Post by Cobra on May 17, 2009 16:13:42 GMT -5
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Washington Sunday for a first visit to the Obama White House, worried by Washington's overtures to Iran and Syria and under stiff pressure from the U.S. to support the creation of a Palestinian state.
AP
Sunday, May 17,2009
WASHINGTON -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Washington Sunday for a first visit to the Obama White House, worried by Washington's overtures to Iran and Syria and under stiff pressure from the U.S. to support the creation of a Palestinian state.
Although Monday's meeting at the White House is expected to be cordial, the two allies will be grappling with newly diverging policies on how to approach the Mideast conflict. The Obama administration's efforts to promote dialogue with Iran and Syria, Israel's arch foes, concerns Jerusalem, which fears the overtures could lead to greater tolerance for Iran's nuclear ambitions.
Israel, like the U.S., dismisses Iran's claims that its nuclear program is designed to produce energy, not bombs. Netanyahu regards Iran as the greatest threat to Israel -- a fear magnified by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's repeated references to Israel's annihilation.
During his election campaign, Netanyahu had derided the latest round of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, which stalled late last year, as a waste of time. He has made clear in the past that he does not think the Palestinians are ready to rule themselves.
But that position has put him at odds with long-standing U.S. policy that supports Palestinian statehood as the cornerstone of broader Mideast peace efforts.
Now, he's feeling the pressure from Washington to endorse Palestinian statehood, and there were some hints that he might be shifting his position.
Just before Netanyahu set off for Washington, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Saturday he thought an agreement with the Palestinians could be achieved within three years.
"I think and believe that Netanyahu will tell Obama this government is prepared to go for a political process that will result in two peoples living side by side in peace and mutual respect," Barak told Channel 2 TV on Saturday.
He did not use the word state, however, leaving open other options. But he clearly was trying to accommodate U.S. views.
Senior White House officials said Obama's meeting with Netanyahu on Monday is "part of his commitment that he's made since day one of the administration to pursue comprehensive peace in the Middle East, including a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians."
Netanyahu has tried to persuade the Americans that Iran, with its nuclear ambitions and anti-Israel proxies in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, must be reined in before peacemaking with the Palestinains can progress. But the Americans have not been convinced and want to see serious progress on peacemaking so moderate Arab states won't have a reason to shun an international alliance meant to curb Iran.
There has been a flurry of diplomatic activity surrounding Syria in recent weeks. An Obama envoy was in Damascus to try to repair strained relations and assured the government the U.S. is committed to pursuing a comprehensive Middle East peace. Obama's chief Middle East envoy George Mitchell is also planning a trip to Syria.
Recent messages from Israel and Syria on resuming their suspended talks have not been encouraging.
Syrian President Bashar Assad says he doesn't see Netanyahu's government as a good negotiating partner and Netanyahu has said Israel would not leave the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war.
On Sunday, Israel's President Shimon Peres urged Syria to open direct peace talks and said indirect negotiations mediated by Turkey had not resumed. Peres said some had suggested Syrian President Bashar Assad and Netanyahu meet and start talking directly.
"The Syrians should be ready to talk. If President Assad wants peace, why is he shy?" Peres said after participating in an international economic meeting in Jordan sponsored by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum.
"We suggested many times direct talks," added Peres, whose position is largely ceremonial. "He thinks direct talks is a prize to Israel. It's not a prize. It's normal."
Israel and Syria conducted indirect peace negotiations through Turkish mediators last year. But Syria suspended them over Israel's war in Gaza in December and January. Peres said the Syrians have been trying to get the United States involved as an intermediary in the indirect talks.
Earlier Peres met with Jordan's King Abdullah II for 30 minutes behind closed doors. A royal palace statement said Abdullah urged Peres to assist in efforts to have Netanyahu's government "quickly launch negotiations to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict based on a two-state solution."
If Netanyahu does endorse a Palestinian state or agree to resume contacts with Syria, he will almost certainly want something in return from Obama -- a tougher line on Iran.
"For the U.S., Israel-Palestinian relations is the top priority. But for Israel, Iran is the most pressing issue," said Eytan Gilboa, an expert on U.S.-Israel relations at Bar Ilan University.
During his three-day visit, Netanyahu will also be meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Congressional leaders.