President Obama, in a sweeping address tackling the uprisings in the Middle East and the stalled peace process, on Thursday endorsed Palestinians' demand for their own state based on the borders that existed before the 1967 Middle East war.
The break with longstanding U.S. policy is likely to aggravate the Israelis, who want the borders of any future Palestinian state determined through negotiations. The declaration comes ahead of a meeting in Washington between Obama and visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"The status quo is unsustainable," Obama said. "A lasting peace will involve two states for two peoples."
Though the president endorsed the call for a Palestinian state with permanent pre-1967 borders, including mutually agreed land swaps, the president sought to assure that the United States' commitment to Israeli security is "unshakable." He said Israeli's right to defend itself will remain paramount, and suggested the recent unity agreement between Fatah and Hamas, which the U.S. deems a terrorist group, is problematic for negotiations. He also publicly rejected attempts by the Palestinians to gain recognition for their own state before the United Nations.
The border announcement, which came toward the end of the president's 50-minute speech, was arguably the most significant statement in an address otherwise devoted to underscoring U.S. support for the uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa. Speaking at the State Department, the president sought Thursday to squarely align the U.S. with the ambitions of protesters pushing for economic and political reform, while warning heads of state who resist this wave that the U.S. is losing patience.
Obama, in his strongest words to date, offered an ultimatum to Syrian President Bashar Assad. "President Assad now has a choice. He can lead that transition or get out of the way," Obama said.
He said Assad's regime, which has killed hundreds in an effort to quell the unrest in Syria, must stop shooting and arresting its people.
Obama also called Al Qaeda and Usama bin Laden, who was killed by U.S. forces in Pakistan, a "dead end," suggesting the push for reform will represent the future of the region. He sought to connect the death of bin Laden to the wave of protests, arguing that anti-western rhetoric and attacks are losing their audience. "The slaughter of innocents did not answer their cry for a better life," he said.
Rather, Obama said: "A new generation has emerged and their voices tell us that change cannot be denied."
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