Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the weekly cabinet meeting on February 16, 2014 (photo credit: Marc Israel Sellem/POOL/Flash90)
Posted on 03/02/2014 5:47:53 PM PST by Ooh-Ah
Ahead of meeting with Netanyahu, president says unprecedented ‘aggressive settlement construction’ detrimental to peace process
Israel can expect to face international isolation and possible sanctions from countries and companies across the world if Benjamin Netanyahu fails to endorse a framework agreement with the Palestinians, US President Barack Obama cautioned on Sunday ahead of a meeting with the Israeli prime minister.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Obama stressed that time was running out for Israel to achieve a peace deal, and added that he believed Netanyahu had the capacity to rally Israel’s citizens behind an agreement.
But if Netanyahu “does not believe that a peace deal with the Palestinians is the right thing to do for Israel, then he needs to articulate an alternative approach,” Obama said.
“There comes a point where you can’t manage this anymore, and then you start having to make very difficult choices,” he said.
The president went on to stress that he would convey to Netanyahu, in the spirit of the Jewish sage Hillel the Elder, that the prime minister could lead Israel toward peace if he chose to do so.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the weekly cabinet meeting on February 16, 2014 (photo credit: Marc Israel Sellem/POOL/Flash90)
“If not now, when? And if not you, Mr. Prime Minister, then who?” Obama said.
The president went on to condemn in no uncertain terms Israel’s settlement activities in the West Bank, and said that though his allegiance to the Jewish state was permanent, building settlements across the Green Line was counterproductive and would make it extremely difficult for the US to defend Israel from painful repercussions in the international community.
“If you see no peace deal and continued aggressive settlement construction — and we have seen more aggressive settlement construction over the last couple years than we’ve seen in a very long time — if Palestinians come to believe that the possibility of a contiguous sovereign Palestinian state is no longer within reach, then our ability to manage the international fallout is going to be limited,” Obama said.
The president added that Israel must come to a decision over its future character and weigh whether its current policies are conducive to achieving its true aspirations.
“Do you resign yourself to what amounts to a permanent occupation of the West Bank?” he inquired of the Israeli public.
“Is that the character of Israel as a state for a long period of time? Do you perpetuate, over the course of a decade or two decades, more and more restrictive policies in terms of Palestinian movement? Do you place restrictions on Arab Israelis in ways that run counter to Israel’s traditions?” he asked.
Obama further stated that in his opinion, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas “has proven himself to be somebody who has been committed to nonviolence and diplomatic efforts to resolve” the conflict.
US Secretary of State John Kerry (right) and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speak with the press after a meeting in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 2013. (photo credit: Issam Rimawi/Flash90)
“We do not know what a successor to Abbas will look like,” he added.
Asked whether he felt Abbas was sincere about his willingness to recognize Israel and its right to exist, the president replied that he was sure that was the case.
“I think that this is a rare quality not just within the Palestinian territories, but in the Middle East generally,” Obama said of the Palestinian leader. ”For us not to seize that opportunity would be a mistake.”
Netanyahu left for Washington Sunday for talks about the US-led peace process and nuclear negotiations between world powers and Iran.
Although Netanyahu would like the conversation with Obama to focus primarily on Iran, the White House appears to have a different agenda.
“Obama will press him to agree to a framework for a conclusive round of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations that is being drafted by Secretary of State John Kerry,” The New York Times quoted senior US officials as saying last week.
Direct peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians, which began last July with the goal of reaching a deal within nine months, have made no visible progress.
Kerry is now focused on getting the two sides to agree on a framework proposal which would extend the deadline until the year’s end.
Although the document has not yet been made public, it is understood to be a non-binding proposal laying out guidelines for negotiating the central issues of the conflict, such as borders, security, Jerusalem, Israeli settlements and the right of return for Palestinian refugees.
The proposal, or its outline, is likely to be presented to Netanyahu this week and to Abbas on March 17 when he meets Obama at the White House.
Of course he (Obozo)wont be able to defend when he is dismantling the military BY CHOICE.
This said by a guy who is at the very same moment allowing Russia to invade the Ukraine, a country we have a Treaty, Negotiated by Bill Clinton and ratified by Congress, wherein the united States committed to protect the Ukraine from any Russian aggression in return for the Ukraine giving up it's Nuclear weapons.
US credibility for “protecting” it's allies under Obama is not exactly at a high point at this particular moment
Israel has abortion and recognizes gay marriages. That needs to be said as well per all the Bible scholars.
“But if Netanyahu “does not believe that a peace deal with the Palestinians is the right thing to do for Israel, then he needs to articulate an alternative approach,” Obama said.”
What alternative approach? Like saying you wish to die by gun or knife??
Putin is making him look like a chump, so he tries to demonstrate his manhood by bullying Israel.
Correct. This guy only makes himself look tough when dealing from a position of strength. Note how he once blindsided Ryan, first inviting him to a speech and then basically calling him a nimrod. Unfortunately I would hate to see Putin stick it to the jackass for what it would mean to the US but this guy has got to get his teeth kicked in.
How... "odd"... that the other side does not need to be rallied. Hmmm.
If Israel was not a welfare client of the United States, they could tell Obama to take a flying leap at the moon. They have the ability to be self sufficient - maybe this will help.
Excellent Summation.
Sorry Israel, But we had to slash military spending to pay for deadbeats on welfare. Maybe we can ship you a few hundred of them to help.
Further evidence that the war prophesied in Psalm 83 is about to begin.
My guess is that it will commence with the first of the 4 blood moons on April 14.
As a result, I further speculate that Israel will regain full control of Jerusalem and begin rebuilding the temple.
People who don’t believe the bible had better start paying attention to the evidence because the times we live in places us squarely at the end of the age of grace.
We desperately need a Commander in Chief, not a Coward in Chief.
The important question from the lib voters:
Will he still be able to defend the ladies from “the republican war on women”?
Now the LORD said to Abram, ...”And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing;
and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Genesis 12:2-3
“A clamor has come to the end of the earth, because the LORD has a controversy with the nations. He is entering into judgment with all flesh; as for the wicked,
He has given them to the sword,” declares the Lord. Jeremiah 25:31
Praying for our nation.
You are so very, very right!
Well, that's because everything you said there is an ABSOLUTE for sure FACT...!
Yeah - Quite a difference, isn’t there? Nice photo comparison.
Some thought we could do no worse than George W. Bush, hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhah...trailing off into a maniacal scream.
And we got THREE more years of this Obama, from now all the way to January 20th 2017. Is that insane or what? And you know what’s going to happen? Jan. 20th 2017 a Republican will take office. Jan. 21st 2017 some Islamos will set off a nuke, WW3 will start and liberals will blame the Republican. “He was sitting in a classroom reading a book to kids! It’s HIS fault! He did nothing and screwed everything up!”
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