Word: netanyahu
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Netanyahu insists that Israel is ready for unconditional talks; he blames the stalemate on the Palestinians for making the settlement freeze a precondition. But Netanyahu also refuses to accept that such talks be directed toward establishing a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital - and that's the minimum the Palestinians are prepared to accept. Abbas, meanwhile, feels betrayed that the Obama Administration has backed down from its own insistence that Israel halt construction in occupied territory. That, say the Palestinians, is clear evidence that Washington won't pressure Israel to do things...
...hardly surprising that President Barack Obama chose to schedule a White House visit by Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the dead of night on Monday, because right now Obama has little to show for his 10-month effort to revive a Middle East peace process. The Israeli leader's refusal to abide by Washington's demand for a complete freeze of settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem - and the Palestinians' refusal to enter talks without one - has left the Obama Administration's plans in tatters, with Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas threatening to resign...
...surprised by his support for the Israeli position." (The U.S. has backed Israel's argument that negotiations should resume despite the disagreement over the settlements. Last weekend U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton drew howls of protest across the region when she praised as "unprecedented" Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's offer to only slow settlement activity, but not in Jerusalem...
...Palestinians, the Obama Administration's retreat on the issue signals that the U.S. is not going to pressure Israel for concessions it has been adamantly unwilling to make. Without such U.S. pressure on Israel, the Palestinian leadership believes there's nothing to be gained from talking to the hawkish Netanyahu government. From the perspective of Fatah, the almost two decades spent relying on U.S.-led diplomacy to deliver Palestinian national goals has delivered precious little. As Israel's encroachment in the West Bank and East Jerusalem has continued apace, Fatah's inability to reverse that situation via negotiations has played...
...then the White House staff is several steps removed from a negotiating process. The Palestinians are weak and divided. The Israelis have been difficult, as always: whenever Mitchell raises East Jerusalem in talks with the Israeli Foreign Minister, the Israeli stands up and walks out of the room. Despite Netanyahu's momentary, tactical enthusiasm for peace talks, his Likud Party has always favored the de facto incorporation of Palestinian lands into the state of Israel...