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President Obama on the World
(New York Times) Thomas L. Friedman - President Obama made clear in an interview that he is only going to involve America more deeply in places like the Middle East to the extent that the different communities there agree to an inclusive politics of no victor-no vanquished. I asked the president whether he was worried about Israel. "It is amazing to see what Israel has become over the last several decades," he answered. "To have scratched out of rock this incredibly vibrant, incredibly successful, wealthy and powerful country is a testament to the ingenuity, energy and vision of the Jewish people. And because Israel is so capable militarily, I don't worry about Israel's survival." Asked whether he should be more vigorous in pressing Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Palestinian Authority's president, Mahmoud Abbas, to reach a land-for-peace deal, the president said it has to start with them. Prime Minister Netanyahu's "poll numbers are a lot higher than mine" and "were greatly boosted by the war in Gaza," Obama said.