The group is divided into small teams, two experts each, who are focusing on specific policy issues:

Overview and Policy Conclusions

Martin S. Indyk and Richard N. Haass

Arab-Israeli Conflict

Shibley Telhami and Steven A. Cook

Counterterrorism

Daniel L. Byman and Steven Simon

Iran

Suzanne Maloney and Ray Takeyh

Iraq

Kenneth M. Pollack and Stephen Biddle

Political and Economic Development

Tamara Cofman Wittes and Isobel Coleman

Proliferation

Bruce Riedel and Gary Samore

Ariel Kastner of the Saban Center at Brookings and Katie Ivanick of the Council on Foreign Relations facilitate the coordination of the strategy group. Andrew Apostolou of the Saban Center at Brookings will edit the policy reports.

Each team will travel to relevant parts of the region for fact-finding purposes and dialogue with regional figures from government, academia, the media, and the private sector. They will attempt to reach a consensus view on the specific policy options they present.

There will be no attempt to reach consensus across the entire strategy group but other members of the group will be expected to provide input and feedback for each of the team reports and papers.

Products

The strategy group will circulate trip reports to the Board of Advisors. Drafts of the policy papers will also be discussed with the Board of Advisors and will be published as a book.

Trip Reports: Each subgroup will author a trip report upon return from travel. The trip report will give an overview of impressions developed on the field trips. Other members of the strategy group will provide comments and reactions that can be incorporated into the final draft.

Final Report: The final chapters will be reviewed by the Board of Advisors before being published in book form.

Briefing Transition Team: Between November 2008 - January 2009, the strategy group will brief members of the incoming administration and present its recommendations for constructing a new Middle East policy framework to the public.