Last week’s declaration of victory in the ongoing Israel row by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton appears to have been a short-lived win, and media claims that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had “bowed” to US demands appear to be premature.
In his most recent public comments, Prime Minister Netanyahu reiterated that he would like to see the “indirect talks” with the Palestinian Authority resume, but that he absolutely would not ever agree to restrict construction in occupied East Jerusalem, the issue upon which the talks have stalled.
With Netanyahu on his way to the US for AIPAC’s policy conference, and expected to focus his visit on pressing President Obama for more advanced weapons with which to attack Iran, it was widely expected that the Netanyahu government would try to defuse the tensions over the East Jerusalem move, which US officials considered a public insult.
And indeed the tensions do seem to be dying down, though the only thing resembling a concession made by the Netanyahu government was to implement a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy wherein the Israeli government would continue to expand settlements in East Jerusalem with impunity but would stop publicizing them at inopportune times.
But even if US-Israeli relations return quickly to normalcy, there appears to be no rapprochement forthcoming with the PA. This may serve as a recipe for the Obama Administration to default back to chastising the Palestinians for “refusing” negotiations (just two weeks after they agreed to those negotiations, only to see them torpedoed by the most recent construction), but it seems unlikely that it will restart the peace talks.
The Obama administration was victorious in persuading Netanyahu to drop his trousers so that it could kiss his ass, but he agreed to not brag about it too loudly.
The perception held by Arab leaders and reported by General Patraeus that the US is weak and unable to stand up to Israel is once again confirmed.
Which G-d..???????
Jerusalem will not be on the table. Never was going to be, never will be and it will never be palestinian until Israel's cold dead fingers are unwrapped around it.
And anyone who thinks a different Israeli goverment would be willing to actually do so is nuts.
Netanyahu came to the United States for the purpose of inciting the members of AIPAC–not that they really needed it in the first place–to *treason* against the United States.
That is what it *means* to place the self-interests of another country ahead of the national security interests of the United States.
For his continuing agitation and high War Crimes against the Palestinians, Lebanese, Iraqis, Syrians, Jordanians and Iranians, Capo di tutti Netanyahu, present chief of rogue nuclear proliferator Israel, should be immediately arrested upon his arrival in America. AIPAC should be forced to immediately register as the agent for a foreign power (Israel), and all American politicians and congressionals who go pandering before AIPAC for personal and political gains should be immediately branded and indicted for the traitors to American interests that they are.
The Israel does not have a Foreign Minister. It has a Secretary of State whose name is Clinton.