Barak: East Jerusalem announcement was unnecessary, damaging

Obama aide David Axelrod says approval of 1,600 new homes in East Jerusalem seemed meant to thwart talks. 

Ha'aretz 
Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Sunday joined the world's condemnation of the Israeli government's recent announcement to build 1,600 new housing units in East Jerusalem.

"The mishap that took place while the U.S. Vice President Joe Biden was visiting was unintentional, but it was, without a doubt, unnecessary and damaging," said Barak.

Earlier Sunday, President Barack Obama's chief political adviser David Axelrod slammed the Israeli construction plan in East Jerusalem and said that the move, which was announced during Biden's visit, looked like a deliberate attempt to frustrate upcoming proximity talks between Israel and the Palestinians. 
 

Barak, speaking during an event celebrating the upcoming Passover holiday, emphasized the importance of the Israel-United States friendship.

"Even though we are the ones ultimately responsible for our fate, the friendship of the United States is important to both the security and the peace of the region, and this friendship commits us to mutual respect and responsibility," Barak said.....

Referring to Israel's announcement of the plan to build 1,600 more housing units in the ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Ramat Shlomo during a visit by Vice President Joe Biden, Axelrod told ABC's This Week that "what happened there was an affront."

Earlier Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred to the announcement as a "harmful" incident that "should not have happened."

In his interview with ABC, Axelrod hinted that Israel's announcement was a deliberate attempt to thwart indirect talks with the Palestinians.

"It was an insult, but that's not the most important thing," Axelrod added, saying that the move was disruptive to upcoming proximity talks with the Palestinians and that the approval during Biden's visit "seemed calculated to undermine that, and that was - that was distressing to everyone who is promoting the idea of peace and security in the region."

....... top Obama aide added that he did "believe that it is absolutely imperative, not just for the security of Israel and the Palestinian people... but it is important for our own security that we move forward and resolve this very difficult issue."

....U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday called Israel's announcement "insulting" to the United States...  Full story