Israeli settlements jeopardise Middle East peace, Kerry says; Trump tells Netanyahu to 'stay strong'
Updated
Israel's building of settlements on occupied land is jeopardising Middle East peace, US Secretary of State John Kerry said, voicing unusually frank frustration with America's longtime ally weeks before he is due to leave office.
Key points:
- John Kerry says that as one-state Israel can be Jewish or democratic — not both
- Netanyahu accuses the US of being "obsessed with settlements"
- Trump urges Israel to "stay strong" until his inauguration on January 20
In a swiftly issued statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Mr Kerry of bias, saying Israel did not need to be lectured to by foreign leaders and that he looked forward to working with President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to pursue more pro-Israeli policies.
In a 70-minute speech, Mr Kerry said Israel "will never have true peace" with the Arab world if it does not reach an accord based on Israelis and Palestinians living in their own states.
"Despite our best efforts over the years, the two-state solution is now in serious jeopardy," Mr Kerry said at the State Department.
"We cannot, in good conscience, do nothing, and say nothing, when we see the hope of peace slipping away.
"If the choice is one state, Israel can either be Jewish or democratic, it cannot be both, and it won't ever really be at peace."
Mr Kerry's remarks and Mr Netanyahu's reply marked the closing chapter of a bitter US-Israeli relationship during President Barack Obama's administration over differences on settlement-building and the Iran nuclear deal signed last year.
Ties reached a low point last Friday when Washington cleared the way for a UN resolution that demanded an end to Israeli settlement building, prompting Israeli Government officials to direct harsh attacks against Mr Obama and Mr Kerry.
Mr Netanyahu responded that Mr Kerry "obsessively dealt with settlements" and barely touched on "the root of the conflict — Palestinian opposition to a Jewish state in any boundaries".
Meanwhile, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he was convinced peace with Israel was achievable, but stood by his demand that Israel halt settlements before talks restart.
Some 570,000 Israelis now live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, together home to more than 2.6 million Palestinians.
What lies in-store in the post-Obama era?
Israel expects to receive more favourable treatment from Mr Trump, who takes office on January 20.
But Israelis fear Mr Kerry's remarks will put them on the defensive, prompting other countries to apply pressure, including by adding fuel to the Boycott, Divestiture and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel, especially in Europe.
Mr Trump denounced the Obama administration's treatment of Israel before Mr Kerry's speech.
"We cannot continue to let Israel be treated with such total disdain and disrespect. They used to have a great friend in the US, but not anymore," Mr Trump said in a series of tweets.
Kerry trades diplomacy for straight talk
There was none of the usual carefully crafted diplomacy in this stern rebuke from outgoing US Secretary of State John Kerry as he called Israeli settlements a threat to peace.
Since former US president Harry S Truman recognised Israel in 1948, the United States has been Israel's most committed and powerful protector.
As Mr Kerry pointed out, more than half of the US' Global Foreign Military Financing goes to Israel.
But last week the US, which had long protected Israel at the UN, abstained from a vote condemning Israeli settlements.
Israel was outraged and accused the US of working in secret to draft and sponsor the resolution.
In what could be his valedictory, a clearly frustrated Mr Kerry hit back saying the US could not in good conscience veto the resolution.
He effectively accused Israel of acting against its own interests by continuing to build settlements and jeopardise a realistic Palestinian state, particularly in the West Bank.
"It's whether the land can be connected or it's broken up into small parcels like a Swiss cheese that could never constitute a real state," he said.
"The more outposts that are built, the more the settlements expand, the less possible it is to create a contiguous state."
The response from Israel was swift. Within minutes Prime Minister Benjamin Yetanyahu held his own press conference.
He switched from Hebrew to English to thank the American people for their support then launched a broadside against their President.
"Israelis do not need to be lectured about peace by foreign leaders," he said.
"[Israel's] hand has been extended in peace to its neighbour since day one. From its very first day.
"We pray for peace, we've worked for it every day since then, and thousands of Israeli families have made the ultimate sacrifice to defend our country and advance peace."
President-elect Donald Trump has distanced himself from the Obama administration's policies, meaning Mr Kerry's speech may just be symbolic but it was certainly a change.
-North America correspondent Conor Duffy
"Stay strong Israel, January 20th is fast approaching!"
Mr Trump has vowed to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which would upset many countries, and has appointed as ambassador a lawyer who raised money for a major Jewish settlement.
Mr Kerry's speech provided some insights into an issue that he personally feels passionate about and had hoped to resolve during his nearly four years as Secretary of State — peace talks have been stalled since 2014.
The United States abstained rather than vetoed the December 23 UN resolution, in what many saw as a parting shot by Mr Obama — Mr Kerry vigorously defended the resolution in his remarks.
"It is not this resolution that is isolating Israel. It is the permanent policy of settlement construction that risks making peace impossible."
In a pointed reply to Mr Netanyahu who said last week that "friends don't take friends to the Security Council", and who has insisted the Obama administration had orchestrated the resolution, Mr Kerry hit back, saying: "Friends need to tell each other the hard truths, and friendships require mutual respect".
Reuters/AP
Topics: us-elections, government-and-politics, foreign-affairs, united-states, israel, palestinian-territory-occupied
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