Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday told a prominent Jewish leader that she wanted to improve the relationship between the United States and Israel and get it back on "constructive footing,"
The New York Times reported.
Clinton also called for a renewed commitment to a two-state solution.
"Secretary Clinton thinks we need to all work together to return the special U.S.-Israel relationship to constructive footing, to get back to basic shared concerns and interests, including a two-state solution pursued through direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians," said Malcolm Hoenlein, executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, in a statement. He talked to Clinton on the phone, according to the Times.
"We must ensure that Israel never becomes a partisan issue," he quoted her as saying.
Her remarks stand in contrast to the position the Obama administration has taken in recent weeks toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, criticizing him for attempts to intervene in the nuclear negotiations with Iran and for comments he made in the final days of his re-election campaign.
It would also be the first stand Clinton has taken on the issue since tensions between the U.S. and Israel reached their height and Obama officials have suggested there would be a fundamental re-evaluation of the U.S. relationship with Israel with possible ramifications at the United Nations.
Clinton's team did not confirm or deny the comments, but Hoenlein said, "she did know I would release the statement,"
BuzzFeed reported.
Netanyahu had ruled out a two-state solution and warned about Arabs voting against him in the final days of his campaign, but has since backed off both comments.
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