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Netanyahu and Obama Will Talk on Tuesday
JERUSALEM During a visit here on Sunday, the Obama administration's Middle East envoy, George J. Mitchell, extended an invitation for the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, to speak with President Obama in Washington this week. The offer for a face-to-face meeting on Tuesday, which was accepted, was widely seen as a sign of an alleviation of the recent discord over new Israeli plans for Jewish housing in disputed East Jerusalem that had soured Israel's relations with the United States.The United Nations secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, also met Israeli leaders after touring Gaza on Sunday, and he expressed his strong support for the expected start of indirect Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Signifying the change in tone between Jerusalem and Washington, Mr. Mitchell told the Israelis on Sunday that the relationship between the United States and Israel is strong and enduring, that our commitment to Israel's security is unshakeable and unbreakable. And that's the way it's going to remain,' he added. Mr. Mitchell's visit, put off from last week, followed Mr. Netanyahu's response to American demands of Israel to help reconcile. Mr. Netanyahu conveyed Israel's response in a telephone call to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton late Thursday and in a letter over the weekend. Mr. Netanyahu is traveling to Washington on Monday to address a meeting of a pro-Israel lobbying group, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. He has made it clear that he offered no concessions on Israeli building in East Jerusalem, which was annexed by Israel after its capture from Jordan in the 1967 war and which the Palestinians claim as the capital of a future state. White House officials concluded that given the escalating tensions between the Obama administration and the Netanyahu government, it would behoove Mr. Obama and Mr. Netanyahu to meet face to face since they will both be in Washington at the same time, a senior administration official in Washington said Sunday. It's not a matter of driving home any points, but it's always important that there be an understanding of where the president is' on the push for substantive negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians, said the official, who is not authorized to speak publicly about the negotiations. A second senior administration official, also speaking on grounds of anonymity for the same reason, said that Mr. Obama wanted to raise the peace talks with Mr. Netanyahu in the coming meeting. The things they'll talk about is how we advance what we believe is a core U.S. national interest, which is peace in this region,' this official said, and how we can assure that neither side takes steps that would undercut the trust that's going to be vital to ensuring that the talks, which have just begun, succeed.' In remarks at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting, Mr. Netanyahu said: Our policy toward Jerusalem is the same policy of all Israeli governments in the past 42 years, and it has not changed. From our point of view, construction in Jerusalem is like construction in Tel Aviv.' But he has agreed to a preliminary discussion of core issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, such as the future of Jerusalem and the question of the Palestinian refugees, in the American-brokered indirect negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. Mr. Mitchell said Sunday that he hoped to get those talks under way in full course.' In order to show good will, Mr. Netanyahu is also ready to release Palestinian prisoners and to ease the restrictions on the flow of goods into Gaza, Israeli officials said. Posted by: Steve White 2010-03-22 |
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