In what is seen as the main public event of his visit to the region, US President Barack Obama spoke to an invited audience of Israeli students at Jerusalem's Binyanei Ha'uma conference and cultural center this evening. He began with a ringing affirmation of Israel's right to exist and of US support. "Make no mistake: those who adhere to the ideology of rejecting Israel’s right to exist might as well reject the earth beneath them and the sky above, because Israel is not going anywhere. Today, I want to tell you particularly the young people that so long as there is a United States of America, you are not alone." (the president said this last phrase in Hebrew: "atem lo levad").
Obama went on to call for Syrian president Assad to stand down, "so that Syria’s future can begin. Because true stability in Syria depends upon establishing a government that is responsive to its people one that protects all communities within its borders, while making peace with countries beyond them." He also presented a determined stance in the face of Iran's nuclear ambitions: "I have made the position of the United States of America clear: Iran must not get a nuclear weapon. This is not a danger that can be contained. As president, I have said to the world that all options are on the table for achieving our objectives. America will do what we must to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran."
The US president heaped praises on Israel for its economic, scientific, technological and cultural achievements, citing the country's ten Nobel Prize laureates, but he also called on the younger generation of Israelis represented in the audience to decide what kind of country they wanted for themselves and their children, and to put pressure on their leaders to make progress on peace with the Palestinians. It was clear that it was in order to deliver this kind of message that Obama chose to speak directly to Israeli young people rather than in the Knesset, a decision that has come in for some criticism in Israel. He described setttlements in the West Bank as "counterproductive to the cause of peace",
"The Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and justice must also be recognized," Obama said, "Put yourself in their shoes look at the world through their eyes. It is not fair that a Palestinian child cannot grow up in a state of her own, and lives with the presence of a foreign army that controls the movements of her parents every single day. It is not just when settler violence against Palestinians goes unpunished. It is not right to prevent Palestinians from farming their lands; to restrict a student’s ability to move around the West Bank; or to displace Palestinian families from their home. Neither occupation nor expulsion is the answer. Just as Israelis built a state in their homeland, Palestinians have a right to be a free people in their own land," Barack said to a mostly enthusiastic audience, although there were some heckling interruptions to his speech, which he bore with good humor.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 21, 2013
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