U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday told Israeli President Shimon Peres that the Obama administration would stand by any Israeli government now being forged. Clinton's morning meeting with Peres was the first of a two-day round of talks scheduled with Israeli and Palestinian leaders on her first trip to the region as the top U.S. diplomat.
The American secretary of state arrived in Jerusalem on Monday evening from the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, where she pledged $900 million in U.S. aid at an international donors conference for rebuilding the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, Israel's Prime minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu plans to tell Clinton during their talks later Tuesday that his government will continue peace talks with the Palestinians, the former foreign minister Silvan Shalom said. "I think that Hillary Clinton, when she comes today, will find Benjamin Netanyahu prepared to continue to hold negotiations, not only on economic projects but also political negotiations, a political process," Shalom was quoted as saying.
