President Barack Obama
and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu spent most of the afternoon in discussions on Friday, after which
Netanyahu told his staff that he felt better about the U.S.-Israeli relationship
than when he went in.
"Look, I went into the meeting with concerns and I came out
of the meeting encouraged," Netanyahu said after emerging from the marathon
session at the White House, according to one Israeli official who was part of
Netanyahu's briefing.
The meeting went on so long that the working lunch that
Obama and Netanyahu had scheduled with their respective staffs was cancelled; the
two leaders had food brought in, and the other officials and staffers went to
eat on their own. The U.S. officials present included Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, National Security
Advisor Tom Donilon, White House
Chief of Staff Bill Daley, NSC
Senior Director Dennis Ross,
incoming Ambassador to Israel Dan
Shapiro, and the State Department's Acting Middle East Envoy David Hale.
But there was some disagreement between the two leaders. In Obama
and Netanyahu's public remarks following the meeting, the Israeli prime
minister declared
that Israel "cannot go back to the 1967 lines -- because these lines are
indefensible." The Israeli official insisted that Netanyahu was not lecturing
Obama in his statement, but simply felt it necessary to publicly state clear
Israeli positions on major issues.
"This is not a personal issue," the Israeli official said. "[H]e
wanted to go on record in public and state what Israel's red lines are, what is
imperative for Israel's security needs."
Those red lines include that Israel cannot accept a return
to negotiations based on the 1967 lines, as Obama said was U.S. policy on Thursday;
Israel cannot accept the return of Palestinian refugees; and Israel cannot
negotiate with any government that includes the participation of Hamas.
Netanyahu called Clinton on Thursday morning, prior to
Obama's address on U.S. policy toward the Middle East, to try to convince her
to take the contentious lines out of his speech. The official described it as a
"tough conversation."
But there was also a lot of agreement inside the
Obama-Netanyahu meeting. The two leaders talked about Syria, Iran, and Israel's
defense needs. Obama tried to explain to why he decided to make his policy
announcement about the 1967 borders on Thursday, and he clarified the U.S.
position on Hamas and the Palestinian right of return, where there is largely
bilateral agreement.
On a conference call with Jewish leaders on Thursday, a
recording of which was provided to The
Cable, National Security Advisor Ben
Rhodes also tried to clarify Obama's remarks.
"The president reiterated our support for core principles
and he also stated the U.S. position on issues of territory and security that
can be the foundation for future negotiations, specifically a Palestinian state
based on 1967 lines with swaps," he said. "It can provide a basis for
negotiations as the parties address security and territory as well as the very
emotional issues of Jerusalem and refugees."
Rhodes also pointed out that the 1967 borders had already
been used as a basis for talks during negotiations carried out under President Bill Clinton's administration, as well
as during the Annapolis Conference organized by President George W. Bush's administration. "[W]e believe that, by introducing these
positions on the subject of territory and security, we can provide a foundation
for negotiations going forward so they can better succeed," he said.
He's a warrior who appreciates American Christians who back up Israel. BHO is a muslim bolshevik who hates Yaweh. You decide. Join the Revolution, The Tea Party, here's the theme song.
Mr Netanyahu left no one in doubt about the Israeli position on several significant points: “Israel cannot accept a return to negotiations based on the 1967 lines . . . Israel cannot accept the return of Palestinian refugees; and Israel cannot negotiate with any government that includes the participation of Hamas.”
This runs counter to Mr Obama’s position as stated in his speech. About Hamas one would have thought that Hamas would eventually come round to acceptance of Israel – if Israel would accept Palestine and other Palestinian demands. By turning down two of the Palestinian basic demands, as supported by Mr Obama, Mr Netanyahu has made nonsense of the entire effort. This very likely shall lead to further hardening of Hamas and Palestinian position on negotiating with Israel at all. In short, Mr Obama’s effort has been thrown away.
What has Mr Obama said that led Mr Netanyahu to come away “encouraged” after his conversation? This was not even diplomatic sophistry: it was sheer misrepresentation and wrong statement of the ground actuality.
Mr Obama seems to realize what Mr Netanyahu is determined not to see, or at any rate not to say that he sees, namely, that prolonged stalemate shall lead to renewal of violence by Hamas and other Palestinian bodies. That cannot conduce to Israel’s comfort or reassurance.
The common sense of the matter is that there can be no peace or peace settlement in the Middle East unless Israel accepts the 1967 lines as well as the right of Palestinians to return to their ancestral lands in Israel as equal citizens.
Israel should begin to rethink its position on keeping Israel as exclusive homeland only of Jews: Palestinians who have for generations lived in areas that now comprise Israel have a natural right to return to their ancestral lands. If Israel continues to insist on Jewish exclusiveness of Israel, then there is no dearth of other players in the region who will want to exploit the impasse – to Israel’s further disadvantage.
Israel should remember that its military superiority in the region may not remain an exclusive factor for all time to come. Things can change.
If Mr Obama eventually vetoes Palestinian demand for UN recognition, he will have reaffirmed US commitment to Israel. As long as US commitment to Israel remains, there is no possibility that there will be movement towards resolution of the Middle Eastern Question, which was not resolved when Israel was made as an artificial entity in 1948.
Israel is one of two albatrosses around US neck that are capable of taking the US down to the bottom of the sea if the US cannot shake them off. The other is Pakistan, about which on some other occasion.
V. C. Bhutani, vcbhutani@gmail.com, Delhi, India, May 23 2011, 0800 IST
Josh Rogin reports on national security and foreign policy from the Pentagon to Foggy Bottom, the White House to Embassy Row, for The Cable.
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