Press. voanews.com
U.S.
Secretary of State John Kerry unveiled broad guidelines Wednesday for an
eventual peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, warning that a
two-state solution to the conflict is in "serious jeopardy." In an
hour-long speech at the State Department, Kerry also defended the U.S. decision
last week to abstain from a United Nations Security Council resolution that
condemned Israeli settlements.
The vote
at the U.N. "was about preserving the two-state solution," said
Kerry, rejecting criticism that the U.S. was betraying its longtime ally,
Israel. "That's what we were standing up for - Israel's future as a Jewish
and democratic state." He noted that the vote was "in
accordance" with U.S. values.
No major
new proposals were included in the six parameters outlined in Kerry's speech.
Rather, the address was aimed at preserving the generally agreed upon framework
of a two-state solution that has been embraced by the last several U.S.
administrations.
Among the
principles were a "secure and recognized international border"
between Israel and a "viable and contiguous Palestine," as well as an
end to Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory. Kerry also said a successful
two-state solution must provide a "just, agreed, fair and realistic
solution" to the Palestinian refugee crisis, declare Jerusalem as a
capital for both states, and satisfy Israel's security needs.
"Here
is the fundamental reality: if the choice is one state, Israel can be either
Jewish or democratic, but it cannot be both," said Kerry, warning that the
status quo is leading toward an "irreversible one-state reality" that
"most people don't actually want."
Backlash
The stern
rebuke of Israel, which comes in the final days of Barack Obama's presidency,
prompted a fierce backlash from Israeli leaders. "Like the Security
Council resolution that Kerry advanced in the U.N., his speech tonight was
skewed against Israel," Netanyahu said in a statement after the speech.
"For over an hour, Kerry obsessively dealt with settlements and barely
touched upon the root of the conflict - Palestinian opposition to a Jewish
state in any boundaries."
The next
step is likely to be determined during the administration of President-elect
Donald Trump, who has emerged as a staunch ally of Netanyahu. In a tweet
Wednesday, Trump lashed out at the Obama administration for its treatment of
Israel.
"We
cannot continue to let Israel be treated with such total disdain and
disrespect. They used to have a good friend in the U.S., but not anymore,"
Trump said in a tweet, adding: "Stay strong Israel, January 20th is fast
approaching."
The
Israeli-Palestinian issue was a main focus for Kerry when he took the top post
at the State Department in February 2013, but years of negotiations, including
some intense periods of shuttle diplomacy, have failed to yield an agreement.
One
lingering obstacle has been Israel's continued construction of settlements in
areas the Palestinians see as part of a future state. That issue rocketed back
to the forefront with last week's U.N. vote. The U.S. move to abstain from the
vote effectively allowed unanimous passage of the resolution.
Israel
criticizes US abstention
Netanyahu,
who has had a cool relationship with President Obama, has called the resolution
"shameful'' and accused the U.S. of playing an active role in its passage.
The prime minister also said he has "incontestible" evidence showing
that the U.S. helped craft the resolution and pushed for its passage. U.S.
officials have rejected that notion.
Israeli
officials also have launched a series of diplomatic retaliatory measures
against nations and other organizations who supported the U.N. resolution. However,
in a move aimed at cooling tensions, an Israeli committee on Wednesday
postponed a planned vote on permits to construct hundreds of new settler homes
in occupied East Jerusalem.
Hanan
Rubin, a member of the Jerusalem Planning and Housing Committee, said the vote
was taken off the agenda for Wednesday at the request of Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu. The proposal involved 492 new homes in the Ramot and Ramat
Shlomo neighborhoods located in areas Israel captured during the 1967 war.
Hours
later, a Jerusalem municipal panel approved the construction of a separate
four-story building for Jewish settlers in a Palestinian neighborhood of
Silwan, located in East Jerusalem. Washington has long said it opposes Israeli
settlements, calling them an obstacle to peace, but the U.S. has generally used
its Security Council veto to protect Israel from censure.
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