At AIPAC conference, Clinton pledges White House commitment to Israel security

By Glenn Kessler, Monday, March 22, 2010; 10:29 AM
Washington Post
Mar. 22, 2010

Translation: Get ready for your kids to die for Israel's security.Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday pledged the Obama administration's "unwavering" commitment to Israel's security, including sanctions on Iran that "bite." But she defended White House opposition to Jewish construction in a disputed area of Jerusalem as an essential part of getting peace talks back on track.

Speaking before more than 7,000 delegates to the annual conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee -- which is lobbying furiously against the administration's criticism -- Clinton ticked off numerous ways the Obama administration is committed to Israel's security, and offered the administration's push for peace talks as the ultimate guarantor of Israel's future viability as a democratic state.

"For President Obama, for me, and for this entire administration, our commitment to Israel's security and Israel's future is rock solid, unwavering, enduring and forever," Clinton declared, as delegates stood and cheered.

Clinton said the United States objected to Israel's decision to announce the new construction last week "because we are committed to Israel and its security, which depends on a comprehensive peace . . . determined to keep moving forward along a path that ensures Israel's future as a secure and democratic Jewish state living in peace with its Palestinian neighbors, who can realize their own legitimate aspirations."

Clinton was greeted respectfully, and won applause when she spoke of defending Israel's security, warned of the danger of Iran's nuclear program, and criticized Palestinian incitement.

The crowd was largely silent when she defended the administration's handling of the construction dispute in the past week, though she drew scattered clapping when she said: "This was not about wounded pride. Nor is it a judgment on the final status of Jerusalem, which is an issue to be settled at the negotiating table. This is about getting to the table, creating and protecting an atmosphere of trust around it -- and staying there until the job is done."

The vast crowd did not react as Clinton said: "The status quo is unsustainable for all sides. It promises only more violence and unrealized aspirations. Staying on this course means continuing a conflict that carries tragic human costs."

Howard Kohr, executive director of AIPAC, told the audience before Clinton spoke that it was "dangerous and wrong" to suggest that the U.S.-Israeli relationship should be held hostage to the peace process. He said that "no one issue can be used to detract" from the goal of stopping Iran from getting a nuclear weapon.

Kohr earned a standing ovation when he declared, "Jerusalem is not a settlement. Jerusalem is the capital of Israel."

"It is time to set away the past week and pledge to solve problems together," Kohr said. To applause from the delegates, he added that future disputes between the United States and Israel should be "solved privately."

But Clinton argued that new construction in East Jerusalem undermines the cause of peace, especially because the Palestinians also claim it as the site of a future capital.

"New construction in East Jerusalem or the West Bank undermines mutual trust and endangers the proximity talks that are the first step toward the full negotiations that both sides want and need," she said. "It exposes daylight between Israel and the United States that others in the region could hope to exploit."

At the same time, Clinton signaled that the administration seeks to dampen down the dispute with Israeli officials. She said that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu last week offered "specific actions" that Israel is prepared to take to rebuild confidence. "We are making progress and we are working hard to keep the proximity talks moving ahead," she said. "We will follow up on these discussions [this week] and seek a common understanding about the most productive way forward."

Clinton told the delegates that the Obama administration is determined to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons, despite the tedious diplomatic process of getting new sanctions imposed on the Islamic republic.

"Our aim is not incremental sanctions, but sanctions that will bite," she said. "It is taking time to produce these sanctions, and we believe that time is a worthwhile investment for winning the broadest possible support for our efforts. But we will not compromise our commitment to preventing Iran from acquiring these weapons."

The chief U.S. diplomat also said pursuing peace now is essential, because technological and demographic changes are putting Israel at risk and making the "status quo" unsustainable. Better rocket technology used by militants in the Gaza Strip and southern Lebanon is putting many Israeli towns and cities at risk, even those far from the border, she said. And long-term population trends means that one day there will be more Palestinians under occupation than Jews in Israel.

"The inexorable mathematics of demography are hastening the hour at which Israelis may have to choose between preserving their democracy and staying true to the dream of a Jewish homeland," Clinton said. "Given this reality, a two-state solution is the only viable path for Israel to remain both a democracy and a Jewish state."

Netanyahu, who on Sunday asserted Israel's right to build in the Jewish neighborhoods of East Jerusalem, will meet with Clinton on Monday afternoon and address the AIPAC conference Monday evening. He will meet with Obama at the White House on Tuesday.

The conference, being held in the Washington Convention Center, features a 500-foot wide television screen behind the speakers. In a sign of tensions with the Obama administration -- and the challenge to Israeli policies by Clinton -- some delegates cheered an image of former president George W. Bush, who is seen as a fervent defender of Israel, when it flashed onto the huge screen during an introductory video.