Obama to meet Netanyahu in shadow of Mideast crisis

WASHINGTON (AFP) – President Barack Obama will hold rare closed-door talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, underscoring tensions between the two close allies as US efforts to revive Middle East peace talks flounder.

The White House announced the meeting on Sunday evening only after Netanyahu's arrival in Washington, where he will address a Jewish gathering, forcing Israeli official to deny that the last-minute invitation signals a snub to the hawkish premier.

Israeli prime ministers hardly ever go to Washington without meeting the presidents, usually holding a press conference.

Israel's ties with the Obama administration had been strained over the premier's refusal to heed the US demand for a full settlement freeze in the occupied West Bank ahead of resumption of peace talks with the Palestinians.

And as Washington's attempts to put the peace talks back on track after their suspension last December recently encountered heavy setbacks, the White House appeared wary not to present Monday's meeting, scheduled for 7:00 pm (0100 GMT Tuesday) and off-limits to reporters, as a backing of Netanyahu's stance.

"The White House wanted Netanyahu to sweat before being granted an audience with the president, and wanted everyone to see him perspire," the Israeli Haaretz daily wrote.

Speaking to reporters onboard his plane to Washington, Netanyahu reiterated his willingness "to immediately engage in peace talks with the Palestinians without any preconditions."

But the Obama-Netanyahu talks come at a delicate time for Washington and its sputtering efforts to relaunch Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, a goal the US administration has made the cornerstone of its Middle East policy.

The first crisis came when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton praised Netanyahu's offer of a limited easing of settlement construction as "unprecedented" during a visit to the region last week, triggering Palestinian and Arab fury.

The declaration marked a stark break from months of US backing of the Palestinian demand for a total Jewish settlement freeze ahead of the renewal of talks.

Clinton later backtracked, but her statements were widely interpreted as a U-turn by Washington which, after months of pressing Israel on settlements, appeared to back off and pile the pressure instead on the Palestinians to relaunch talks without preconditions.

The Obama-Netanyahu meeting a little over a week after Clinton's remarks would be likely to reinforce that view among Palestinians and the Arab world, analysts said.

The Palestinian Authority warned ahead of meeting that violence could once again convulse the region if the United States fails to get Israel to halt its settlement activity.

"If America remains unable to assume its required role there will be a destructive effect for which Israel and the United States will be held responsible," presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP.

"Violence will rush in to fill the void left by the failure of efforts to relaunch the peace process if the US administration does not hurry up and exert pressure on the Israeli government," he added.

Days after Clinton's visit Washington's peace efforts were dealt another blow when moderate Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, who has headed the peace talks with Israel, announced he would not stand for re-election in polls he has called for January.

Palestinian officials said the move came because he was disappointed with the US stance on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, which the international community considers illegal.

Netanyahu will address the annual gathering of Jewish communities in North America.

Obama cancelled his planned appearance before the conference in order to attend a memorial service at Fort Hood military base after the massacre there. His chief of staff Rahm Emanuel will speak instead.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak was also in Washington on Monday for talks with his US counterpart Robert Gates and US special Middle East envoy George Mitchell, an official in his office told AFP.

Barak's office quoted him as saying in his talks that "Obama's presidency is a rare opportunity to make peace."

In Washington, Netanyahu also plans to hold talks in Congress, before heading to Paris to meet President Nicolas Sarkozy on Wednesday, Israeli officials said. France has not yet confirmed the meeting.