In his speech to the United Nations this morning, President Obama reiterated his call for Israel to cease building settlements, and for the Palestinians to end incitement against Israel.

I will also continue to seek a just and lasting peace between Israel, Palestine, and the Arab world. Yesterday, I had a constructive meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas. We have made some progress. Palestinians have strengthened their efforts on security. Israelis have facilitated greater freedom of movement for the Palestinians. As a result of these efforts by both sides, the economy in the West Bank has begun to grow. But more progress is needed. We continue to call on Palestinians to end incitement against Israel, and we continue to emphasize that America does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements.

The time has come to re-launch negotiations – without preconditions – that address the permanent-status issues: security for Israelis and Palestinians; borders, refugees and Jerusalem. The goal is clear: two states living side by side in peace and security – a Jewish State of Israel, with true security for all Israelis; and a viable, independent Palestinian state with contiguous territory that ends the occupation that began in 1967, and realizes the potential of the Palestinian people. As we pursue this goal, we will also pursue peace between Israel and Lebanon, Israel and Syria, and a broader peace between Israel and its many neighbors. In pursuit of that goal, we will develop regional initiatives with multilateral participation, alongside bilateral negotiations.

I am not naïve. I know this will be difficult. But all of us must decide whether we are serious about peace, or whether we only lend it lip-service. To break the old patterns – to break the cycle of insecurity and despair – all of us must say publicly what we would acknowledge in private. The United States does Israel no favors when we fail to couple an unwavering commitment to its security with an insistence that Israel respect the legitimate claims and rights of the Palestinians. And nations within this body do the Palestinians no favors when they choose vitriolic attacks over a constructive willingness to recognize Israel’s legitimacy, and its right to exist in peace and security.

And again, there’s a serious problem that no one wants to examine: the continued rejection of Israel’s right to exist, not just from Palestinians, but from the entire Arab world. For Obama to paint this as a simple matter of moral equivalence, with both sides equally to blame and both sides equally interested in finding a resolution, is simply wrong. Unfortunately, this state of denial has dominated US policy for many years, and shows no sign of ending any time soon.

Libyan strangeman Muammar Gadafi is currently ranting away incoherently, but Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is scheduled to speak a bit later. CNN is broadcasting the speeches live; here’s a thread to discuss.