(ABC News) George Stephanopoulos - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told "Good Morning America" on Sunday: "The Palestinian demand is that we prevent Jews from building in Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem. That is an unacceptable demand. If we made it in London or made it in New York or in Paris, people would cry foul. The issue of Jerusalem will be discussed in the final settlement negotiations. But to bring it forward...these neighborhoods are part and parcel of Jerusalem, they're not isolated hilltops in the West Bank....About 200,000 Israelis live there. The Ramat Shlomo neighborhood that was in the news was populated by Yitzhak Rabin. He wasn't against peace. Neither were all the other prime ministers. This demand that the Palestinians have now introduced to stop all Jewish construction in Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem is totally, totally a nonstarter." "If Iran attempts to develop atomic bombs...they could very well either use it or threaten to use it or threaten to give it to terrorists or even give them a crude device with fissionable material that can be put in a container ship. And this could come to Manhattan or to any port in the United States or in Europe or, for that matter, in Israel. It's a huge, huge danger. It's the biggest issue facing our times....The president has expressed his understanding of how serious a challenge it is. And we all should work together as world leaders to make sure that that challenge is met. That Iran does not acquire nuclear weapons." "We have a lot less time with each day that passes. And the crucial thing is to use the time available for forceful international action led by the United States. If you can, go through the Security Council. If you can't, go outside the Security Council. But there are several ways to stop this. And if the international community led by the United States, or a community of concerned nations led by the United States, is seriously determined to stop it, this can be stopped." "Our preference is that the international community, led by the United States, stop this nuclear weapons program. Having said that, you know, we're on the eve of Israel's Independence Day. And the fortunes of the Jewish people were such that we could never defend ourselves until we re-established the Jewish state. We paid a horrible price in the Holocaust and before the Holocaust. And of course there is a Jewish state now that always reserves the right to defend the Jewish nation." "Those states who have signed the non-proliferation treaty (NPT) have violated it left and right. The problem in the Middle East is not this or that treaty or these or that signatories. The problem is those regimes that call directly for Israel's destruction are developing atomic weapons, weapons of mass death, to achieve that destruction. So it's not whether we sign or whether they sign and are signatories to it. It's how do we prevent these people, these states, these regimes, these leaders like Ahmadinejad, from acquiring nuclear weapons. That's the main focus of the international community. And that certainly should be the focus of everyone concerned with peace and security." "I've been calling for peace talks from day one. I extended my hand to the Palestinians. I've done all these gestures for peace. Stopping the road blocks. Calling for a two-state solution. I'm waiting and eager for them to come back. If they're not asked to put aside all preconditions and negotiate, they're not going to do it." "There is a big contest in the area, it's not merely here with the Palestinians. I think that's the minor part....There's a larger force of radical Islam that wants to eradicate peace. Wants to eradicate Israel. Wants to eradicate any American presence in the Middle East. They hate America because of what America stands for. They'll stop hating America only when America stops being America. When it stops espousing a free society, pluralism, open debate. That's what they despise. An
2010-04-21 10:05:25Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive