The IDC

INSTITUTE FOR POLICY AND STRATEGY (IPS)
General (res.) Danny Rothschild has been appointed
Director of the Institute for Policy and Strategy (IPS)
and Chairman of the Annual Herzliya Conference
Series. General Rothschild brings to the IPS a solid
strategic, military, government, corporate and public
background. Serving in the IDF for more than three
decades, he spent most of his military career in the
Intelligence Corps, culminating in the position of Deputy
Director of the Military Intelligence and Chief of the Intelligence Research
and Analysis Department. He held a central role in the negotiation processes
that led to the peace agreements with Jordan and with the Palestinians. Upon
resigning his commission in 1995, General Rothschild entered the corporate
world and co-founded a global security consultancy; NETACS (security)
Ltd. General Rothschild serves as the President of the Council for Peace and
Security and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Central Bank of Israel.
THE HEAD OF RESEARCH, DR. SHMUEL BAR OF IPS, GAVE
LECTURES ON “IRANIAN NUCLEAR AMBITIONS AND A POLY-
NUCLEAR MIDDLE EAST,” `AND “THE WANING OF THE OLD
REGIONAL ORDER IN THE MIDDLE EAST.”
The head of research, Dr. Shmuel Bar, gave lectures in several conferences,
on the topics: “Exit Strategies and Military to Civilian Transitions - Israeli
Strategies in the Withdrawals from Lebanon and Gaza,” “Iranian Nuclear
Ambitions and a Poly-Nuclear Middle East,” “The Threat of Islamist Terror
for Israel and the World,” and “The Waning of the Old Regional Order in
the Middle East.”
In addition, he gave several briefings on: Iran, Police and Radical Islam,
Islamic Finances and Hizballah. He participated in several roundtables
on different topics, such as paradigms of Islamic Leadership, the Syrian
Track and Iran. He also published two articles: “A Mad Call to Arms,” and
“Between Stagnation and Chaos: Iran and the Middle East.”
In the last half year the institute started to publish a bi-monthly update on
the most relevant strategic issues such as Iran nuclear proliferation that is
sent to all relevant stakeholders. In regards to Public Diplomacy and the
strengthening of the relations between NATO and Israel, there was the
publishing of a position article by Mr. Tommy Steiner in printed press,
Haaretz (English edition) entitled: “The NATO Example.”
Regarding consulting in strategic topics in the media, Mr. Tommy Steiner
was interviewed in the media several times on the issue of strengthening
the relation between NATO and Israel that has recently been focused
upon. The interest in this issue over the last months has led to a number
of requests from the media for Mr. Steiner’s comments and explanations.
IPS PUBLISHES A BI-MONTHLY UPDATE ON THE MOST
RELEVANT STRATEGIC ISSUES SUCH AS IRAN NUCLEAR
PROLIFERATION THAT IS SENT TO ALL RELEVANT
STAKEHOLDERS.
IPS also participated in a roundtable which assembled Israeli government
and academic experts on the issue of the strengthening of Israel-NATO
38 < IDC Winter 2010
IPS
Institute for
Policy and Strategy
relations. The goal of the roundtable was to examine milestones and means
of action regarding the issue and is to be followed with more task-forces
and policy papers to be published. As well, there was participation in the
NATO conference in Brussels in June on NATO’s new strategic concept,
which dealt with the examination of a new strategy for the organization.
The IPS also sent a delegation of around 20 MA students to NATO in
December 2009.
PREPARATION HAS BEEN ONGOING FOR HERZLIYA
CONFERENCE 2010 – IDENTIFICATION OF CENTRAL
STRATEGIC TRENDS WHICH FORM THE BASIS FOR THE
CONFERENCE’S PROGRAM, AND ORGANIZATION OF
WORK GROUPS IN THE RELEVANT SUBJECTS SUCH AS
COOPERATION WITH THE HARTMAN INSTITUTE ON THE
ISSUE OF JEWISH IDENTITY, AND THE COMPLETION OF THE
FINAL PART OF THE SOVEREIGNTY PROJECT.
Preparation has been ongoing for Herzliya Conference 2010 – Identification
of central strategic trends which form the basis for the conference’s
program, and organization of work groups in the relevant subjects such as
cooperation with the Hartman Institute on the issue of Jewish Identity, and
the completion of the final part of the sovereignty project.
INSTITUTE FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY
POLICY (IREP)
IREP hosted a delegation from Pennsylvania, headed by the State
Treasurer, Rob McCord. The purpose of the visit was to support Rob
McCord’s interest in investment and economic development opportunities
in Israel. Pennsylvania is one of the early movers in “cleantech” from a
regulatory and investment perspective and it has been a frontrunner
among states in renewable energy development. On this occasion, IREP
hosted Israel’s Renewable Energy Leadership panel, having as guest
speakers: Dr. Eitan Yudilevich (BIRD Foundation), Dr. Astore Modena
(Terra Ventures Partners), and Mr. Glen Schwaber (Israel Cleantech).
Executives from Israeli, French, and German alternative energy
companies met in Paris to discuss cooperation opportunities. The
meeting, the second in a series for alternative energy industry interested
parties was organized by the Israeli embassy in Paris. The CEOs of Soleil
and Delek Energy, and the chairman of Israel Corp as well as IREP’s
Founding Director Dr. Isaac Berzin and other financial advisers met with
their counterparts from French and German companies EDF, Concentrix,
Areva Renewable, the Rothschild Bank, Alstom and Schneider Electric
Ventures. They discussed potential cooperation in light of the global
financial crisis and the rise of renewable energy initiatives. The French
participants acknowledged the potential of Israeli companies in this field.