JERUSALEM
Reporting by Duygu Özbay
President of the United States of America Barrack Obama said on Wednesday that a strong Palestinian state is for the good of Israel.
US President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu held a joint press conference in Jerusalem after their meeting.
Obama pointed that they discussed in the meeting the way forward to a two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians.
"A central element of a lasting peace must be a strong and secure Jewish state where Israel's security concerns are met alongside a sovereign and independent Palestinian state. In this regard, I'd note that last year was a milestone, the first year in four decades when not a single Israeli citizen lost their life because of terrorism emanating from the West Bank. It's a reminder that Israel has a profound interest in a strong and effective Palestinian Authority," said Obama.
Obama said Israel has a "truly unique" need for security and described the security of Israel as an "non-negotiable" issue.
"As president, I've therefore made it clear America's commitment to the security of the state of Israel is a solemn obligation and the security of Israel is non-negotiable," noted Obama.
Mentioning the Israel-Palestinian issue they discussed within their agenda, Obama stated that he could say more after his meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday.
"So hopefully, I'll consider it a success if when I go back on Friday, I'm able to say to myself, I have a better understanding of what the constraints are, what the interests of the various parties are and how the United States can play a constructive role in bringing about a lasting peace and two states living side by side in peace and security," said Obama.
Assad regime is responsible for chemical weapons
Obama stated that US works with allies and the Syrian opposition to speed up the end of Assad regime in Syria.
Saying that Assad has lost legality by attacking his own Syrian people with conventional arms, which are in his depot, Obama stated that it could be a tragic and serious error to use chemical arms against people.
Emphasizing his worries for the possibility of the capture of the chemical weapons by terror groups, Obama said, "Assad regime should understand its responsibility for the usage of chemical weaponry."
US will prevent Iran from owning nuclear arms-
Obama stated that nuclear armed Iran could pose threat not only to the region and the world, but also to Israel's existence. He said, "America's politics is to prevent Iran to own nuclear arms...The Iranian leaders should realize that they have to fulfill their international duties."
Obama stated, "I repeat myself. All options are on the desk. We will do our best to block Iran to own nuclear arms."
