I/II. http://news.yahoo.com/netanyahu-victory-gets-muted-response-west-152137639.html
Netanyahu victory gets muted response from West AFP By Eric Randolph and Michel SAILHAN 14 hours ago Paris (AFP) - Western governments gave a muted reaction Wednesday to the re-election of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu amid fears that his increasingly hardline stance has fatally undermined the Middle East peace process. Related Stories Netanyahu says Israel will not cede land to Palestinians Associated Press U.N.: Peace process only way for Israel to stay a democracy Reuters Netanyahu: Israel Won't Cede Territory To Palestinians Huffington Post Netanyahu win forces US re-think on peace strategy AFP To Netanyahu, Peace Is an Existential Threat Huffington Post The EU congratulated Netanyahu on his victory, but said it was committed to relaunching the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians that he rejected in the last days of the campaign. British Prime Minister David Cameron took a similar stand, tweeting his congratulations but letting his spokesman emphasise that "he wants to see peace, wants to see a two-state solution". Netanyahu's last-ditch lurch to the right -- vowing that the Palestinian state would never be recognised on his watch -- may have helped him clinch victory but sets up an awkward diplomatic scenario, analysts said. "A major part of the peace process with the Palestinians has been to maintain the pretence, the make-believe idea, that it will eventually lead to a two-state solution," said Daniel Levy, director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations. "They were already skating on thin ice and now Netanyahu has taken a pick-axe to it." View galleryCopies of ballots papers and campaign posters for Israel's … Copies of ballots papers and campaign posters for Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu' ... - Defying international consensus - With Netanyahu promising to abandon any semblance of a two-state solution, pressure may now increase on the West to force through a peace process. "Either the United States and Europe get involved with a plan and a will to see it through, or we are facing a new war in Gaza, maybe even in the coming months," warned Jean-Pierre Filiu, a French academic and author of "Gaza: A History". "The US and Europe must impose peace. They must admit that the parties involved do not get on and that peace is unpopular, and so it must be imposed." Netanyahu's hard line had already plunged relations with the West to an unprecedented low, which his latest comments will do little to repair. View galleryZionist Union party co-leader Isaac Herzog (centre) … Zionist Union party co-leader Isaac Herzog (centre) delivers a speech to supporters in Tel Aviv, on ... "The relationship with America is as bad as it's ever been. Having set out his stall so strongly, it will be hard for Netanyahu to come back and say it was just part of the campaign," said David Hartwell, managing director of Middle East Insider, based in London. It is not only the Palestinian issue, but also Netanyahu's absolute refusal to support the negotiations with Iran over its nuclear programme that has put Israel at odds with international partners. "Bibi has defied the international consensus on the Palestinians and Iran," said Levy, using Netanyahu's popular nickname. "The question is whether he keeps going down that path. My guess is he will pull back slightly -- he has already done his worst in trying to torpedo the Iran deal in America." Netanyahu argues Iran cannot be trusted with any deal to limit its nuclear ambitions, and represents an existential threat to Israel. View gallerySupporters of the Joint List of Arab parties celebrate … Supporters of the Joint List of Arab parties celebrate at the party's headquarters in Nazareth, ... He has powerful backers among the opposition Republican party in the US, who controversially invited him to speak to Congress earlier this month and were the first in Washington to welcome his election win. - Still time to row back - His critics say he has stoked the threat from Iran to bolster his domestic position and deflect attention away from other issues. "He will continue to use his influence in the US Congress to undermine the Iran deal, but he has never been able to present a coherent alternative," said Hartwell. "Even a Republican president is not going to rush into war with Iran." There is still hope that Netanyahu will be able to row back from his hardline positions once back in power. His comments about refusing a Palestinian state "came during the last 48 hours of his campaign," said Nathan Thrall, of the International Crisis Group in Jerusalem. "I put much more stock in his actual behaviour and we know that he has agreed on numerous occasions to negotiate with the Palestinians on the basis of the 1967 borders. "He has never quite admitted that publicly but on several occasions he has done so in private." But regardless of his moves in the coming months, analysts agree that Netanyahu has injected a poisonous polarisation into Israeli politics that makes it difficult to maintain partnerships with the Western world. His warning to supporters that they must come out to vote because "Arabs are voting in droves" has proved particularly controversial. "It's unbelievable," said Levy. "Can you imagine a European or American politician saying 'Vote for me because the Jews or the blacks are voting in droves'? Even the far-right can't say that." II. http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2015/03/18/us-affirms-support-for-palestinian-state-after-netanyahu-win Obama Still Believes in Palestinian State White House says U.S. will re-evaluate best approach to two-state solution after Netanyahu win. A campaign poster of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seen in Jerusalem, on March 5, 2015. A campaign poster of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seen in Jerusalem on Thursday. The Obama administration did not like some of his election tactics. Associated Press March 18, 2015 | 1:47 p.m. EDT + More WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Obama administration admonished Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's political party on Wednesday, accusing it of using anti-Arab rhetoric ahead of Israel's election. A spokesman said President Barack Obama still believes in Palestinian statehood -- even if Netanyahu no longer does. In its first public response to Netanyahu's triumph in the election, the spokesman said the White House was "deeply concerned" about divisive language emanating from Netanyahu's Likud Party. White House press secretary Josh Earnest said the party had sought to marginalize Israel's minority Arabs, an apparent reference to social media posts the Likud distributed that warned Israelis about the danger of high turnout by Arab voters. "These are views the administration intends to convey directly to the Israelis," Earnest said. And while Earnest said Obama would be calling Netanyahu to congratulate him on his victory, he acknowledged the U.S. would have to re-evaluate the best way to bring about a two-state resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict -- a cornerstone of U.S. Mideast policy for years. In a veer to the right just before the election, Netanyahu reversed his former position and said he now opposes the creation of a separate Palestinian state. Netanyahu scoops fourth term Reuters "Based on those comments, the U.S. will evaluate our position going forward," Earnest told reporters traveling aboard Air Force One on a flight to Cleveland for an event focused on U.S. manufacturing. [READ: 2014 Israel-Gaza Conflict Showed How Hamas Manipulates International Law] Secretary of State John Kerry spoke to Netanyahu shortly after the election to congratulate him, Earnest said, and Obama was to do the same in the days ahead. Downplaying any suggestion the president was delaying that call, Earnest pointed out that after previous Israeli elections, Obama had waited until the Israeli president had formally tasked the leading candidate with forming a new government. Israel's largely ceremonial president is expected to take that step soon. Earnest said he didn't expect Netanyahu's victory to have a negative impact on nuclear negotiations the U.S. and world powers are conducting with Iran, noting that the Israeli leader's views on the issue are well known. Netanyahu railed against those talks earlier this month in a speech to Congress that was perceived as a rebuke to Obama. [ALSO: Netanyahu's Iran Speech a Dose of Reality for Obama and Democrats] Netanyahu drew criticism as Israelis were voting Tuesday after a midday post on his Facebook page contended high Arab voter turnout was endangering his Likud Party's rule. "Arab voters are going to the polls in droves. Left-wing organizations are bringing them in buses," he said. Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. 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