Political and Government Assessment Research Paper

There is a definite chance that both parties could resolve the prolonged conflict successfully if they find and act on ways to be in command of their shared lack of trust. On the other hand, if the conflict is seen in terms of a neoliberal point-of-view, Israel's military efficiency and powerfulness is a great threat for Israelis. To cut a long story short, the main goal on which all the main five parties agree is the achievement of peace between Israelis and Palestinians but it is only possible if they give up their most preferred results; Israel giving up its favorite result of unrestricted occupation of Palestinian land and Palestine holding back its preferred outcome of unconditional withdrawal. The conflict could be resolved if both parties could also find some common solutions for complex and convoluted detachable issues including "the degree of sovereignty of a Palestinian state, the distribution of power over Jerusalem, the dismantling or annexation of Israeli settlements and the question of how many Palestinian refugees are allowed to settle where"[footnoteRef:9]. [9: Beck, M. "Prospects for and Obstacles to Achieving a Viable Palestinian State: What Can an Actor with Inferior Power Capabilities Do in a Graduated Prisoner's Dilemma?." Ibrahim Abu-Lughod Institute of International Studies. ialiis.birzeit.edu/fmru/userfiles/Prospects-for-and-obstacles-to-acheiving.pdf (accessed June 8, 2013).]

The complicated and awkward composition of the conflict between the Israeli Jews and the Palestinian Arabs has made it really difficult to reach an agreement between them. Moreover, the problem of finding ways to deal with the conflict and failure in the process has increased the difficulties of the two sides to handle and manage the conflict in a peaceful and diplomatic manner. To conclude the whole story, it is necessary for Israel and Palestine to resolve all their conflicts and not only triumph over their mutual lack of trust and the concern of comparative gains. It is crystal clear that there is no future of Israelis in Palestine unless "it recognizes and compensates in some way for its expropriation of another peoples' land (right of return); until it is committed to be part of the Middle East rather than a U.S. outpost; until it is committed to cooperation with Palestinians and Arabs in developing an economically prosperous Palestinian State, rather than an oppressed vassal state; and until it is willing to share in developing the water resources of the Jordan River"[footnoteRef:10]. Israel should realize and accept the truths about its origin and must amend its ways in dealing with the victimized Palestinian people. [10: Thomsen, M.. "A Word of Truth on Behalf of the Palestinian Marginalized and Dispossessed: Root Causes of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict." Christian Zionism. www.christianzionism.org/Article/Thomsen01.pdf (accessed June 8, 2013).]

Economic Assessment

Economic Overview: In order to analyze and understand the economic conditions of Israel, it is first necessary to have a deep knowledge regarding the land and people of the country. Israel is an irregularly shaped land with four regions. The regions are: plain which is along the Mediterranean coast; the mountains which are east of the coastal plain; southern half of the country which is called the Negev and a very small portion of the Israel which forms the part of the Jordan Valley. Israel enjoys the Mediterranean climate throughout the year in the north part of the Negev, long and hot dry summers with short and cool rainy winters. The supply of water in this half is limited but adequate. The highest point is Israel is near Zefat known as Mt. Meron[footnoteRef:11]. The height is approximately 3,692 ft/1,125 m. The lowest portion on the surface of the earth is also in Israel which is c.1400 ft below sea level and is the shore of the Dead Sea. Some important cities are Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Haifa, Beersheba and Netanya[footnoteRef:12]. [11: Nadav Safran, Israel, the Embattled Ally: with a New Preface and Postscript by the Author (Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press, 1981), pageNr.] [12: "Israel (country, Asia) from the Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.." Questia. http://www.questia.com/read/1E1-Israel/israel-country-asia (accessed June 9, 2013).]

The land authorities of Israel leases the lands to moshavim which are agricultural communities based on cooperative system and are called Kibbutzim[footnoteRef:13]. The authorities lease the land to rural villages and agricultural villages as well. According to the 2007 statistics, Israel has about $57.08 billion as revenues and its expenditures are $57.81 billion. Public debt is GDP's 82.7% according to 2007 statistics. [13: Michael Curtis and Susan Aurelia Gitelson, eds., Israel in the Third World (New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers, 1976), pageNr.]

Critical technologies: As the world is progressing and dynamic changes are occurring every second, Israel is also focusing on the high-technology Industries.These are the fastest growing industries in the country now. The emphasis is on software, aviation, telecommunication, biotechnology and fiber optics. The cutting, polishing and finishing of diamonds is also an important industry of Israel. Light industries are also playing a pivotal role in the economy of the country which are wood and paper products manufacturing industries, precision instruments, tobacco industry, textile, chemicals and footwear. A sizeable chunk comes from the Dead Sea minerals as well. They are of commercial value to the country. Potash, magnesium and salt are some of the natural resources in Dead Sea. Tourism is one of the largest sources of revenue generation for Israel[footnoteRef:14]. [14: Haim Gordon, Israel Today (New York: Peter Lang Publishing, 2007), pageNr.]

All these industries mentioned above makes a great chunk in the exports of the country. Imports of Israel are mainly military equipments, raw materials, fuels and some other consumer goods. This is a fact that Israel imports more than it exports but the balance of trade is favorable for the country. In earlier years of the state the balance of trade was not up to the mark and economy of the country suffered a lot. The United States is the largest partner in trade for Israel and provides military and economic aid to the country as well. Great Britain, Hong Kong, Germany and Belgium are some other trade partners of Israel[footnoteRef:15]. [15: Mitchell Geoffrey Bard and Moshe Schwartz, One Thousand and One Facts Everyone Should Know About Israel (Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2005), pageNr.]

Physical resources: The most common concept given by the social scientists regarding the term power is that "an actor's power equals the resources at its disposal"[footnoteRef:16]. If this notion of "control over resources" is applied to the case of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the outcome is obvious. Israel is far more authoritative, dominant and influential than the Palestinians by every means. It is, without a single doubt, crystal clear that Israel's financial viability, armed forces, diplomatic and political capabilities are far better than Palestinian resources. Israel, once an agricultural country, has now created itself and has advanced its economy with the utilization of modern technology. This is the reason why it has one of the highest per capita incomes on the globe. In addition to this, Israel possesses the most up-to-the-minute and competent military apparatus. Due to its close ties with the United States since 1967, Israel also enjoys a flattering diplomatic position. Last but not the least, Israel's democracy makes its political system as the most efficient on the international level. Thus, there is no comparison between Israel's superior power resources and those available to the Palestinian Arabs. Palestinian efforts to launch the creation of a possible state are based on the common sense of putting a stop to Israel's exertion of its power competencies to the highest point. [16: Beck, M. "Prospects for and Obstacles to Achieving a Viable Palestinian State: What Can an Actor with Inferior Power Capabilities Do in a Graduated Prisoner's Dilemma?." Ibrahim Abu-Lughod Institute of International Studies. ialiis.birzeit.edu/fmru/userfiles/Prospects-for-and-obstacles-to-acheiving.pdf (accessed June 8, 2013).]

Due to the shortage of rainfall in the country, agriculture is totally dependent on the extensive irrigation system. There are sizeable crops in the country such as cotton, barley, wheat, peanut, sunflowers, olives and grapes. Fruits, vegetables, cut flowers and citrus are the main agricultural exports. Poultry and livestock are also considered as a chunk. Most of the land owned by non-Jews is held in the trust by the state and the Jewish National Fund for the population of the country. Israel is rich in minerals especially sand, phosphates and Dead Sea which it also exports to other countries. As far as energy resources are concerned, Israel is affluent in the production of oil, natural gas and electricity and it doesn't have to import electricity and natural gas at all. There are proved reserves of oil and natural gas in the country.

Societal Assessment

Societal Overview: The major residents and nationals of the country are Jews and they are about 76% of the total population. There are approximately 18% Arabs and the rest of the population is Druze and others. Since 1948, the Jewish population in Israel was mainly from Central and Eastern Europe. Afterwards, the Jews from Asian countries and African countries came in….....