    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book I)]
    [April 28, 1996]
    [Pages 653-657]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee
    Policy Conference
    April 28, 1996

        Thank you very much. Mr. Prime Minister, I just thought I was tired,
    because it was late Sunday night; I never felt better in my life. Thank
    you very much.
        Mr. Prime Minister, Ambassador Rabinovich, Secretary Glickman,
    Ambassador Indyk. President Dow, thank you for that wonderful
    introduction. Mr. Grossman, Mr. Sher, Mr. Bronfman, Mr. Levy, to Jack
    Bendheim, who also gave a wonderful introduction; the cochairs of this
    event, Art Sandler and Betsy Sheer; to all the young students who are
    here.
        The Prime Minister referred on two occasions to the opportunity that
    I had on my last trip to Israel to meet with the young people there. It
    was an incredible experience for me. And I realized that in some ways we
    have to keep depending on young people to deliver us because they remind
    us that we can break new ground and make tomorrow different from
    yesterday.
        Just before the Prime Minister and I came in here tonight, we
    received petitions for peace, signed largely by college students, that
    were presented by Jonathan Epstein of Trinity College and Abigail
    Michelson of Brandeis, and I'd like to thank them. I think they're over
    here. I thank them very much for what they did for that.
        I would also like to say a special word of thanks to the Members of
    Congress who are here who have supported our administration's policies
    in the Middle East. If I miss someone whom I do not see, write me a
    nasty note tomorrow. [Laughter] But I would like to say a special word
    of thanks to Senator Lautenberg, Congressman Frost, Congressman Engel,
    Congresswoman Lowey, Congressman Waxman, and Congressman Levin. And I
    hope I didn't miss anybody; we can't afford to lose any more friends in
    Congress. [Laughter]
        When the Prime Minister said that Israel was now spending as much
    money on education as defense, I thought of seeing if I could get him to
    stay another week and just testify before a few committees. [Laughter]
    And when you, sir, said that I had made history for a second time, I can
    see myself being guilt-peddled into the future; I can make history now
    every year from now on until the end of my life. [Laughter]
        Since I associate you with the struggle for peace, I can't help, if
    you will indulge me, one real purely personal observation: The last time
    I appeared before this conference before last year was in 1989, when the
    person who was supposed to appear on behalf of the Democratic Party
    against Lee Atwater went to his daughter's college graduation. I thought
    he had his priorities in order, and so when he asked me to replace him,
    I was glad to stand in for Ron Brown. And since he lost his life on
    another remarkable mission of peace, I thought I would share that with
    you tonight, and I hope you will remember that and remember him and his
    family in your prayers.
        I am pleased as the Prime Minister is that we can come here tonight
    with the northern border of Israel and the southern border of Lebanon
    quiet--no Katyusha rockets firing down on the people of northern Israel.
    I thank the Prime Minister for the tremendous work he did. And in his
    absence--and I hope to goodness he's sleeping right now--I want to thank
    the Secretary of State for his magnificent herculean effort. I also
    thank his partner and great unsung hero, Dennis Ross, for what he has
    done.
        As the Prime Minister said, we had an agreement back in 1993, but it
    wasn't in writing, and it was shattered. For the first time now, there
    is an agreement in writing that will be more effective in preventing
    further outbreaks. The violence has stopped. There is now a monitoring
    mechanism to which Israel and Lebanon can refer complaints. And now it
    is our fond hope that civilians on both sides of the border

    [[Page 654]]

    can resume their lives with greater confidence and security. And we will
    not tolerate further efforts to disrupt the calm.
        When I came into office, I was determined that our country would go
    into the 21st century still the world's greatest force for peace and
    freedom, for democracy and security and prosperity. We have to promote
    these values just as vigorously as we did in the cold war. Indeed, in
    some ways, our responsibilities as Americans are now greater.
        I know that you agree with that. You have devoted yourselves to
    strengthening the bonds between the United States and Israel, a
    cornerstone of our foreign policy and of our efforts to advance peace
    and freedom and democracy in the Middle East. I thank you for that and I
    ask you, too, to continue to speak out in a larger sense for America's
    role in the world. It has made a difference what we have done in the
    Middle East and in Bosnia and in Northern Ireland and in Haiti and in
    fighting against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and in
    leading the world to take a tougher stand against terrorism. We cannot
    afford to walk away from these responsibilities to the future of our
    children, our children's children, and the children of all the world.
        What a difference a year can make. It was at this conference last
    year that Israel's then-Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin said, from day one
    Israel found itself in a unique alliance with the United States, resting
    on twin pillars of shared values and strategic partnership. Well, it's
    still true. And now the United States and Israel are still partners
    based on shared values and common strategies.
        I am grateful for the service, the life, and the sacrifice of Prime
    Minister Rabin. But I am also very grateful that the man he called his
    full partner, our friend Shimon Peres, is carrying forward the important
    work of peace with security. From his earliest days when he helped to
    establish Israel's military, up to the very present when he has defined
    a vision of a new Middle East in his remarkable book--which, Prime
    Minister, I have told the whole world I enjoyed reading, and I'm
    promoting it for you and I hope I get a certain percentage kickback if
    it really does very well. [Laughter] We just made another agreement.
    They're just spouting out all over.
        I said that in jest--[laughter]--to lay the pretext for a serious
    comment. At least the critical mass of American Jews should read that
    book and become familiar with its contents, because if you do it will
    give you the energy for the tasks ahead, because the Prime Minister has
    been able to imagine what the future might be like beyond the history
    that can be made with the other peace signings. And that vision is what
    must drive us all into tomorrow.
        We have made a lot of progress with the Declaration of Principles of
    the Palestinians, the peace of the Araba with Jordan, the interim accord
    that was signed in Washington. I have watched in these very difficult
    months since Prime Minister Rabin's assassination Prime Minister Peres
    rise to this moment. He has been a true and reliable friend of our
    country, and a true and reliable leader of his own. And I am proud to
    say, as Yitzhak Rabin said, he is our full partner for peace and
    security.
        This has been a trying time for those who believe that a secure
    peace is the only true hope for Israel and the Middle East. The Katyusha
    rockets, the bloodshed in Lebanon, the suicide bombings in Israel--we
    grieve for the innocent victims, for the Israelis who simply wanted to
    live quiet lives in their own country, for the innocent Palestinians who
    were killed in the suicide bombings in Israel, for the children of our
    own Nation, Sarah Duker and Matthew Eisenfeld, visiting a land they
    loved; for the Lebanese children in Qana who were caught between--make
    no mistake about it--the deliberate tactics of Hezbollah in their
    positioning and firing and the tragic misfiring in Israel's legitimate
    exercise of its right to self-defense.
        I know that in Israel and Lebanon, throughout the Middle East and
    throughout the world, it would be so easy after yet another round of
    violence and death to give up, to think that the very best we could
    expect is a future of separate armed camps. It is that sort of bunker
    mentality that we fight, indeed, all across the world in different ways
    today. It would be easy to give in to it in the Middle East, but it
    would be wrong.
        I was asked the other day whether the violence of the last few days
    was not proof that the peace process was dead. I said no, quite the
    contrary; it was proof that the yearning for peace was alive. The people
    who started the violence were trying to kill the longing for peace. It
    is still alive, and we must not let it die. We must stand up to what
    they tried to do.

    [[Page 655]]

        We can still achieve a peace if we conquer fear and restore security
    and deal honestly with those with whom we have differences. We know it
    will not be easy. Peace requires in some ways more strength than war.
    And we must have the patience to endure a few more setbacks along the
    way. We know that it takes great courage to press forward into an
    unknown future. It's harder than retreating into a familiar past. It
    takes great bravery to reach out to a former enemy. It's easier to stay
    in the false security of isolation.
        But I believe that Israel will maintain its resolve for peace. As I
    said, I saw it in the eyes and I heard it in the voices of the children
    of Israel when I was there just last month. I saw it in the eyes of
    those two young Americans who gave Prime Minister Peres and me those
    petitions. I heard it from two boys in Israel, Uri Tal and Tal Loel, who
    were badly wounded in the bombing in Tel Aviv--one even deafened.
    Despite their pain, they wrote to me from their hospital beds, and I
    quote, from their hospital beds they wrote, ``Peace is the only true
    solution for this area.'' They showed strength, having lost much, even
    in their young years. They showed the ability to overcome adversity that
    is the true genius of the character and history of the Jewish people.
        If the Jewish people have endured centuries of exile, persecution,
    the ultimate evil of the Holocaust, flourishing against all the odds,
    surely--surely--together they can throw back their shoulders and raise
    their heads and say, after all this, Hezbollah and Hamas will not
    succeed where others have failed.
        Even as the Katyushas were falling, we saw proof of peace taking
    hold. We saw it in the meeting between Prime Minister Peres and Chairman
    Arafat 10 days ago, when they vowed to move ahead on the goals set by
    the accords. We saw it in the Prime Minister's path-breaking trips to
    Qatar and Oman this month. And I salute again the Prime Minister for the
    strength and commitment he has shown in pursuing the peace in this
    difficult period.
        And of course, last Wednesday, on the 48th anniversary of Israeli
    independence, the Palestinian National Council finally did change the
    PLO charter and deleted the hateful clause calling for the destruction
    of Israel. Now, think about that. That symbol of hatred had endured
    since 1964, before some people in this room were even born. It's a
    moment we have long waited and worked for. The Palestinian leadership
    followed through on its commitments and made a better move to a better
    day. All friends of peace should be heartened by this, and especially by
    the large margin of the vote in support of Chairman Arafat's policy.
        Even during the suicide bombings there was dramatic proof that peace
    is taking root. Remember, as Prime Minister Peres said, at the Summit of
    the Peacemakers in Sharm al-Sheikh we had 29 leaders from around the
    globe and 13 from the Arab world voting and committing themselves for
    the first time not only to condemn but to work against terrorism in
    Israel. It was an historic moment. And we are following up on it.
        I say again--I want to hammer this home, not only to you who know
    but to people beyond this room: This progress for peace is the reason
    the enemies of peace are lashing out. We must restore peace. We must
    restore security. But we must not be diverted from our ultimate goal,
    else we will hand them the victory that they have sought all along.
        We know the circle of peace cannot be closed only by an end to the
    fighting in Lebanon. It can be closed only when the Arab-Israeli
    conflict is truly over--when normalization takes hold in the entire Arab
    world, when Israel's security is completely assured, when Israel is
    fully accepted in every way in the region. The circle of peace will be
    closed only--and I say only--when the people of Israel are confident
    that what they are getting is worth the risks they must take. Peace and
    security are indivisible. And Israel must feel comfortable and confident
    about both in order to achieve either over the long run.
        Let me say to you what I hope you already know, the breakthroughs of
    the past were possible because we built together a bond of trust. And I
    pledge to you today that this relationship will remain strong and vital,
    so strong and so vital that no one will ever drive a wedge between us.
        Our commitment to Israel's security is unshakable. It will stay that
    way because Israel must have the means to defend itself by itself. In a
    time of shrinking resources, we have maintained our economic assistance.
    We have sought to enhance Israel's security to lessen the risks it has
    taken and still takes every day for peace.
        Israel's qualitative military edge is greater than ever because we
    have kept our word. Ear-

    [[Page 656]]

    lier today Prime Minister Peres and Secretary Perry signed an agreement
    to expand our theater missile defense program so that we can detect and
    destroy incoming missiles. That way Israel will have not only the
    advantage it needs today but will be able to defeat the threats of
    tomorrow.
        As part of this effort, we are proceeding with the third phase of
    the deployment of the Arrow missile program. The United States is
    committing $200 million to this effort so that the children who lived
    through the Scud attacks of the Gulf war will never again face that
    fear. We also pledge to expand work on the Nautilus high-energy laser
    system, which is designed to destroy Katyushas in flight. Our air forces
    are working together so that the first of the F-15-I's are delivered as
    planned next year. And we have offered Israel the AMRAAM, our most
    advanced air-to-air missile system, so that Israel's air power remains
    unmatched in the region.

        Our strategic cooperation is greater than ever. We are continuing to
    help build Israel's high-tech capacity through the sale of
    supercomputers. We are even expanding cooperation in space and preparing
    to train Israeli astronauts. There may be a few volunteers out there,
    Mr. Prime Minister. [Laughter]

        We are also working, as the Prime Minister has said, more closely
    than ever to defeat terrorism. This week we will complete the agreement
    to combat extremist violence that we began work on during my visit to
    Israel last month. Almost as soon as we received word of the bombings,
    we began sending new equipment to detect explosives. Now we are
    committing more than $100 million to this program for equipment and
    training, for development of new technologies and improved
    communications and coordination. And I am very pleased that in the
    budget I signed just 2 days ago, the first $50 million was included in
    our common antiterrorist efforts.

        We all know that Israel should have every tool at its disposal in
    the fight against terror. And we all know that the organized forces of
    hatred and terror threaten people not only in the Middle East but here
    at home and around the world. We saw that in Oklahoma City, at the World
    Trade Center, in the attacks we have thwarted, in the subways of Tokyo,
    in the skies over Scotland. We see it all around the world. Fighting
    terrorism will remain one of our top law enforcement priorities for many
    years to come. And in order to be successful, we have to have the tools
    we need here, and we have to work together.

        I want to thank the Congress and Members in both parties for passing
    the antiterrorism bill I signed into law just last week. I want to thank
    many of you in this audience in both parties who worked hard and lobbied
    hard for that legislation. It will help us to stop terrorists before
    they strike and to bring them to justice when they do. Now we can more
    quickly expel foreigners who come here and support terrorist activities.
    Our prosecutors can wield new tools and expanded penalties against those
    who terrorize Americans at home or abroad. And we can stop terrorists
    from raising money in the United States to pay for their crimes anywhere
    around the world.

        Again, I say AIPAC has long been a powerful voice in favor of this
    legislation. We may not be able to always stop those who are gripped by
    hatred, but at least now because of your support, we will make a real
    difference in the fight against terror. And I pledge to you that in
    America, in Israel, and around the world we will not rest from these
    efforts until, in the words of the Psalm, ``We shall not be afraid of
    the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flies by day.''

        When I was in Jerusalem last month, I placed a small symbol of the
    extraordinary bond of solidarity between the United States and Israel on
    the grave of my friend Prime Minister Rabin. It was a little stone from
    the South Lawn of the White House where the first accord with the
    Palestinians was signed. I put it there in keeping with the Jewish
    tradition that says one must always add to the memories of those who
    have died and never detract from them.

        Well, it falls to us to add more to the memories of all those who
    have given their lives for Israel's security and for the hope of peace.
    And we must do this not only with stones but in kind. We must build a
    peace as hard and real as any stone. And in so doing, we will add to the
    memory of every martyr and validate the sacrifice of every martyr and
    give meaning and breath and life to the dreams of so many who have gone
    before.

        That is my vision to you and my pledge. And I say to you, and
    especially to you, I will do everything I can to help us achieve it
    together.

    [[Page 657]]

        Thank you, and God bless you.

    Note: The President spoke at 9:37 p.m. in the ballroom at the Washington
    Hilton Hotel. In his remarks, he referred to Prime Minister Shimon Peres
    of Israel; Itamar Rabinovich, Israeli Ambassador to the United States;
    Martin Indyk, U.S. Ambassador to Israel; Melvin Dow, president, Steve
    Grossman, chairman of the board, Neal Sher, executive director, Edward
    Levy, vice president, and Jack Bendheim, board member, American Israel
    Public Affairs Committee; Edgar Bronfman, president, World Jewish
    Congress; and Chairman Yasser Arafat of the Palestinian Authority.