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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due to address Monday the annual policy conference of AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee), the pro-Israel lobby in Washington. The theme of this year's conference is "Israel: Tell the Story." Conference programming will highlight the many facets of Israel.
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JERUSALEM/WASHINGTON (AFP)---President Barack Obama has invited Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to meet him in Washington on Tuesday to discuss Middle East peace efforts, Netanyahu's office said.
The invitation was handed to Netanyahu by visiting US Middle East envoy George Mitchell at the start of a meeting in Jerusalem on Sunday, the office said.
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US Middle East envoy George Mitchell (L) with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday.
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Netanyahu was due to leave for Washington later Sunday to meet US officials and address the conference of AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) in Washington.
The top pro-Israel lobby opens its annual policy conference on Sunday keeping up the pressure to defuse a US-Israeli row over the Middle East peace process and to check Iran's nuclear ambitions.
Evan Bayh, a democatic Senator, and Israel's ambassador to Washington, Michael Oren, will be the keynote speakers at a massive show of US-Israeli unity.
Events are due to begin around 9:30 a.m. with more than 7,000 guests due at the convention center in Washington.
They will set the tone for Monday when both US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will deliver speeches.
In the run up to the three-day annual policy conference, AIPAC had urged President Barack Obama's administration to defuse tension over Israeli plans for construction of new homes in east Jerusalem.
Clinton demanded and received a response from Netanyahu -- which came while she was in Moscow to consult with international partners on the peace process -- about US concerns over the impact of the settlements.
"What I heard from the prime minister in response for the request we made
was useful and productive, and we're continuing our discussions with him and
his government," Clinton told reporters in Moscow, softening the tone.
AIPAC spokesman Josh Block said conference participants will talk "about the unbreakable bonds between the United States and Israel, and the shared challenges we face."
These, he said, include "stopping Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons capability and supporting Israel's quest for peace with all of her Arab neighbors."