Tom O'Connor
With just over a week until President-elect Donald Trump takes office, the soon-to-be second-time U.S. leader famed for his "art of the deal" approach in business and politics prepares to take on a series of interconnected yet equally volatile conflicts in the Middle East.
As war continues to rage between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement and Iran's embattled coalition regroups from a series of losses, the prospect of diplomacy appears remote at first glance. Even Saudi Arabia seems to be driving a hard bargain in the elusive U.S.-led effort to establish ties between the influential kingdom and Israel.
But former officials familiar with the subject argue the vast changes that have swept through the region over the past four years and particularly in recent months also provide new chances for a grand bargain.
"The challenges are significant in the Middle East, but the opportunities are real," one former government official close to the issues involved told Newsweek. "They may not be realized, but, boy, are they worth trying."
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