No Sign of Thaw in U.S.-Israel Relations

JERUSALEM, April 21, 2010 — -- Former U.S. ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk pulled no punches today in his criticism of Prime Minister Netanyahu and his refusal of U.S. demands to stop building Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem.

During a broad-ranging interview on one of Israel's most popular radio shows this morning, he spoke plainly of the crisis in U.S.-Israeli relations.

The issue has sparked a crisis between the Obama White House and the right-wing Israeli government.

In tense face-to-face meetings in Washington almost a month ago, President Obama reportedly tabled a list of demands of the Israeli leader, including a halt to settlement construction in Jerusalem. The measures were proposed as a way to restart stalled peace talks with the Palestinians.

Israel has yet to respond formally to the demands.

Indyk said a resumption of serious pace talks was now a U.S. strategic interest and told Israeli listeners they had a stark choice.

"If you need the United States, then you need to take into account America's interests," he said.

In a recent New York Times op-ed piece, he repeated unusually blunt criticism of the Israeli position and described how the U.S. administration sees a clear link between confronting the Iranian nuclear threat and solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"With 200,000 American troops committed to two wars in the greater Middle East and the U.S. president leading a major international effort to block Iran's nuclear program, resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has become a U.S. strategic imperative," he wrote.