Prime
Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's message before boarding his plane for
Washington Sunday and his meeting Monday with US President Barack
Obama is that Israel has successfully withstood strong pressure over
the last few years, and will continue to do so. "I am leaving
for an important trip to the US," Netanyahu said before taking
off for a five day visit to Washington and California. "I will
meet President Obama, and we will discuss Iran and the diplomatic
process. I will stand firm on Israel's vital interests, first and
foremost security." Over the last few years, Netanyahu said,
"Israel came under pressures, and we deflected them amid
unprecedented regional turmoil. We maintained stability and security.
That is the way it was, and that is the way it will be."
Netanyahu's
meeting with Obama comes as Iran and the Palestinian issue are taking
a back seat in Washington to the crisis in Ukraine. Neither Netanyahu
nor the Foreign Ministry has issued any statement concerning the
dramatic developments in Ukraine, although the situation facing
Ukraine’s Jews has been raised in high-level meetings. One
government official said that the Netanyahu-Obama meeting on Monday
is still set to focus on Iran and the Palestinians, despite the
mounting US tension with Russia. The main impact of the Ukrainian
crisis on Netanyahu’s five-day visit will likely be less media
attention, the official said.
The
prime minister is also scheduled to meet with US Secretary of State
John Kerry and with congressional leaders. He is slated to address
the annual American Israel Public Affairs Committee policy conference
on Tuesday, a day after Kerry is to speak at the gathering.
Netanyahu’s meetings with Obama and Kerry will come some four weeks
before Israel is scheduled to release the last tranche of 26
Palestinian security prisoners as part of the framework agreed upon
last July to get the PLO to return to the negotiating table. It is
expected that Kerry will try to present his much-anticipated document
that is to serve as a basis for continued talks between the two sides
before the prisoner release. Kerry is expected to travel back to
Israel in mid-March for another round of shuttle diplomacy, following
Obama’s meeting with Netanyahu and an expected meeting in
Washington with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
Source: Jerusalem
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My
comments:
I
have no confidence in President Obama or John Kerry to act in
Israel's best interests. I pray that Prime Minister Neyanyahu hears
the voice of God and stands strong for Israel. Let us pray for the
salvation of every Jewish person in Israel.
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