Israel Matzav

Obama to visit Israel, but when?

Ben Smith reports that President Obama does plan to visit Israel, but no one is saying when.

At the 92nd Street Y appearance, Elie Wiesel also asked David Axelrod when President Obama will visit Israel.

"There is no doubt that that is something that we’re going to do," Axelrod said. "The timing is important in terms of, how we can maximize that visit in a way that’s most constructive?"

Axelrod called the present moment "a critical juncture in the history of Israel, in the history of that conflict," and said he hoped for the resolution of the current stalemate over Israeli settlements and Palestinian threats to walk away from talks in the "next few days."

In other words, Obama won't come to Israel until he can browbeat Netanyahu into extending the 'settlement freeze.' But how long will that take? This might be an indicator (Hat Tip: Instapundit).

US President Barack Obama is likely to arrive in India on November 5 instead of November 7 as originally scheduled. He will leave Washington DC on the night of November 4 soon after the mid-term Congressional election where many pundits are predicting severe reverses for the Democratic Party.

He will be away from the US for almost 12 days, one of the longest tours during his presidency, touching India, Indonesia, Japan, and South Korea, before returning to Washington DC on November 14.

Might he visit Israel on the way there or the way back? Only if there is still a 'peace process.' What could go wrong?

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 10:09 PM