It seems that matters are coming to a head in the Middle East. For many states, the coming period will likely prove to be the moment in which they determine their futures - as well as that for the region as a whole.
The immediate peg for "crunch time" is Russia's fast-track proposal of a conference to be held in Sochi, with the near-full kaleidoscope of Syrian opposition invited, which, if all goes as planned, might mean 1,000 delegates arriving in Sochi as soon as Nov. 18.
The Syrian government has agreed to attend. Of course, when one hears of attendance in these numbers, it suggests that this is not intended as a "sleeves rolled-up" working session, but rather as a meeting in which Russian thoughts will be mooted on the constitution, the system of government, and the place of "minorities" - with a chaser that Russia wants fresh elections pretty darned quick: which is to say, in six months' time. In short, this is to be the "last chance saloon" for opposition figures: come aboard now, or be shut out, in the cold.
Comment: The Middle East's power dynamics has seen a veritable paradigm change over the last few years. But as the author notes, Israel is still stuck in its rather myopic (and pathologically persistent) goal of re-making the region to suit it's own vision. What Israel (and Saudi Arabia) do next in the region will be a testament to just how insanely driven their leaders are to dominate and come out on top of - the interests of many millions of people - who want nothing more than to just live peaceably.