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Netanyahu: Increase the Pressure on Iran to Dismantle Its Nuclear Weapons Capability
(Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the Saban Forum in Washington on Sunday: The November 24th deadline for an agreement [with Iran] has come and gone. That's fortunate because a deal was not signed last month that would have effectively left Iran as a threshold nuclear power. And even though Israel isn't part of the P5+1, our voice and our concerns played a critical role in preventing a bad deal. Now we must use the time available to increase the pressure on Iran to dismantle its nuclear weapons capability. Violence and fanaticism are spreading throughout the Middle East, and ISIS's savagery is merely one example of it. The collapse of the old order has made clear to pragmatic Arab governments that Israel is not their enemy. On the contrary, Israel and our moderate Arab neighbors have much to gain by cooperating. And this cooperation could, in turn, open the door to peace. Like the moderate Arabs, I want Israel to have peace with the Palestinians: a genuine peace, an enduring peace, a secure peace - for there can be no peace without real security and there can be no real security without a long-term IDF presence to provide it. For nine months we negotiated with the Palestinians, but they consistently refused to engage us on our legitimate security concerns, just as they refused to discuss recognizing Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people, while at the same time insisting that Israel recognize a nation-state of the Palestinian people. The talks didn't end because Israel announced that it would build apartments in Jewish neighborhoods of Jerusalem - neighborhoods that will remain a part of Israel under any conceivable peace agreement. The talks ended because the Palestinians wanted them to end. The talks ended because President Abbas unfortunately chose a pact with Hamas over peace with Israel. Unfortunately, the Palestinian leadership is simply not yet prepared to truly confront violence and fanaticism within Palestinian society, within their own ranks. Real peace will only come with leadership that demands from the Palestinians to accept the three pillars of peace: one, genuine mutual recognition; two, an end to all claims, including the right of return; and three, a long-term Israeli security presence.