Uzi Arad: "... the more we lend legitimacy to a Palestinian state, the more it comes at the expense of Israel..."

Via Friday-Lunch-Club

WaPo/ here

"... Netanyahu's national security adviser said Tuesday that the push for Palestinian statehood has weakened Israel's standing in the world, and he suggested that the outlook is bleak for U.S.-mediated negotiations ...... also argued that new U.N. Security Council sanctions on Iran are inadequate to thwart its nuclear progress. A preemptive military strike might eventually be necessary, he said.

Arad's comments, made to a gathering in Jerusalem of the Jewish Agency, a body that promotes Jewish immigration to Israel, illustrated the challenges President Obama faces in laying the groundwork for peace talks, as well as reassuring an increasingly impatient Israel that the United States can stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb. Obama is to meet with Netanyahu in Washington on July 6.

"The creation of a Palestinian state remains the choice of many," Arad said. "But in the process, have you failed to notice that the more we lend legitimacy to a Palestinian state, the more it comes at the expense of our own?"...

... On Iran, Arad did not directly address the likelihood that Israel would strike militarily. But he said he believed the international community would back such a decision. "I don't see anyone who questions the legality of this or the legitimacy," Arad said. "They only discuss the efficacy, which is interesting. It suggests that people understand the problem. And they are not questioning the right."

Arad also noted what Israeli officials have perceived as a shift in U.S. policy toward Iran, citing a subtle change in rhetoric. Officials say they think Obama is now more willing to use military force."

Posted by G, Z, or B at 2:02 PM

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