Op-Ed: Netanyahu shouldn’t force Iranian issue on US

New York Times editorial urges Israeli PM not to pressure US administration into unnecessary moves regarding Tehran, hopes Obama will resist any pressure by Jerusalem

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3714932,00.htm

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"With US President Barack Obama's administration preparing for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's nearing Washington visit, the New York Times published an editorial including a list of recommended "dos and don'ts" for the Israeli premier .

The first advice the paper gives Netanyahu is not to "artificially force" Obama to end his Iranian overtures. The paper also calls on the American president to reject any attempt by Netanyahu "to lead Israel, or push the United States, into unnecessary military action."

The Times also referred to the pressure Obama is likely to exert on the Israeli PM regarding the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, suggesting Netanyahu may try to link the two, and urged Obama to resist.

Obama is scheduled to hold a series of meetings with Middle East leaders next week: The meeting with Netanyahu is set for Monday; Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will arrive in the White House on May 26 and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the 28th.

The Obama administration, added the editorial, has set a clear agenda regarding its relations with Israel. It would like to see real progress on the two-state solution, halting of settlement construction and the removal of unnecessary IDF checkpoints in the West Bank.

The Times believes Obama should avoid making the same mistakes as his predecessor George W. Bush, who procrastinated the Israeli-Palestinian peace process; a move the paper claims hindered US interests in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq and Iran and gave al-Qaeda and other extremist groups "a reason" to form an anti-US front."


An Agenda for Mr. Netanyahu

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/12/opinion/12tue1.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

My own view is that Obama is going to be around for 8 years, and Nuttyahoo will not do himself any good by annoying Obama.

Netanyahu will be lucky (and Israel and Palestine won't be) if he can 'force' Israel to keep his government in power for as much as another year.

The USA and Israel might try a bit of 'you go first... no, *you* go first' with regard to Iran; but for somewhat different reasons neither has the resources, and unless something very major happens with Iran, I don't think either is going to start anything military there.