JERUSALEM — Days after winning re-election, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday backtracked from hard-line statements against the establishment of a Palestinian state in an apparent effort to contain a diplomatic backlash.
In the closing days of his campaign, Netanyahu said there could be no Palestinian state while regional violence and chaos persist — conditions that could rule out progress on the issue for many years. The comments, aimed at appealing to his nationalistic voter base, angered the Obama administration, which views a two-state solution as a top foreign policy priority.
Netanyahu said in a TV interview Thursday that he remains committed to Palestinian statehood — if conditions in the region improve. He said he remained committed to the vision first spelled out in a landmark 2009 speech. “I haven’t changed my policy,” he said. “I never retracted my speech.”
At the time, he said he would agree to a demilitarized Palestinian state that recognizes Israel as the Jewish homeland. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has refused to offer such recognition and last year formed a unity government backed by the Hamas militant group. Hamas is sworn to Israel’s destruction.
“I don’t want a one-state solution. I want a sustainable peaceful two-state solution. But for that, circumstances have to change,” Netanyahu said Thursday.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said White House officials were talking to their Israeli counterparts to set up a call between Obama and Netanyahu.
