Vice President Joe Biden Hails U.S.-Israel Relationship
Vice President Joe Biden saluted the U.S.-Israel alliance.
Vice President Joe Biden delivered the concluding address of AIPAC Policy Conference 2009, highlighting the endurance of the U.S.-Israel relationship and affirming the Obama administration's commitment to it. Biden's address followed a speech by Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "The bond between Israel and the United States," said Biden, "was forged by a shared interest in peace and security; by shared values that respect all faiths and peoples; by deep ties among our citizens; and by a common commitment to democracy."
Biden discussed the dangers of a nuclear-armed Iran. Iran "plays a dangerous role in the region, supporting terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah, and undermining many of our friends," he said. "Indeed, these proxies are the tools Iran uses to exploit conflicts, like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, to its advantage."
Biden also called upon the Arab world to take meaningful steps to encourage Israeli-Palestinian peace. "Now is the time for Arab states to make meaningful gestures that show the Israeli leadership and people that the promise of ending Israel's isolation in the region is real," he said. Biden added that the international community "must continue to make clear to Hamas that the legitimacy it seeks will only come when it renounces violence, recognizes Israel, and abides by past agreements."
Kerry expressed similar concerns about the Iranian threat. "A nuclear-armed Iran would embolden Hamas and unleash Hezbollah," he said. "A nuclear-armed Iran could spark a nuclear arms race in the world's most dangerous neighborhood. When we say that a nuclear-armed Iran is unacceptable, we mean it."
Click here to view video highlights of AIPAC Policy Conference 2009.
Netanyahu, Top U.S. Leaders Address Gala Banquet
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the Gala Banquet live via satellite.
In a resounding show of support for the U.S.-Israel relationship, some 6,500 people gathered on Monday night for AIPAC's annual Gala Banquet, which featured an address by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu via satellite and talks by top leaders of the House and Senate. More than half of Congress and scores of ambassadors and diplomats from countries around the world were in attendance, demonstrating the depth, breadth, and bipartisan strength of the U.S.-Israel alliance.
The Israeli prime minister emphasized his country's desire to attain peace with its neighbors and his eagerness to work with President Obama to achieve it. He also stressed the dangers of a nuclear Iran and insisted that the Palestinians must recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senate Republican Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ), House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and House Republican Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) delivered the other keynote addresses, highlighting the permanence of the U.S.-Israel relationship and the need to stop Iran from developing a nuclear weapons capability.
"Across the gulf of history and space and language," said Hoyer, "America looks to Israel and sees a friendship resting on something stronger than arms, more precious than oil. It rests on the ideals that come down to us from Amos and Micah and Isaiah. Those ideals, and the bond they inspire, are unbreakable, indissoluble."
Click here to view video highlights of AIPAC Policy Conference 2009.
AIPAC Activists to Press for Tough Iran Sanctions
Iran is vulnerable to sanctions on its energy sector.
In a resounding show of support for a strong U.S.-Israel relationship, thousands of AIPAC activists from all 50 states will ascend Capitol Hill today to conduct more than 500 lobbying meetings with members of Congress and their staff.
At the top of the agenda during each of these meetings will be stopping Iran's pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability. AIPAC activists will encourage their representatives to cosponsor the Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act (IRPSA), which was just introduced in the House and Senate.
IRPSA targets global energy companies that do business in Iran, effectively telling them to end their ties with the Islamic Republic if they want to maintain the right to operate in the U.S. With Iran forced to import 40 percent of its refined petroleum-which includes gasoline for cars-IRPSA's passage would have a dramatic economic effect.
IRPSA strengthens President Obama's diplomatic efforts to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons by empowering him with the explicit authority to target Iran's dependence on imported gasoline. President Obama backed this strategy during his presidential campaign. "If we can prevent them from importing the gasoline that they need and the refined petroleum products, that starts changing their cost-benefit analysis," he said during a debate. "That starts putting the squeeze on them."
The White House has indicated that it does not oppose the AIPAC-backed legislation, and the State Department has said it is supportive of any Iran sanctions efforts.
While in their Capitol Hill meetings, AIPAC activists will also be asking their representatives to support $2.775 billion in aid to Israel as part of the fiscal year 2010 budget. The aid request reflects the second year of the 10-year U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding, signed in 2007, which called for a gradual increase in U.S. security assistance to the Jewish state in order to meet growing regional threats.
Finally, the AIPAC citizen-lobbyists will be urging lawmakers to sign a letter to President Obama that reinforces the principles the U.S. should follow as it pursues Arab-Israeli peace. These principles include the need to work closely and privately with Israel, to remain a trusted mediator between the parties and to insist on an absolute Palestinian commitment to end incitement and violence against Israel.
Shimon Peres Applauds the U.S.-Israel Relationship
Israeli President Shimon Peres called America an 'ally' and 'brave friend.'
In an inspiring address, Israeli President Shimon Peres on Monday morning praised the U.S.-Israel relationship and thanked more than 6,000 AIPAC activists for their dedicated involvement in strengthening it. "For 60 years," he said, "America has been and still is more than just an ally - it is an unusual partner and a brave friend. I have heard it said, and I have heard it sung - today, more than ever - God bless America." Peres wished success to President Obama and said the new American leader "offers hope to the world."
Peres also said the new Israeli government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is committed to peace with its neighbors, noting that Netanyahu "was at one time my political opponent. Today, he is my prime minister. He knows history and wants to make history. In our tradition, making history is making peace, and I am sure that peace is his priority."
In his discussion of the Iranian nuclear threat, Peres said Iran seeks regional hegemony, targeting both Israel and Arab states. "They develop a nuclear option," he said. "They invest huge capital in long-range missiles. Iran is not threatened by anyone. Iran funds and arms Hizbullah and Hamas to spread division and terror, trying to impose a foreign and violent ideology. Their agents target Americans, Europeans and Arabs alike."
Click here to view video highlights of AIPAC Policy Conference 2009.
Gingrich Discusses Shared Threats to U.S., Israel
Newt Gingrich highlighted the critical importance of the U.S.-Israel alliance.
AIPAC Policy Conference 2009 continued on Sunday night with a rousing address by former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, who discussed the importance of the U.S.-Israel relationship and the threats that the two countries face from Iran and other extremists. Gingrich noted the shared values of America and Israel, asserting that AIPAC's work to strengthen the U.S.-Israel relationship is a distinctly American interest. "AIPAC is not just about Israel," he said. "AIPAC is about the American-Israel relationship, because the future of America and Israel are inextricably intertwined. A world which destroys Israel will certainly destroy the United States."
Gingrich devoted particular attention to the gravity of the Iranian threat, noting the necessity of imposing strong sanctions on Iran and cutting off its access to international oil markets. "It was the deliberate driving down of the price of oil which bankrupted Gorbachev and the Soviet Union, and if we made the same strategy of deliberately driving down the price of oil, the Iranians would presently not have the money to subsidize terrorism around the world," he said.
Gingrich's talk followed a stirring address by AIPAC Executive Director Howard Kohr, who discussed the urgency of confronting growing attempts throughout the world to delegitimize the Jewish state.
Click here to view video highlights of AIPAC Policy Conference 2009.
American Leaders Share Their Israel Stories
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa discussed his connection to Israel.
AIPAC Policy Conference 2009 began Sunday morning with a plenary session highlighting the many faces of pro-Israel America. AIPAC activist Joe Englanoff was joined on stage by his close friend and member of Congress, Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-CA). The two of them shared how they became close friends and traveled to Israel together.
Next, Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa shared his personal connection to Israel, recalling how his childhood neighbors and teachers sparked what would become a lifelong interest in Israel. "No Israeli traveling to L.A. will ever be a stranger in a strange land," Villaraigosa said. "Israel's story is part of who I am."
Following Villaraigosa was the Reverend Kenneth Flowers of Detroit, Michigan, who inspired the crowd with his impassioned defense of Israel and the Jewish people. "I cannot help but speak out in behalf of Israel and the Jews because it is in my DNA," Flowers said. "And I will continue to be a friend to Israel and the Jewish people even when I receive hate mail, and even when it seems the world does not understand."
The opening plenary concluded with a foreign policy roundtable featuring four of the world's most experienced national security specialists: Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA); Maj. Gen. Ido Nechustan, a commander in the Israeli Air Force; Dr. Robert Satloff, executive director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy; and R. James Woolsey, former director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Click here to view video highlights of AIPAC Policy Conference 2009.
Young Leaders Unite to Support Israel
One of the largest groups of campus elected officials ever assembled is here in the nation's capital for AIPAC Policy Conference 2009. Student Government Association (SGA) presidents from 193 campuses, representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia, are joining national and state leaders of the College Democrats of America and College Republican National Committee for the three-day conference.
These groups of young leaders were brought together for a banquet dinner on Saturday night. A number of current and former SGA presidents addressed banquet guests. State Rep. Bakari Sellers (D-SC), a former Morehouse College SGA president, presented the keynote address, which focused on his relationship with the pro-Israel political community in the United States.
"Through AIPAC, I broadened my awareness of an alliance of crucial value and became engaged on issues critical to both the United States and Israel, all while building enduring relationships that have significantly enhanced my life," Sellers said.
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