The Gulf Crisis: Background and Consequences by Ibrahim IbrahimReview by: William B. QuandtForeign Affairs, Vol. 72, No. 4 (Sep. - Oct., 1993), p. 175Published by: Council on Foreign RelationsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20045782 .

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Recent Books

Jordan, the United States and the Middle

East Peace Process, 1974-1991. by

MADIHA RASHID AL MADFAI. New

York: Cambridge University Press, 1993, 279 pp. $54-95

Many were surprised when King Hussein

announced in 1988 that Jordan would no

longer bear responsibility for negotiations

concerning the West Bank. For so many

years American diplomats in particular had assumed that Jordan was the most

suitable address for dealing with the Palestinian issue. This book provides use

ful background for the king's decision to

disengage, emphasizing the multiple frus

trations that marked his dealings with the

Reagan administration in particular.

The Many Faces of National Security in the Arab World, edited by bahgat

KORANY, PAUL NOBLE AND REX

BRYNEN. New York: St. Martin's

Press, 1993,322 pp. $49.95 (paper,

$19.95). Excellent essays by distinguished authors who bring together an interest in nation

al security and the contemporary Arab

world. The concept of security is treated

in several ways: the traditional definition

of defense against external aggression, the danger of internal social upheavals, and economic challenges. An important collection for understanding the prob lems of overarmed but still insecure

countries just beginning to grapple with the problems of opening up political and economic systems.

The Gulf Crisis: Background and Conse

quences. EDITED BY IBRAHIM

ibrahim. Washington: Center for

Contemporary Arab Studies, George town University, 1992, 354 pp.

The Persian Gulf crisis was such a dra

matic event in the post-Cold War era

that it was bound to be the subject of

many conferences and instant histories.

This volume is one of the better of its

kind. Based on papers presented at a con

ference in mid-1991, the book covers the

background of the crisis, the internation

al response, the positions of regional actors and some of the economic conse

quences. A useful chronology is included.

The Politics of Change in the Middle East. BY ROBERT B. SATLOFF. Boulder

(CO): Westview Press, 1993, 237 pp. $49.00 (paper, $14.95).

A collection of introductory essays by well-known authors that addresses ques

tions of regime change and stability,

among other issues of governance. The

authors speculate at some length on how

the long era of pseudo-stability in the

Middle East might end, but there are no

predictions here of inevitable revolution

or of Islamic regimes necessarily coming to power. For all the region's limitations,

continuity for a bit longer seems to be the

dominant expectation.

Iran and the Arab World, edited by

HOOSHANG AMIRAHMADI AND

nader Entessar. New York: St.

Martin's Press, 1993, 264 pp. $49.95. An oft-neglected topic is competently handled by

a variety of authors. As Iran

increasingly comes to be portrayed as a

threat to many regimes in the Arab

world, the analysis in this volume will

provide useful background information.

To order books reviewed or advertised in Foreign Affairs, call 1-800-255-2665.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS-September/October 1993 [ 175]

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