JERUSALEM, Israel - The daily Arabic-language newspaper Al-Jarida is reporting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to sabotage U.S. President Barack Obama's bid to become the next UN secretary- general. The newspaper, published in Kuwait, says the prime minister intends enlisting the support of Arab governments to curtail Obama's plan to replace Bank Ki- moon when his term ends at the end of this year.
Mr Netanyahu, who has been building back-channel relationships with a number of Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain, has been offside with Obama for most of his two terms in office.
Al-Jarida says Obama has been sounding out Democrats, Republicans and Jewish officials in the U.S. to garner support for a campaign to become the UN chief. Israeli sources have told the Kuwait daily when Mr Netanyahu was alerted to Obama's plans he hit the roof. "Wasn't eight years of having Obama in office enough?"
Netanyahu is quoted as telling associates. "Eight years during which he ignored Israel? And now he wants to be in a position that is liable to cause us hardships in the international arena."
"Obama is the worst president Israel has had to deal with and the worst president for the Middle East and its allies, the moderate Arab states," a Netanyahu aide is quoted by Al-Jarida as saying.
According to The Jerusalem Post, a source close to Netanyahu did not deny to Al-Jarida that the premier is aiming to "torpedo the Obama project," noting "his presidency was characterized by Washington's moving closer to the Muslim Brotherhood, toppling the regime of Hosni Mubarak, and attempts to ally itself with political Islam."
"Obama's term is ending with him forging an alliance with Iran, coming to an agreement with it on its nuclear program which in the end will result in a similar scenario that took place with North Korea," the aide said.
"Israel will not allow this to happen," the source is quoted as saying. "It will take all of the necessary steps to prevent Iran from manufacturing a nuclear weapon either covertly or overtly."
The prime minister's associate told Al-Jarida that Netanyahu "sees an opportunity to establish good relations based on shared interests with moderate states from which Obama has moved away."
- See more at: http://www.jordannews.net/index.php/sid/240093705#sthash .79tec7kK.dpuf
Click for Full Text!
