A White House spokesman said the Obama administration is not confident that a two-state solution will happen during President Obama’s tenure, even though Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was committed to the “two-state” solution during his meeting with Obama Monday. But they also emphasized that Obama expected to hear from Netanyahu how he would preserve the two-state option. The military assistance that we provide we consider not only an important part of our obligation to the security of the state of Israel, but also an important part of USA security infrastructure in the region, as we make sure that one of our closest allies cannot only protect itself but can also work with us in deterring terrorism and other security threats. That is ’cause Clinton, Obama’s former secretary of state & the leading Democratic candidate for president, is trying to shore up support from Jewish voters & donors who’ve grown cautious of Obama’s dealing with of the historically robust U.S.-Israel relationship. He told Netanyahu that “the security of Israel is my top priority”.
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A final deal would not likely be reached on Monday but both leaders plan to discuss it – something that was put off after the nuclear agreement had been reached with Iran.
Netanyahu and Obama met for about two hours, and their conciliatory tone stood in stark contrast with the rancor that has cast a cloud over the U.S.-Israel relationship over the past year.
The conflict with the Palestinians is painful for Israel, and it is experiencing a surge of violence that has left 11 Israelis killed by Palestinians since mid-September, AP reports.
White House officials said Obama today was focused more on getting Netanyahu to outline ways to keep confrontations between Israelis and Palestinians to a minimum, in the absence of a long-term solution. We’ll never give up the hope for peace.
The trip was about securing more military aid from the U.S. – that’s set to rise from $3bn to $5bn per year.
Obama and Netanyahu are known to have testy personal ties, not least because of the right-wing Israeli premier’s courting of Republicans – the US president’s opponents – including in a speech to Congress in March not coordinated with the White House.
Netanyahu condemned the statements and said he would meet Baratz after returning from Washington.
The meeting at the White House lasted two and a half hours and showed every sign of being amicable.
For decades, the prospect of a two-state solution has been the bedrock of peace efforts.
SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images Obama and Netanyahu met up to turn the page on their Iran nuclear deal differences and discuss tactics to end the violence in the Middle East.
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Obama and Netanyahu will attempt to improve relations, but the often-contentions relationship between the leaders comes as one of Netanyahu’s recently appointed spokespeople, Ran Baratz, suggested on Facebook that Obama was “anti-Semitic”.
