The consequences of the Gaza war reach a great deal further than the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  Due to the international community's limited ability to broker peace between the Israelis and Palestinians, radical forces in the Gaza, West Bank, Pakistan and Afghanistan are becoming even stronger. 

One important component when it comes to the conflict in the Middle East is how relations with Iran are managed, since Iran has a great deal of influence in the region, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan. But, USA and Iran have conflicting interests in the area. Nevertheless, in order to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East, USA must continue its dialogue with Iran.

Iran's ambitions – central to the Middle Eastern conflict
For Iran, it is important to obtain political recognition from the West, as well as to be regarded as a dominant regional power in the Middle East. Within the framework for Iran's national interests in the region, control over Iraq is a key issue. Teheran must make sure that Iraq is not able to pose a threat to Iran's regional ambitions, which was the case during the decades when Saddam Hussein ruled. When Saddam went to war against Iran, he had the Shia Muslims on his side. But, following USA's invasion of Iraq, Iran has been able to win the support of Shia Muslims, this time against the occupying power, USA. USA demands that Iran cease its uranium enrichment activities within the scope of the country's nuclear energy program. However, Iran has shown little interest in doing so. A neutralized Iraq has also enabled Iran to become more involved in other parts of the Middle East, such as Lebanon and the Palestinian areas.

"War in the Gaza at the beginning of 2009 proves that an overall solution is necessary in order to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East. The question of a two-state solution is important. However, relations between Israel and the Arab world are at least equally important, in particular Israel's relations with Syria," says FOI researcher, Alexander Atarodi.

USA - decisive peace broker
The Middle East conflict has been the cause of several wars and it impacts relations between nations throughout the entire world. For this reason, the USA's role is extremely critical. USA is able to negotiate with the parties involved because it has

important political and economic ties with Israel. George Mitchell is the USA's special envoy for the Middle East. He is regarded as a clever peace broker. Mitchell has recently visited many of the countries in the region, including Israel and Syria, in order to try to bring the peace process back to life. One of USA's most important demands on Israel at present is for the country to halt the construction of new settlements in the West Bank. Many things remain to be seen – such as how the Israeli government will tackle the issue of new settlements, whether Hamas and Fatah will be able to agree on the formation of a Palestinian government, and what actions Iran will take regarding its nuclear weapons program.