Michael Oren, number 4 on the Kulanu party’s list of Knesset candidates, says it was not ideal for Netanyahu to address Congress on Iran, but now that it’s happening, he hopes the prime minister successfully makes his case on the Iranian nuclear program.
“It would have been better for Netanyahu not to speak before Congress and to prevent the current crisis with the US,” he writes on Facebook. “But as someone who participated in the most sensitive discussions about Iran, I know that we’re facing an existential threat. Therefore, even with all the criticism, it’s now in Israel’s national interest for Netanyahu to succeed in making his case.”
Still, Oren stresses that the housing crisis is as dire for the Israeli public as Iran.
“Israel derives its national strength from multiple sources. The threat that Israel faces when its citizens are unable to meet their monthly bills is no less dangerous than the threat that we face from Iran,” he adds. “Our sole focus on Iran has led a generation of Israelis to suffer from skyrocketing living costs, housing costs, and social gaps.”
Former Israeli ambassador to the United States Michael B. Oren speaks in Tel Aviv on December 16, 2013. (photo credit: Gideon Markowicz/Flash90)
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