Re: No exception on Israeli settlement: Clinton
Netanyahu urges Arab states to normalize ties with Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday he's willing to take "concrete steps" to make peace with the Palestinians, and urged Arab countries to normalize ties with Israel.
"We are prepared to take, and we will take, concrete steps toward peace with the Palestinians. We also expect the Palestinians to take concrete steps," Netanyahu said during debate in the Knesset, Israel's parliament.
"And it would be good if Arab countries joined the peace effort and made concrete and symbolic steps toward normalization with Israel, not later, but now."
The Israeli prime minister's comments come on the eve of a meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the White House.
Abbas, who met with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday, is expected to urge Obama to press Israel to clamp down on construction in xxxish settlements, Reuters news agency reported.
Obama has made clear that his administration supports the creation of a Palestinian state, and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called for a complete halt to construction in West Bank settlements.
Needed for 'natural growth'
Netanyahu appears to be at odds with the U.S. president by not directly endorsing the creation of a Palestinian state and saying settlement construction is necessary to support the population's "natural growth."
During a May 18 meeting with Obama, Netanyahu said he was willing to restart peace negotiations with the Palestinians.
The Israeli prime minister has called on the Palestinians to honour the commitments of the 2003 roadmap to peace, including cracking down on militants who shoot rockets and suicide bombers into Israel.
However, that demand has been complicated by the fact that Hamas, the rival to Abbas's Fatah faction, took over control of the Gaza Strip in 2007.
"We want an end to the conflict and we want reciprocity in the demands made of both sides, and in carrying them out," Netanyahu said Wednesday.
He mentioned possible co-operation with the Palestinians on economic and agricultural projects.
Netanyahu also said Obama agrees with Israel that the Iranian nuclear threat could create an opportunity to bring together moderate Arab nations.
Israel considers Iran a serious danger because of its nuclear program, development of long-range missiles and frequent references by its president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to Israel's destruction.
Israel dismisses Iran's insistence that its nuclear program is peaceful, charging that the Iranians are building nuclear weapons.
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/0...inians027.html
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________
"Abbas, who met with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday, is expected to urge Obama to press Israel to clamp down on construction in xxxish settlements, Reuters news agency reported"
Isn't it great how the "free press" knows what "leaders" are going to say or do before they say or do them Since when did the Canadian Prime Minister urge the American President to do anything, lol.
Netanyahu urges Arab states to normalize ties with Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday he's willing to take "concrete steps" to make peace with the Palestinians, and urged Arab countries to normalize ties with Israel.
"We are prepared to take, and we will take, concrete steps toward peace with the Palestinians. We also expect the Palestinians to take concrete steps," Netanyahu said during debate in the Knesset, Israel's parliament.
"And it would be good if Arab countries joined the peace effort and made concrete and symbolic steps toward normalization with Israel, not later, but now."
The Israeli prime minister's comments come on the eve of a meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the White House.
Abbas, who met with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday, is expected to urge Obama to press Israel to clamp down on construction in xxxish settlements, Reuters news agency reported.
Obama has made clear that his administration supports the creation of a Palestinian state, and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called for a complete halt to construction in West Bank settlements.
Needed for 'natural growth'
Netanyahu appears to be at odds with the U.S. president by not directly endorsing the creation of a Palestinian state and saying settlement construction is necessary to support the population's "natural growth."
During a May 18 meeting with Obama, Netanyahu said he was willing to restart peace negotiations with the Palestinians.
The Israeli prime minister has called on the Palestinians to honour the commitments of the 2003 roadmap to peace, including cracking down on militants who shoot rockets and suicide bombers into Israel.
However, that demand has been complicated by the fact that Hamas, the rival to Abbas's Fatah faction, took over control of the Gaza Strip in 2007.
"We want an end to the conflict and we want reciprocity in the demands made of both sides, and in carrying them out," Netanyahu said Wednesday.
He mentioned possible co-operation with the Palestinians on economic and agricultural projects.
Netanyahu also said Obama agrees with Israel that the Iranian nuclear threat could create an opportunity to bring together moderate Arab nations.
Israel considers Iran a serious danger because of its nuclear program, development of long-range missiles and frequent references by its president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to Israel's destruction.
Israel dismisses Iran's insistence that its nuclear program is peaceful, charging that the Iranians are building nuclear weapons.
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/0...inians027.html
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________
"Abbas, who met with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday, is expected to urge Obama to press Israel to clamp down on construction in xxxish settlements, Reuters news agency reported"
Isn't it great how the "free press" knows what "leaders" are going to say or do before they say or do them Since when did the Canadian Prime Minister urge the American President to do anything, lol.
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