In this episode of On The Line, Jen Gerson is joined by Vivian Bercovici, Canada’s former ambassador to Israel, appointed by Stephen Harper. Together they unpack the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas — what it really means, how it came together, and why it’s unlikely to last.
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Bercovici draws on her experience in the region to explain the political and military calculations behind the truce, the competing pressures on both sides, and the role of foreign actors trying to claim credit for peace that may already be fraying at the edges.
They also turn to Donald Trump, whose fingerprints — however controversial — are still visible in the diplomatic architecture that made this moment possible. Bercovici offers a blunt assessment of the former president’s approach to the Middle East, contrasting his transactional style with the vaguer moral posturing of his successors. The conversation veers from analysis to personal insight, as Gerson presses on whether the current ceasefire is a genuine diplomatic breakthrough or just another pause before the next round of violence.
And for our Canadian listeners (and that’s most of you!), there’s a sharp reality check. Prime Minister Mark Carney made sure to appear for the photo op in Egypt, but his actual influence on events was effectively nil. Bercovici and Gerson explore what that absence says about Canada’s diminishing credibility abroad — and what it means when our leaders seem more interested in being seen as global players than in actually playing a role.
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