Israeli Prime Minister today addressed a full Congress with both houses present. Really the only one missing was President Obama himself, who is currently in Europe to garner support for his Middle East policies.
Prime Minister Netanyahu gave an hour long speech with much to say. But the most important part of it is below. The video clip of this segment can be found at the this link.
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Two years ago I publicly committed to a solution of two states for two peoples, a Palestinian state alongside a Jewish state.
I'm willing to make painful compromises to achieve this historic peace. As the leader of Israel, its my responsibility to lead my people to peace. Now this is not easy for me, its not easy.
Because I recognize, that in a genuiune peace, we'll be required to give up parts of the ancestral Jewish homeland. And you have to understand this, in Judea and Sumaria, the Jewish people are not foriegn occupiers. We're not the British in India, we're not the Belgians in Congo. This is the land of our forefathers, the land of Israel, to which Abraham brought brought the idea of one god. Where David set out to confront goliath. And where Isaiah saw a vision of eternal peace. No distortion of history, and boy am I reading a lot of distortions of history lately, old and new, no distortion of history could deny the four thousand year old bond between the Jewish people, and the Jewish land.
But there's another truth, the Palestinians share this small land with us. We seek a peace in which they'll be neither Israel's subjects, nor its citizens. They should enjoy a national life of dignity as a free, viable and independent people in their own state.
They should enjoy a prosperous economy, where their creativity and initiative an flourish. now we've already seen the beginnings of what is possible. In the last two years, the Palestinians have begun to build a better life for themselves. By the way, Prime Minister Faayad has led this effort on their part and I wish him a speedy recovery from his operation. We've helped on our side, we've helped the Palestinian economic growth by removing hundreds of barriers and roadblocks for the free flow of goods, and people. And the results have been nothing short of remarkable. The Palestinian economy is booming. The Palestinian economy is growing by more than 10% a year.
So now here's the question. You've got to ask it, if the benefits of peace with the Palestinians so clear, why is peace eluded us? Because, all six Israeli prime ministers since the signing of the Oslo accords, agreed to establish a Palestinian state, myself included.
So why has peace not been achieved? Because so far, the Palestinians have been unwilling to accept a Palestinian state, if it meant accepting a Jewish state along side it. You see, our conflict has never been about the establishment of a Palestinian state, it has always been about the existence of the Jewish state. This is what this conflict is about.
It's time for President Abbas to stand before his people and to say 'I will accept a Jewish state. Those six words will change history. Those six words will convince Israel that they have a true partner for peace."
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