at will. Finally, Prestowitz suggested for the US to win the war on terror and regain respect in the Middle East, the Bush Administration should return to the idea heralded in the presidential campaign that an effective US foreign policy is a humble foreign policy.