Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged Monday to pursue "without any delay" a peace process with Palestinians based on a new strategy of addressing political, economic and security issues concurrently.
But Mr. Netanyahu's overture came as members of his government voiced skepticism toward President Barack Obama's call for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, particularly when the Palestinian Authority's security forces remain weak and its political leadership divided.
Mr. Netanyahu, his aides said, also wants to limit the powers to be granted to any Palestinian government, arguing that certain military capabilities could pose a threat to Israel.
Mr. Netanyahu "was elected to change the direction of the peace process," Ron Dermer, a senior adviser to the prime minister, said Sunday at the conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the U.S.'s largest pro-Israel lobbying group. Mr. Dermer suggested Israel's new government will seek a gradual approach on the question of Palestinian statehood, placing a higher priority on institution-building than diplomacy.
Mr. Obama has said he wants to move ahead aggressively with Palestinian-Israeli negotiations on a two-state solution at the same time the Palestinian Authority's institutions are strengthened and unified, carrying forward a process started by the Bush administration.
Despite repeated calls from Washington to focus on the Palestinian issue, Mr. Netanyahu's government is making the campaign to end Iran's nuclear program its No. 1 foreign-policy initiative. Israeli officials said the Iranian nuclear program is a threat that should unify Jerusalem with both the U.S. and Arab nations.
"For the first time in my lifetime, Arabs and Jews see a common danger," Mr. Netanyahu told the Aipac conference Monday night via satellite from Israel. "There is a great challenge afoot. But that challenge also presents great opportunities."
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said the Iran issue shouldn't pre-empt talks with Palestinians on an independent state. "For Israel to get the kind of strong support it is looking for vis-a-vis Iran, it can't stay on the sidelines with respect to the Palestinians and the peace efforts. They go hand in hand," she told a House committee last month.
Mr. Netanyahu said his government would pursue a "triple track" of making peace with the Palestinians, working to strengthen the economy and security forces in the Palestinian territories while moving ahead with negotiations. Members of his government have criticized their predecessors for moving forward with the idea of a Palestinian state without developing the needed security and economic structure to guarantee Israel's survival.
This approach is "not a substitute for political negotiations," Mr. Netanyahu said. "It is a booster."
Israeli President Shimon Peres will meet Mr. Obama at the White House on Tuesday. Mr. Netanyahu is scheduled to visit Mr. Obama in Washington on May 18.
Mr. Peres, speaking to Aipac Monday, offered a conciliatory line to the Arab states, saying Mr. Obama's election offered a new path to peace. Mr. Peres particularly praised Saudi Arabia for putting forward in 2002 the Arab Peace Plan under which Arab countries would recognize Israel diplomatically in return for Jerusalem giving back lands annexed during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
"I trust that the leadership of President Obama will pave the way to both a regional agreement and meaningful bilateral negotiations" with the Arab states, Mr. Peres said.
Mr. Peres also sought to counter the depiction of Mr. Netanyahu as hostile toward the peace process. "He knows history and wants to make history," Mr. Peres said. "In our tradition, making history is making peace."
Syria could emerge as a divisive issue between Israel and the U.S., Middle East analysts say. Mr. Obama has pledged to help broker an agreement between Jerusalem and Damascus aimed at ending the conflict over the disputed Golan Heights region. Mr. Netanyahu, however, said during his campaign this year that he isn't prepared to hand over land for peace with Syria.
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