The long-anticipated meeting between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu reportedly went largely as expected with no major concessions from either leader. Both leaders agreed, however, that the region stands on the brink of a major opportunity that neither leader would want to squander. While Netanyahu urged a tough posture on Iran in order to prevent the regime from obtaining nuclear weapons, Obama concurred that the technology would destabilize the regime and provide an unacceptable risk to Israel and the rest of the world. Netanyahu reportedly would likely wait until the end of the year before embarking on a unilateral strike against Iran in order to provide the U.S. administrations new policy of engagement and negotiations an opportunity to succeed. The year time-frame also represents a malleable deadline set by the administration in assessing the success of its technique to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
The two leaders also discussed the two-state solution, with Obama urging once again the need to cease all settlement activity, the cause of major rifts in U.S. and Israeli policy towards the West Bank. Netanyahu reportedly stated that he would affirm the need for a two state solution as long as the Palestinians affirm Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state, a demand previously made by the Israeli leader as a prerequisite to commencing negotiations. The Israeli leader asserted his country’s reluctance to continue governing the Palestinians, however he warned of turning the West Bank into a terrorist haven like the Gaza Strip. In order to entice Netanyahu, Obama said that he would introduce a new peace plan soon that likely reflects the ideals in both the Road Map and the Arab Peace Initiative. Netanyahu welcomed the gesture and stated that peace should remain broad to include the rest of the Arab world, a core tenet of the Arab Peace Initiative. The new plan would likely emerge in Obama’s upcoming speech in Cairo, the site of the President’s “major” speech promised for delivery in a Muslim country.
The Palestinian reaction remained supportive of Obama for exhibiting hope towards a two-state solution. However, Palestinian leaders chastised Netanyahu for “disappointing” remarks, with one official even claiming that Netanyahu remains intent on “destroying the peace process,” something he would succeed in doing if not for U.S. intervention. Even members of the Israeli opposition party criticized Netanyahu for “verbal acrobatics” that clearly would not sway Obama. Instead of providing a concrete solution to the Palestinian problem, those lawmakers criticized Netanyahu for merely attempting to charm Obama and dodge any effective dialogue.
