Sen. Cardin implies he won’t join a letter against possible annexation
The progressive Jewish group J Street asked supporters on Monday to urge their respective senators to sign the letter.
By OMRI NAHMIASBen Cardin, United States Senator (D) from Maryland at the 7th Annual JPost Conference in NY(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)
WASHINGTON – US Senator Ben Cardin on Tuesday implied he would not sign a letter calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White leader Benny Gantz to avoid promoting annexation of settlements in the West Bank. The progressive Jewish group J Street asked supporters on Monday to urge their respective senators to sign the letter.Senators Chris Murphy, Tim Kaine and Chris Van Hollen drafted the letter to Netanyahu and Gantz. They warned that annexation “would fray our unique bonds, imperil Israel’s future and place out of reach the prospect of a lasting peace,” J Street wrote.“With less than 60 days until a possible unilateral Israeli annexation of West Bank territory, it’s critical that pro-Israel senators add their voices to those of Israel’s top security experts and American supporters of Israel speaking out against annexation,” the letter reads. “Unilateral annexation could harm the US-Israel relationship and have serious ramifications for the future of Israelis and Palestinians alike.”Cardin, a democrat from Maryland, participated in a conference call organized by the Jewish Democratic Council of America and implied he would not sign the letter.“I don’t like to second-guess Israel’s government decision, although I have been pretty critical about a lot of policies under the Netanyahu prime ministership,” he said.“The only lasting peace in the Middle East will come with two states living side by side, a Palestinian state and a Jewish state,” Cardin said. “We have to preserve the peace process, even that in this time, it is unlikely to get to the finish line.”“When you talk about annexation, I look at it in the context of how it advances the two-state solution, and I find unilateral actions not to be helpful [for that] process,” he said. “So, I have concerns about the annexation issue. I think that Israel is trying to implement a two-state solution unilaterally. I think there are risk factors about that."“I would encourage them, instead, to try to preserve the process. But I don’t think it is helpful for us to sow dissension in the United States as it relates to the support for Israel,” Cardin said. “We have to show that even when we disagree with the policies of the government, the relationship between the US and Israel must remain strong.”
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