Bennett to US: We want stability, but not two states
Washington (QNN)- ‘Israel’ will not negotiate with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas while Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is in office, a diplomatic source said on Wednesday.
When it comes to settlements, the source referred to Bennett’s statement in an interview with The New York Times that “there will not be a building freeze, but there also will not be annexation.”
Asked about Bennett’s remark in that same interview that only “natural growth” will be allowed in settlements, the source said that the prime minister wants to “preserve the current situation.”
However, “natural growth” refers to construction only for settlers who already settle in the occupied West Bank, the source said.
However, Bennett is known for being an outspoken advocate of Israeli annexation of parts of the occupied West Bank, and he is strongly associated with the settlements, having led the Yesha Council, the main settler advocacy group.
Bennett also vowed that his government will back the expansion and construction of illegal settlements in all areas of the occupied West Bank.
Bennett is in Washington on his first trip to the White House in a series of high-level meetings, culminating with one in the White House with US President Joe Biden, in which he plans to focus on the Iranian issue.
Axios also reported that Bennett’s main priority for his meeting with Biden is Iran. He plans to tell Biden that, unlike Netanyahu, he wants to cooperate with the U.S. on that issue, an Israeli official told Axios.
Bennett will also propose that Biden use the burgeoning regional alignment under the Abraham Accords as part of a strategy to counter Iran, Israeli officials say.
