His diplomatic offensive may be the last chance to halt the growing Mideast race for weapons of mass destruction. Iran and Syria are racing to counter Israel's large nuclear and chemical arsenal by developing chemical and, eventually, nuclear warheads for their growing, medium-ranged missile forces. Unless this race is h alted by a general peace, the Mideast will shortly enter a period of extreme danger. For the first time since its birth, Israel could be facing a true life and death threat. The Arabs and Iran equally fear that Israel may lash out and strike them with tactical nuclea r weapons - or worse.
Security is a two-way street.
In the end, to make peace work, both sides will have to betray their most cherished promises. Israel will have to force some of its militant settlers from Brooklyn to give up their little Fort Apaches on the West Bank. Arab regimes must convince millions of enraged Palestinians that the loss of their ancestral homes, however unjust, is irreversible.