U.S. President Barack Obama is scheduled to hold discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House today. The talks come amid sharp disagreement between the two leaders on the best way to move forward in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process (BBC)--with Obama advocating a Palestinian state with pre-1967 borders, and Netanyahu claiming such boundaries are "indefensible." According to the New York Times, Netanyahu was incensed by the president's decision to endorse the 1967 borders in his highly touted Mideast speech yesterday. Obama has said he does not believe Netanyahu has the political will to offer the type of concessions necessary for a peace deal.
Obama's address on the democratic uprisings in the Mideast and North Africa was the first outright declaration of his policy on the contested issue of borders (al-Jazeera)--essentially endorsing the Palestinian desire to revert to the status before the 1967 war, in which Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. Analysts suggest that while this has long been the tacit U.S. position, Obama's public comments signal a bolder U.S. policy.
Hopes for success in U.S-Israeli talks have diminished in recent weeks (WSJ) with announcements of a unity government between the main Palestinian factions of Fatah and Hamas--an Islamic militant group--and the campaign for Palestinian statehood at the United Nations.
Obama's address on the democratic uprisings in the Mideast and North Africa was the first outright declaration of his policy on the contested issue of borders (al-Jazeera)--essentially endorsing the Palestinian desire to revert to the status before the 1967 war, in which Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. Analysts suggest that while this has long been the tacit U.S. position, Obama's public comments signal a bolder U.S. policy.
Hopes for success in U.S-Israeli talks have diminished in recent weeks (WSJ) with announcements of a unity government between the main Palestinian factions of Fatah and Hamas--an Islamic militant group--and the campaign for Palestinian statehood at the United Nations.
