ABSTRACT
In a speech which he delivered at the Begin-Sadat Center, Bar-Ilan University, on June 14, 2009, Prime Minister Netanyahu stated, in what became to be known: the Bar-Ilan speech, that Israel would be ready to reach a peace agreement that would be based on the formula of a demilitarized Palestinian state, living side by side with a Jewish state. However, Netanyahu wholeheartedly opposed this formula; he believed that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state would gravely endanger the very survival of Israel. The main thesis of this article is that Netanyahu’s approach to the Palestinian issue as presented in the Bar-Ilan speech and policy that followed has established a consensus that spans most Zionist parties from the moderate-right to the center-left: the policy of ostensibly supporting a two-state solution, primarily for public diplomacy needs vis-à-vis pressures from the international community, while setting conditions for the Palestinians which ensure that no real progress toward this solution is made.
This article examines the text of the Bar-Ilan speech and other statements of Netanyahu in this regard. It will also analyze President Obama policy with regard to the solution of the “Palestinian problem” and other factors in the international community.
