Comments
There are no comments.
Add Comments
Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a eulogy during the funeral ceremony of the former Israeli president Yitzhak Navon, in Jerusalem on Sunday.
AFP/Jerusalem
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he planned to discuss defence aid with President Barack Obama as he left for his first meeting with the US leader in over a year.
Netanyahu is due to meet Obama on Monday in Washington as the two leaders seek to set aside their testy personal relationship and turn the page after a sharp disagreement over the July nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.
The talks are to focus on US defence aid to Israel in a bid to assuage the Jewish state over the security challenges it says it now faces due to the nuclear accord, which Netanyahu firmly opposed.
Israel already receives more than $3bn per year in US military aid in addition to other spending, such as on the Iron Dome missile defence system.
The 10-year arrangement expires in 2017, and there have been reports that Netanyahu will seek a significant increase.
"I believe that this meeting is important in order to clarify the continuation of American aid to Israel in the coming decade," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting on Sunday.
"It will be another step toward realising an understanding in this direction."
The new 10-year defence deal will not be finalised during the Obama-Netanyahu summit, and it would come into effect only after the current accord expires, US officials have said.
The Israeli premier argues that the nuclear accord will not block regional rival Iran's path to atomic weapons.
He also contends that the lifting of sanctions will allow Tehran to further back proxy militants in the region, including Israeli enemies Hamas and Hezbollah.
Beyond defence talks, Netanyahu said he planned to discuss with Obama the conflict in Syria and "possible progress with the Palestinians, or at least stabilising the situation with them".
A wave of violence since the start of October, including gun, knife and car-ramming attacks by Palestinians, have raised fears over the potential for a new Palestinian uprising.
Obama has previously criticised Netanyahu for sending mixed signals over his commitment to a two-state solution and may press him on the issue.
However, American officials say the president has lost any hope of a major peace accord being reached between the Israelis and Palestinians before he leaves office in January 2017.
Netanyahu is expected back in Israel on Thursday.
There are no comments.
SPORT Saying goodbye is never easy, especially when you are saying farewell to those that have left a positive impression. That was the case earlier this month when Canada hosted Mexico in a friendly at BC Place stadium in Vancouver.
TECHNOLOGY Some 60mn primary-school-age children have no access to formal education
CULTURE Lekhwiya’s El Arabi scores the equaliser after Tresor is sent off; Tabata, al-Harazi score for QSL champions
ARABIA The Yemeni Minister of Tourism, Dr Mohamed Abdul Majid Qubati, yesterday expressed hope that the 48-hour ceasefire in Yemen declared by the Command of Coalition Forces on Saturday will be maintained in order to lift the siege imposed on Taz City and ease the entry of humanitarian aid to the besieged
ARABIA Some 200 teachers from schools across the country attended Qatar Museum’s (QM) first ever Teachers Council at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) yesterday.
ARABIA The Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) of Qatar and the Indonesian Supreme Court (SCI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on judicial co-operation, it was announced yesterday.
ECONOMY Sri Lanka is keen on importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar as part of government policy to shift to clean energy, Minister of City Planning and Water Supply Rauff Hakeem has said.
