—Voices from the Sensible Center—

Interpreting the Middle East for North Americans—
Interpreting North America for the Middle East

Current Affairs

2 Lebanon: Bastion for the West?—U.S. marines who supposedly entered Lebanon to act as a "presence" to deter Lebanese from fighting one another have now become—if you can believe President Reagan's latest version of their role—essential to the defense of that country and of the rest of the Middle East against Soviet domination. Does this theory make any sense? We take a stab at answering that question and a few others.

4 Arab Investment: Ups & Downs—At a time when investment in the U.S. by Arab governments is slowing down, a Jewish lobbying group continues to harass the investors, as it has for years. The Administration, however, is happy to see the investment keep coming. Most of it is in U.S. government securities.

5 Lobby Activities—In the wake of the massacre at the U.S. marine compound near Beirut, the National Association of Arab Americans has made a proposal it says could greatly reduce the chances of additional marine casualties. For more, see inside. On another matter: the American Israel Public Affairs Committee has reacted cautiously to a U.S. plan for creating a Jordanian military strike force—despite AIPAC's traditional opposition to military aid for Arab countries. So far, it has limited itself on the record to expressing "concern" over how the Administration has handled the affair in Congress.

Regular Features

2 Editorial—Marines would almost certainly not be in Lebanon today if Israel had not invaded the country in 1982. We thought it was about time that people were reminded of this.

6 Facts For Your Files—A Chronology of U.S.-Middle East Relations.

6 Facts For Your Files—A partial text of President Reagan's October 24 statement on Lebanon.

7 Book Review—As our reviewer points out, almost no one is more qualified than Ibrahim Shihata to write on OPEC's aid programs to developing nations, and on Arab economic assistance in general. It should come as no surprise, then, that Mr. Shihata's book, The Other Face of OPEC: Financial Assistance to the Third World, provides a bundle of useful information on the subject.

8 Personality—No one is more familiar with the growth of Arab banking in New York than Fakhruddin Khalil, senior executive vice president of UBAF Arab American Bank. Both he and his bank have been there since it all began.