Israel greets Obama's speech with caution

Jerusalem, June 5(ANI): Israel on Thursday cautiously admired US President Barack Obama's speech in Cairo, where he reconfirmed and pledged a continuous US support to Israel.

Even though the US President speech also supported a Palestine cause of a different state, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office issued a statement saying the government "expresses hope that President Obama's important speech in Cairo will lead to a new period of reconciliation between the Arab and Muslim world, and Israel."

"We share Obama's hope that the American efforts will signal the opening of a new era that will bring about an end to the conflict, and will lead to pan-Arab recognition of Israel as the Jewish state living in peace and security in the Middle East," the statement read.

"Israel is obligated to peace and will do as much as possible to help expand the circle of peace, while taking into consideration its national interests, the foremost of which is security."

The statement was crafted by the Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu after consulting with several ministers of his cabinet.

The 56-minute address to some 3,000 invited guests at Cairo University, was broadcasted on all radio and television outlets in Israel with Arabic voice-over translations by satellite stations Al-Arabiya and Al-Jazeera, the Jerusalem Post reported.

Obama, during his long-awaited speech on relations between the US and the Muslim world, placed "the situation between Israelis, Palestinians and the Arab world" as the second major source of tension between the US and the Muslim world.

"If we see this conflict only from one side or the other, then we will be blind to the truth: the only resolution is for the aspirations of both sides to be met through two states, where Israelis and Palestinians each live in peace and security," Obama said. (ANI)