US President Barack Obama on Monday pressed a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict but failed to win a public commitment from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Palestinian statehood. In their first White House talks, Obama also urged Netanyahu to freeze Jewish settlement building but sought to reassure Israelis wary about his overtures to Iran that he would not wait indefinitely for diplomatic progress toward curbing Tehran's nuclear ambitions. The two leaders tried to paper over their differences as Obama waded into the thicket of Middle East diplomacy four months after taking office, but the divisions were hard to ignore between Israel and its superpower ally. “It is in the interests not only of the Palestinians but also the Israelis, the United States and the international community to achieve a two-state solution,” Obama told reporters with Netanyahu sitting beside him. But as Netanyahu met Obama, Israel issued construction tenders for a West Bank settlement. Tenders to build 20 housing units in the Maskiot settlement in the north of the occupied West Bank were issued after the green light was given from the defense ministry, it said. Contractors were given a tour of the site on Sunday as Netanyahu was arriving in the United States, local media reported. Netanyahu, who heads a new right-leaning government, reiterated that he supported self-government for the Palestinians but made no mention of a state, a position underscoring a rare rift in US-Israeli relations. “We don't want to govern the Palestinians. We want them to govern themselves,” Netanyahu said, echoing his offer to restart peace talks with the Palestinians on issues other than thorny territorial matters. Nabil Abu Rdainah, a senior aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, lauded Obama's commitment to a two-state solution, the cornerstone of U.S. Middle East policy, but said Netanyahu's words were “disappointing.” Obama sees engagement in Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking as crucial to repairing America's image in the Muslim world and convincing moderate Arab states to join a united front against Iran. After two hours of talks, Obama offered no new remedies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which has defied efforts by successive US administrations. He has yet to formulate a detailed Middle East strategy. There have been signs, however, that Obama hopes to sway Netanyahu with the prospect of normalized ties between Israel and all Muslim countries, a comprehensive deal would require extraordinary diplomatic work by the United States.
