Israeli Foreign Policy Since the End of the Cold War

The end of the Cold War ushered in a new period in Israeli foreign policy, situating it in an unprecedented strong strategic position. The collapse of the Soviet Union, which had supported Israel's Arab foes, ended the bipolar world order and established the United States (US), Israel's closest ally, as the world's sole superpower. Shortly, thereafter, in the 1990-1991 Gulf War, a US-led coalition expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait, exposed deep divisions within the Arab world, and weakened the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), which supported the Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein, during the conflict. These dramatic international shifts were coupled with changes within Israel. The successful restructuring of the Israeli economy via the 1985 Economic Emergency Stability Plan (EESP), and arrival of close to a million immigrants from the former USSR, greatly increased Israel's state capacity to seize the opportunities and tackle the challenges generated by the end of the Cold War--