On the recordMay 17, 2021
I come to the floor this afternoon to talk about two issues of vital importance to the United States and the world. First, I want to say a few words about the current violence paralyzing Israel and the Palestinian territories, but then I want to spend the bulk of my remarks on the future of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East. First, here in America, our hearts are breaking for Israelis and Palestinians. The images are just bone-chilling--rockets and interceptors streaking across the night sky, parents huddled with their children as air raid sirens ring out, tragic images of innocent Israeli and Palestinian civilians, including children, injured or killed in the blasts. For many Americans who are turning on the news this week, it might appear that the events of the last few days erupted almost overnight. While tensions are now reaching a fevered and deadly pitch, this cataclysm has been long in the making and no party, including the United States of America, has completely clean hands. Zero-sum politics have driven both the decision making of the Netanyahu government and Palestinian leadership, to the extent that there is such a thing as Palestinian leadership. Those decisions have led us to this crisis. Over and over, Prime Minister Netanyahu has pushed Israeli settlements further into territory historically considered reserved for a future Palestinian State.…





