12 March 2010

Israel’s Settlement Plan Counter to Spirit of Biden Visit

Secretary Clinton says Israel sent “a deeply negative signal” about its approach to its relationship with the United States.

By Stephen Kaufman
Staff Writer

Washington — The March 8 beginning of Vice President Biden’s visit to Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan coincided with special Middle East envoy George Mitchell’s announcement that Israelis and Palestinians had agreed to resume indirect talks, but Biden’s visit to encourage both sides in their peace efforts was complicated by the Israeli government’s announcement March 9 of new housing projects in East Jerusalem.

Biden, who describes himself as “a strong supporter of Israel,” told an Israeli audience in Tel Aviv March 11 that the United States continues to stand with Israel against common security threats and that the Obama administration understands the “critical, strategic relationship” between the two countries. But “sometimes only a friend can deliver the hardest truth,” he continued, and he condemned the new settlement activity.

That decision, he said, “undermined the trust required for productive negotiations.” The Obama administration has said it wants the agreed-upon indirect contacts or “proximity talks” to develop into face-to-face negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians so they can peacefully resolve their long conflict.

“The United States will continue to hold both sides accountable for any statements or any actions that inflame tensions or prejudice the outcome of these talks,” Biden said. “The most important thing is for these talks to go forward … in good faith. We can’t delay, because when progress is postponed, extremists exploit our differences and they sow hate.”

He warned the Israelis that without the establishment of an independent and viable Palestinian state, their country’s identity as a democratic Jewish state will be jeopardized and the country will be unable to achieve lasting security.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton followed Biden’s comments with a March 12 call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which she repeated the Obama administration’s “strong objections” to the proposed new settlements, “not just in terms of timing, but also in its substance,” and that Israel’s actions had undermined trust and confidence in both “the peace process and in America’s interests.”

According to Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs P.J. Crowley, Clinton told Netanyahu that the Israeli announcement is “a deeply negative signal about Israel’s approach to the bilateral relationship and counter to the spirit of the vice president’s trip.”

“The secretary said she could not understand how this happened, particularly in light of the United States’ strong commitment to Israel’s security, and she made clear that the Israeli government needed to demonstrate not just through words but through specific actions that they are committed to this relationship and to the peace process,” Crowley said.

Both Mitchell and Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman have been reaching out to Palestinian and Arab leaders since March 11, Crowley said, and Mitchell is expected to return to the region the week of March 14.

The United States and its partners in the region “jointly remain committed” to the indirect talks that had been agreed to March 8, Crowley said, while also “acknowledging that obviously it is a difficult environment, given the Israeli statement.”