Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — a day after saying the U.S. and Israel agree that Iran should not have nuclear weapons but "disagree on the best way" to prevent that from happening — will outline to Congress what he sees as the threats posed by the Islamic republic.
His comments today come after President Obama told Reuters that a long-term deal with Iran is the best way to ensure the Islamic republic doesn't obtain a nuclear weapon, and that Netanyahu's speech to Congress — which came about without White House input — "isn't permanently destructive" to the U.S-Israeli relationship. Susan Rice, Obama's national security adviser, said last night that the Israeli leader's planned remarks had "injected a degree of partisanship" that is "destructive to the fabric of the relationship."
Netanyahu's speech has been controversial from the moment it was announced last month by House Speaker John Boehner. The White House called the invitation to Netanyahu a departure from protocol. Obama, citing the proximity of Israel's March 17 election, said he won't meet with the Israeli premier; neither will Secretary of State John Kerry or Vice President Joe Biden, both of whom are traveling. Many Democrats say they will boycott the speech. (NPR's Scott Horsley, reporting on Morning Edition, details the history of Obama's often-frosty relationship with Netanyahu.)
Netanyahu says he wants to use the speech to highlight the threat posed by Iran — a position for which he has support in Congress where many lawmakers want to impose more sanctions on the Islamic republic. Netanyahu has criticized the talks with Iran, but Obama told Reuters the talks are the best way forward.
Obama added that when the U.S. and its allies signed an interim deal with Iran that would freeze its nuclear program, "Prime Minister Netanyahu made all sorts of claims: This as going to be a terrible deal. This was going to result in Iran getting $50 billion worth of relief. Iran would not abide by the agreement. None of that has come true." (You can see his full comments here.)
Rice and Samantha Power, the U.S. envoy to the U.N., were conciliatory in remarks Monday at the 2015 American Israel Public Affairs Committee Policy Conference in Washington, where the Israeli leader also spoke. Both reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to Israel and its security.
"There will never be a sunset on America's commitment to Israel's security," Power said. "Never."
Speaking later, Rice said: "We have Israel's back, come hell or high water."
But she also said talks with Iran is the best way from keeping it from obtaining nuclear weapons, and she said Congress "shouldn't play the spoiler" on the issue.
We will update this blog post with Netanyahu's comments to Congress.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin Netanyahu
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