BICOM

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint session of the US Congress yesterday on Capitol Hill. Netanyahu declared he was ‘willing to make painful compromises’ to achieve a historical peace. He added, ‘as a leader it’s my responsibility to lead my people to peace. It’s not easy, because I recognise that in a genuine peace we will be required to give up parts of the ancestral Jewish homeland.’ Netanyahu said that he was willing to be ‘generous about the size of the Palestinian state,’ but that Jerusalem ‘must remain the united capital of Israel’. Netanyahu also noted that the status of the settlements would be decided only in negotiations and said ‘in any real peace agreement that ends the conflict, some settlements will end up beyond Israel’s borders.’

Netanyahu also reiterated one of the points he has made on several occasions during his trip to the US, namely that Israel will not return to the indefensible borders of 1967. Netanyahu also addressed Mahmoud Abbas and urged him to cancel the reconciliation agreement with Hamas. ‘Tear up your pact with Hamas, sit down and negotiate, make peace with the Jewish state. If you do I promise you this – Israel will not be the only state to welcome a Palestinian state.’ Netanyahu expressed his eagerness to return to negotiations with the Palestinians but not with Hamas. ‘Hamas is not a partner for peace’, Netanyahu said. ‘The organisation remains committed to Israel’s destruction and to terrorism. They have a charter, it calls not only for the destruction of Israel, it says: kill the Jews.’

The prime minister also stressed the strong bonds between the US and Israel and thanked President Obama for his great commitment to Israel’s security. He also congratulated the US on the operation to find Osama bin Laden.

This was the second time Netanyahu has addressed a joint session of Congress, the first was during his previous prime ministership in 1996. The Prime Minister’s Office has said that an invitation to address Congress reflects the wide bipartisan support for Israel in Congress and the American public.