According To Report, Obama Ready To Play Hardball With Netanyahu (Update: White House Rift?...Muslim Outreach)

At a time when there was speculation that Obama would not push Israel with his presidential re-election campaign just starting, comes word that Obama is getting ready to push the settlement freeze issue with Netanyahu when he comes to Washington.

Yes to a withdrawal to 1967 borders, no to a unilateral declaration

Shimon Shiffer, Yediot, May 17 2011

On Thursday US President Barack Obama will call upon Israel to withdraw to the 1967 lines, with border alterations that will be agreed upon with the Palestinian Authority -- but in his speech he will rule out the notion of a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state. This is what is arising from talks in recent days between National Security Adviser Yaakov Amidror and his predecessor Uzi Arad with senior officials in theUS administration, ahead of the prime minister’s visit to Washington.


Obama will be delivering his speech at 6 PM Israel time, a few hours before Netanyahu leaves for Washington. From the main points of the draft of the speech, obtained by Yedioth Ahronoth -- which could still change by Thursday -- it is evident that Obama will call on Israel and the Palestinian Authority to return to the negotiating table, because only in this way can a sustainable agreement be reached. The president will rule out the Palestinian plan to declare a state unilaterally in September, but at the same time will stress that Israel must cease construction in the settlements and abstain from any step that can be defined unilateral and that are liable to change the situation on the ground.

The issue of Jerusalem is also expected to be addressed in the speech, where Obama will declare that the US considers the city to be the capital of both states -- Israel and Palestine -- which live side by side in peace. It appears that Obama will endorse in his speech President Clinton’s statement that the division of Jerusalem will be according to the following criterion: the neighborhoods that are populated by Palestinians will be included in the Palestinian state, and those with a majority of Jews will be under Israeli sovereignty.

According to one source exposed to talks among Netanyahu’s advisors ahead of the premier’s Friday meeting with the US president, Obama will define as illegal the settlements built in the territories after 1967. It is as yet unknown what will be Obama’s policy on the settlement blocs; in his speech on Monday Netanyahu noted he would demand that they remain under Israeli sovereignty.

Amidror and Arad tried to convince their interlocutors, headed by National Security Advisor Tom Donilon,to change some of the planned formulations in the speech. The Israeli side claimed that Obama’s outline will not enable true negotiations, and is in essence an endorsement of the Arab approach. A senior US administration official told the Israelis that they have no reason to act like a “surprised virgin.”

“You know the US administration’s position; Secretary of State Hillary Clinton already elaborated on the details of the Israeli-Palestinian agreement last October,” the senior official said. In addition, Obama’sadvisors believe that no dramatic change will befall the special relations between Israel and the US, following the speech.

A senior Israeli source said off the record that “texts emanating from Obama’s surroundings are extremely unpleasant to Israeli ears, and will be primarily disturbing to Netanyahu.” The prime minister might be consoled by the fact that Obama is expected to say explicitly in his speech that the Palestinian side, which will negotiate with Israel, must accept the terms laid down by the Quartet: recognition of Israel’s right to exist,abstaining from unilateral steps, and ceasing terror and incitement against Israel.

Washington correspondent Orly Azulai adds: On Sunday Obama will address the AIPAC conference in Washington, hours before leaving for an official visit to Europe. Ahead of his speech Obama will meet with King Abdullah of Jordan, who will be visiting Washington.

I don't know if this has been confirmed, but Shimon Shiffer is after all a journalist with Yediot Aharonot. If this is true, it comes as a surprise to those of us who thought that Bibi would have an easier time of it on his visit--and is a very unpleasant surprise to Israel.

Technorati Tag: Obama and Netanyahu.

UPDATE: An article in the LA Times claims there is a rift in the White House on proceeding with Israel-Palestinian peace talks. If the above article is accurate, it looks like Hillary Clinton's side has won:

The administration was deeply split on whether to offer an "Obama plan," with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, departing Middle East special envoy George Mitchell and some aides in the National Security Council arguing for it. The skeptics included White House Middle East advisor Dennis Ross and several other advisors, officials said.

One argument against a fresh U.S. peace plan was that such a move would be counterproductive unless the administration is prepared to risk another prolonged squabble with the Netanyahu government and his American supporters at a time when Obama is beginning his reelection campaign. If the administration gave up the fight, it would look weak, as it did last year when it abandoned its attempt to persuade Netanyahu to impose a full freeze in Jewish settlements in the West Bank, some argued.

That is important to remember: if Obama does push ahead with this, he will not easily be deflected--exactly because his presidential re-election campaign has begun.

Note: See Obama's New Middle East Policy May Not Be So Different After all

Another Thought: Is this supposed to be an indication of just how serious Obama is this time around to do some genuine outreach with the Arab world and pull them into his corner?