[caption id="attachment_124791" align="alignright" width="251"] Obama and Netanyahu during the U.S. president's visit in Israel, March 20, 2013. Photo by Bloomberg[/caption]
Former US congressman Jim Slattery says that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech before both chambers of US Congress on March 3 is a blunder.


WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech before both chambers of US Congress on March 3 is a blunder, former US congressman Jim Slattery said at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC.

“I think that Bibi Netanyahu's appearance before the US House of Representatives and the Congress, the joint session, is a mistake. And I say this as a supporter and friend of Israel,” Slattery said on Monday.

US House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner invited Netanyahu to speak to Congress about Iran’s nuclear program and the security threat jihadist terrorists pose amid congressional efforts to impose tougher sanctions on Iran.

The White House called Boehner’s invitation a departure from protocol.Slattery said that Netanyahu is politicizing “this critically important relationship [between the United States and Israel] at a historic moment,” which will not be beneficial for either country.

“It was a bad choice, a bad decision in my judgment,” Slattery added.

Slattery also said that he would not attend Netanyahu's speech before US Congress because it would show disrespect to US President Barack Obama and his office.

President Obama and US State Department Secretary John Kerry said they would not meet with Netanyahu during his visit to Washington to avoid the appearance of influencing the Israeli elections, which will take place two weeks after Netanyahu’s speech.

By Sputnik News