On Settlement Issue:
*GIBSON: The president said a few months ago, for the peace process to go on, the settlements have to stop.Do you get the sense that the White House might accept some sort of a
limited freeze?And are you willing to offer one?
NETANYAHU:I think the issue of settlements is something that belongs to the final negotiations. it can't prejudge the negotiations. It can't be resolved before we even begin to talk about it.
I've said that I'm willing to meet Palestinian leaders anytime, anywhere, and I'm glad that this is this obstacle seems to be removed and we can get on with the business of forging a lasting and securepeace between us. At least I hope that's the case.
I think putting on preconditions is a -- is a way to make sure that the peace process does not move forward. For 16 years, Israelis and Palestinians have been negotiating. There has been robust construction of communities and settlements throughout. Nobody place this precondition. And I think placing it right now is to make sure that the peace process does not go forward.
The issue of the settlements has to be resolved. It should be resolved at the end of negotiations, not before the negotiations. And the sooner we put it aside and start moving and talking about how do we actually live next to one another, how do we have the Palestinians live next to Israel without threatening Israel, without having the territories thatare ceded to them become bases for thousands of rockets that have already been launched at Israel from other places that we vacated?
GIBSON: But Mr. Prime Minister, are you saying unequivocally, you will not offer any kind of a freeze -- limited, full, any kind of a freeze --on settlements as a precondition to talks?
NETANYAHU: I said that I would look to reconcile two things. One is to start the peace -- the peace process again, something that I'm glad -- Ihope that we started today. And, second, to enable normal life to continue. I'm committed not to build new settlements. I am committed not to expropriate additional land for existing settlements. But people have to live. You can't freeze life.
*On Peace process:
When Yitzhak Rabin, the Labor prime minister, met the late King Hussein, who wanted peace, we made peace. If the Palestinian leadership says we want peace, we recognize Israel as the Jewish state, the nation state of the Jewish people, just as we're asked to recognize the Palestinian state as the nation state of the Palestinian people. If you recognize Israel's right to exist as the Jewish state and if we have the necessarysecurity arrangements of demilitarization, I think we'll move to peace.
And that's the winning formula for peace -- a demilitarized Palestinian state that recognizes the Jewish state. That's something that I have united the country behind and we can move forward and get on with it.
GIBSON: A former Israeli prime minister, the great Abba Eban, used to say about the Palestinians, they never miss an opportunity to miss anopportunity.If you take this position on settlements, aren't you missing an opportunity?
NETANYAHU: Well, you know, we've had peace negotiations when settlementswere being built without any limitations. I have made certain suggestions on how to move forward and I think the Palestinians have to understand, here's a government in Israel that unites the political spectrum. It wants peace. It wants a genuine peace, a defensible peace, one in which thePalestinians recognize Israel and Israel has the necessary security.
This is an opportunity. Don't waste it. Don't -- don't squander this opportunity by discussing the issues -- issues that will only block the progress of the negotiations. Let's go. Let's move.
I said no preconditions on the beginning of negotiations. I said I'm willing to go anywhere, anyplace to meet any Arab leader and, first of all, the Palestinian leaders, to move toward
peace. I certainly think we have certain foundations ffor those negotiations to succeed. I think the Palestinians have to recognizeIsrael as the Jewish state and I think we need security.
But I didn't place any conditions on beginning the negotiations. And it's precisely those preconditions on negotiations that have stymied our progress so far.
So I'm glad President Obama called this meeting today. I hope it puts aside the question of preconditions. Everybody said they're not placing preconditions. I'm not and I hope the Palestinians don't. I think we have to move on with the business of peace.
GIBSON: If talks were to resume, would it be your position that they have to start totally from scratch or could they start with past Israeli-Palestinian agreements as a foundation?
NETANYAHU: I think there have been a lot of discussions and obviously there's a record here. I myself made agreements with the Palestinians when I was prime minister. So we're committed to what was formally negotiated as binding agreements
by previous Israeli governments. We will consider other ideas, but we have our own mandate. And that mandate is from the broadpublic in Israel that says we want a real peace. You know, we don't want a peace where we hand over territory which becomes a race for Iran's
proxies so they can fire thousands of rockets on us.
We want a real peace. You know, we don’t want a peace where we hand over territory which becomes a base for Iran’s proxy so they can fire thousands of rockets on us. We want real peace. We’re one of the tiniest countries in the world.
And you know what, Charlie? I believe that with good will and with courageous leadership on the Palestinian side, we can achieve it. And I think Mamoud Abbas has a great choice to make. We all do. But he has to decide: is he going to be an Arafat or an Anwar Sadat? If he’s an Anwar Sadat, he’ll find in me a partner for peace and we’ll make peace.
I said today in the meeting with President Obama and Mr. Abbas, I said, "Look, we could hurl accusations at each other from here to eternity. There’s no point. I mean, we could waste more time. Let’s just sit down and discuss the most basic things of how we achieve a peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. How do we ward off the terrorists and the Iranian sponsors? How do we establish a climate of prosperity, legitimacy and security that will serve the purposes of both the Israelis and Palestinians and the broader concern for peace that goodpeople – good-intentioned people – well-intentioned people everywhere share?"
*On Iran:
The crucial question is, what’s the goal? And the president assured me time and again that the goal is to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. And I think that’s the right goal.
Iran is the major sponsor of world terrorism. Now, imagine what terrorism could be if the terrorists had a patron that gave them a nuclear umbrella, or worse, if that patron actually gave them nuclear weapons. That’s a nightmare scenario, and we all have to ensure that it doesn’t happen.
To have the ayatollah regime acquiring nuclear weapons, no matter how weak they are today, tomorrow they will be a hell of a lot stronger. And that is something that would threaten the peace of the world. It should not be allowed to happen.
GIBSON: Is there a point where it becomes impossible for Israel to live in the shadow of a nuclear Iran?
NETANYAHU: Charlie, I'm not going to deal in hypotheticals. Of course, every country reserves the right of self-defense and Israel is no exception.
But as I'm pointing out today, the development of nuclear weapons by Iran would pose an enormous problem to the stability of the Middle East, to the flow of oil from the Middle East, to the security of my country, to the possibility of having terrorists enjoy a nuclear umbrella or receiving, actually, nuclear weapons from this Iranian regime.
I think there is a growing understanding in the major capitals of the world -- that it's important, an international concern to make sure that Iran does not develop nuclear weapons. The sooner we do it, the sooner we'll find out and the less will be the need to take stronger actions.
*GIBSON: The president said a few months ago, for the peace process to go on, the settlements have to stop.Do you get the sense that the White House might accept some sort of a
limited freeze?And are you willing to offer one?
NETANYAHU:I think the issue of settlements is something that belongs to the final negotiations. it can't prejudge the negotiations. It can't be resolved before we even begin to talk about it.
I've said that I'm willing to meet Palestinian leaders anytime, anywhere, and I'm glad that this is this obstacle seems to be removed and we can get on with the business of forging a lasting and securepeace between us. At least I hope that's the case.
I think putting on preconditions is a -- is a way to make sure that the peace process does not move forward. For 16 years, Israelis and Palestinians have been negotiating. There has been robust construction of communities and settlements throughout. Nobody place this precondition. And I think placing it right now is to make sure that the peace process does not go forward.
The issue of the settlements has to be resolved. It should be resolved at the end of negotiations, not before the negotiations. And the sooner we put it aside and start moving and talking about how do we actually live next to one another, how do we have the Palestinians live next to Israel without threatening Israel, without having the territories thatare ceded to them become bases for thousands of rockets that have already been launched at Israel from other places that we vacated?
GIBSON: But Mr. Prime Minister, are you saying unequivocally, you will not offer any kind of a freeze -- limited, full, any kind of a freeze --on settlements as a precondition to talks?
NETANYAHU: I said that I would look to reconcile two things. One is to start the peace -- the peace process again, something that I'm glad -- Ihope that we started today. And, second, to enable normal life to continue. I'm committed not to build new settlements. I am committed not to expropriate additional land for existing settlements. But people have to live. You can't freeze life.
*On Peace process:
When Yitzhak Rabin, the Labor prime minister, met the late King Hussein, who wanted peace, we made peace. If the Palestinian leadership says we want peace, we recognize Israel as the Jewish state, the nation state of the Jewish people, just as we're asked to recognize the Palestinian state as the nation state of the Palestinian people. If you recognize Israel's right to exist as the Jewish state and if we have the necessarysecurity arrangements of demilitarization, I think we'll move to peace.
And that's the winning formula for peace -- a demilitarized Palestinian state that recognizes the Jewish state. That's something that I have united the country behind and we can move forward and get on with it.
GIBSON: A former Israeli prime minister, the great Abba Eban, used to say about the Palestinians, they never miss an opportunity to miss anopportunity.If you take this position on settlements, aren't you missing an opportunity?
NETANYAHU: Well, you know, we've had peace negotiations when settlementswere being built without any limitations. I have made certain suggestions on how to move forward and I think the Palestinians have to understand, here's a government in Israel that unites the political spectrum. It wants peace. It wants a genuine peace, a defensible peace, one in which thePalestinians recognize Israel and Israel has the necessary security.
This is an opportunity. Don't waste it. Don't -- don't squander this opportunity by discussing the issues -- issues that will only block the progress of the negotiations. Let's go. Let's move.
I said no preconditions on the beginning of negotiations. I said I'm willing to go anywhere, anyplace to meet any Arab leader and, first of all, the Palestinian leaders, to move toward
peace. I certainly think we have certain foundations ffor those negotiations to succeed. I think the Palestinians have to recognizeIsrael as the Jewish state and I think we need security.
But I didn't place any conditions on beginning the negotiations. And it's precisely those preconditions on negotiations that have stymied our progress so far.
So I'm glad President Obama called this meeting today. I hope it puts aside the question of preconditions. Everybody said they're not placing preconditions. I'm not and I hope the Palestinians don't. I think we have to move on with the business of peace.
GIBSON: If talks were to resume, would it be your position that they have to start totally from scratch or could they start with past Israeli-Palestinian agreements as a foundation?
NETANYAHU: I think there have been a lot of discussions and obviously there's a record here. I myself made agreements with the Palestinians when I was prime minister. So we're committed to what was formally negotiated as binding agreements
by previous Israeli governments. We will consider other ideas, but we have our own mandate. And that mandate is from the broadpublic in Israel that says we want a real peace. You know, we don't want a peace where we hand over territory which becomes a race for Iran's
proxies so they can fire thousands of rockets on us.
We want a real peace. You know, we don’t want a peace where we hand over territory which becomes a base for Iran’s proxy so they can fire thousands of rockets on us. We want real peace. We’re one of the tiniest countries in the world.
And you know what, Charlie? I believe that with good will and with courageous leadership on the Palestinian side, we can achieve it. And I think Mamoud Abbas has a great choice to make. We all do. But he has to decide: is he going to be an Arafat or an Anwar Sadat? If he’s an Anwar Sadat, he’ll find in me a partner for peace and we’ll make peace.
I said today in the meeting with President Obama and Mr. Abbas, I said, "Look, we could hurl accusations at each other from here to eternity. There’s no point. I mean, we could waste more time. Let’s just sit down and discuss the most basic things of how we achieve a peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. How do we ward off the terrorists and the Iranian sponsors? How do we establish a climate of prosperity, legitimacy and security that will serve the purposes of both the Israelis and Palestinians and the broader concern for peace that goodpeople – good-intentioned people – well-intentioned people everywhere share?"
*On Iran:
The crucial question is, what’s the goal? And the president assured me time and again that the goal is to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. And I think that’s the right goal.
Iran is the major sponsor of world terrorism. Now, imagine what terrorism could be if the terrorists had a patron that gave them a nuclear umbrella, or worse, if that patron actually gave them nuclear weapons. That’s a nightmare scenario, and we all have to ensure that it doesn’t happen.
To have the ayatollah regime acquiring nuclear weapons, no matter how weak they are today, tomorrow they will be a hell of a lot stronger. And that is something that would threaten the peace of the world. It should not be allowed to happen.
GIBSON: Is there a point where it becomes impossible for Israel to live in the shadow of a nuclear Iran?
NETANYAHU: Charlie, I'm not going to deal in hypotheticals. Of course, every country reserves the right of self-defense and Israel is no exception.
But as I'm pointing out today, the development of nuclear weapons by Iran would pose an enormous problem to the stability of the Middle East, to the flow of oil from the Middle East, to the security of my country, to the possibility of having terrorists enjoy a nuclear umbrella or receiving, actually, nuclear weapons from this Iranian regime.
I think there is a growing understanding in the major capitals of the world -- that it's important, an international concern to make sure that Iran does not develop nuclear weapons. The sooner we do it, the sooner we'll find out and the less will be the need to take stronger actions.