Secrecy and "Two-Level Games" in the Oslo Accord: What the Primary Sources Tell Us

The publication of memoirs by most of the central participants in negotiations leading to the 1993 Israeli-PLO Oslo accord presents an opportunity to reassess their motives for entering the negotiation process and their reasons for electing to keep the talks secret. Among other insights, the first-hand accounts provide empirical evidence of "two-level games" during the negotiations. The article highlights the utility of Robert Putnam's concepts in understanding the negotiations in Oslo and to the failure to implement final-status talks as envisioned in the accord.