Yitzhak Benhorin
Obama got what he wanted
Netanyahu's speech delivered the goods as far as US is concerned
WASHINGTON - Out of the myriad of commentary uttered and written in the wake of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's
Bar-Ilan speech,
only one interpretation truly mattered to him – the one that originated at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington.
However, the American president appreciated the great effort and risk assumed by Netanyahu by recognizing the two-state solution. Obama quickly issued a statement, via his spokesman, lauding Netanyahu's speech. However, Bibi has been unable to clear the last hurdle yet, as the president clarified: The settlement freeze issue is still pending.
On Sunday, when the PM spoke at the Begin-Sadat Center, Barack Obama and his friends were golfing in the US capital. It was a day off, and the US Administration does not rush to respond to matters that don't merit an immediate response. It waits for Monday, and conveys the message via White House spokespersons and the State Department.
American Response
Yitzhak Benhorin and AFP
US president says prime minister's speech included 'a lot of conditions', but that 'what we are seeing is at least the possibility that we can restart serious talks' between Israel and Palestinians. He once again calls for halt to settlements
Obama needed something in order to get the diplomatic process underway. Netanyahu gave him what he wanted. Washington is not overly bothered by the reservations he presented – demilitarization is an issue to be discussed in final-status talks. All the former prime ministers who were engaged in contacts with the Palestinians brought up the demilitarization of the West Bank as a condition for a deal. Obama himself pledged allegiance to Israel's security. He often speaks of Israel being the Jewish state, and this issue can also be handled through behind-the-scenes pressure as part of the talks.
One way or another, Netanyahu's endorsement of a Palestinian state, which he more easily repeated in interviews to US networks, achieved its purpose. NBC and CBS are not Bar-Ilan University. Therefore, it appears that the American pressure on Israel – at least the extent expressed in public – will be significantly lower in the coming weeks. Obama has good reasons for this: His Cairo speech is part of history by now, and on the other hand the White House is facing the counter-pressure of Democratic congress members who are not comfortable with the open disagreements between Washington and Jerusalem.
Mitchell believes he can succeed
Yet behind the scenes it's a different story altogether. The disagreements continue in full force. George Mitchell keeps on pushing ceaselessly. The former senator, who in two months will be celebrating his 76th birthday, was not seeking extra retirement income when he agreed to take up the unappreciated post of special envoy to the Middle East. He believes in his ability to succeed. Time is precious. He wants to see results, and quickly.
Two weeks ago, he met with Ehud Barak for more than three hours in New York. He also completed his fourth trip to the Middle East, and he is slated to meet Netanyahu in Paris next week. The PM hopes to reach an understanding there on how to resolve the disagreements over the issue of "natural growth" by jointly agreeing on vital the construction needs of West Bank residents.
Obama left little room for maneuver on the question of what a "cessation of settlements" means exactly. "There is a tendency to try to parse exactly what this means, but I think the parties on the ground understand that if you have a continuation of settlements that, in past agreements, have been categorized as illegal, that's going to be an impediment to progress," Obama said in his meeting with Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi.
It is also worthwhile to pay attention to the signals Obama has been conveying to Hamas. The Road Map's first phase requires Israel to freeze settlement constructions while the Palestinians are required to dismantle the terror infrastructure. In the past, the Americans addressed only the Palestinian Authority; yet the current president knows that the PA cannot put an end to terror. "On the Palestinian side, whether it's the Palestinian Authority or other groups like Hamas," Obama said, mentioning in the same breath the Quartet's demands for Hamas and the demand for the PA to put an end to violence and incitement against Israel. By doing so, for the first time he referred to the Palestinian side – the PA and Hamas – as one entity.
