As the Durban II anti-racism conference kicks off on the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day, tensions already accelerated between Israel and some nations. Following a meeting between the Swiss president and Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Israeli government recalled its ambassador to Switzerland, citing the meeting with the Iranian holocaust denier as cause. The Swiss government offered its rebuttal, contending that it remains neutral and not part of any alliance. The list of boycotting countries expanded even further, with Germany and New Zealand joining the protesting nations. A French representative at the event intends to immediately leave in protest if discussions turn to single-out any particular conflict, such as Israel-Palestine.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s office refuted claims that the new administration intends to precondition peace talks with mandating that the Palestinian Authority accept the right of Israel as a Jewish state. The United States opposes the preconditioning of the resumption of peace negotiations. Meanwhile, Netanyahu also canceled his first scheduled trip to the United States since taking office last month due to being informed that President Barack Obama would not be meeting with him on the trip. However, Obama intends to visit Israel in the near future.
