Netanyahu: In Middle East, it takes three to tango

U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to tell Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel may face a „bleak future” and a „demographic disaster” if it does not support the American peace efforts, according to Bloomberg View columnist Jeffrey Goldberg.

Goldberg interviewed Obama ahead of the president’s scheduled meeting with Netanyahu on Monday at the White House. According to Bloomberg, Obama will warn Netanyahu that time is running out for Israel as a Jewish-majority democracy if a peace deal with the Palestinians is not reached.

Upon landing in the U.S. on Sunday, Netanyahu said: „The tango in the Middle East needs at least three. For years there have been two — Israel and the U.S. Now it needs to be seen if the Palestinians are also present.

„In any case, in order for us to have an agreement, we must uphold our vital interests. I have proved that I do so, in the face of all pressures and all the turmoil, and I will continue to do so here as well.”

Credit: GPO

Goldberg wrote that Obama said his message to Netanyahu would be, „If not now, when? And if not you, Mr. Prime Minister, then who?” 

Obama told Goldberg that if Netanyahu “does not believe that a peace deal with the Palestinians is the right thing to do for Israel, then he needs to articulate an alternative approach.” Obama added that „it’s hard to come up with one that’s plausible.”

Goldberg further wrote that Obama clearly sees Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as „the most politically moderate leader the Palestinians may ever have.”

„I believe that President Abbas is sincere about his willingness to recognize Israel and its right to exist,” Obama told Goldberg.

Obama, who gave the interview as the crisis continues in Ukraine, told Goldberg that he thinks American adversaries, such as Iran, Syria and Russia, still believe the U.S. may use force to pursue its interests.

Goldberg perceived what he called a „veiled threat” in the caveat to Obama’s promise to defend Israel in the U.N. and other international bodies, as Obama said that U.S. may soon no longer be able to do effectively.

„If you see no peace deal and continued aggressive settlement construction — and we have seen more aggressive settlement construction over the last couple years than we’ve seen in a very long time — if Palestinians come to believe that the possibility of a contiguous sovereign Palestinian state is no longer within reach, then our ability to manage the international fallout is going to be limited,” Obama said.

Responding to the interview, a senior Israeli cabinet minister said the Netanyahu government was serious about peace but would not be pressured into endangering Israel.

„I didn’t like all of the remarks,” Intelligence, Strategic Affairs, and International Relations Minister Yuval Steinitz told Army Radio. „I think there is no reason to put pressure on Israel. Netanyahu will, I think, give a clear answer: We are ready for peace. We want to advance a diplomatic accord. But we, rightly, worry about and fear for our national security.”