Key Points in PM Netanyahu's address to Congress

The Globe and Mail is carrying the transcripts of Mr Netanyahu's speech before Congress and there a few key elements that are worth repeating and interpreting.

Transcript of Prime Minister Netanyahu's address to U.S. Congress

The first significant topic which seemed to stand out involved the warnings about Iran - right out of the gate too, as they say:

But while we hope for the best and while we work for the best, we must also recognize that powerful forces oppose this future. They oppose modernity. They oppose democracy. They oppose peace.

Foremost among these forces is Iran. The tyranny in Tehran brutalizes its own people. It supports attacks against Americans troops in Afghanistan and in Iraq. It subjugates Lebanon and Gaza. It sponsors terror worldwide.

When I last stood here, I spoke of the consequences of Iran developing nuclear weapons. Now time is running out. The hinge of history may soon turn, for the greatest danger of all could soon be upon us: a militant Islamic regime armed with nuclear weapons.

Militant Islam threatens the world. It threatens Islam.

A nuclear-armed Iran would ignite a nuclear arms race in the Middle East. It would give terrorists a nuclear umbrella. It would make the nightmare of nuclear terrorism a clear and present danger throughout the world.

See, I want you to understand what this means, because if we don't stop it, it's coming. They could put a bomb anywhere. They could put it in a missile; they're working on missiles that could reach this city. They could put it on a -- on a ship inside a container; could reach every port. They could eventually put it in a suitcase or in a subway.

Now, the threat to my country cannot be overstated. Those who dismiss it are sticking their heads on the stand. Less than seven decades after 6 million Jews were murdered, Iran's leaders deny the Holocaust of the Jewish people while calling for the annihilation of the Jewish state. Leaders who spew such venom should be banned from every respectable forum on the planet.

It is interesting because Iran has taken a back-seat to so many other news stories recently, and PM Netanyahu gave the world a stark reminder about Iran and their ultimate goal of destroying the Nation of Israel.

But Mr Netanyahu also realizes that something must be done to stop or delay Iran's race to nuclear arms.

Is he also beginning to set the stage for a future intervention in Iran?

And this was equally significant:

Two years ago, I publicly committed to a solution of two states for two peoples -- a Palestinian state alongside a Jewish state.

(Applause.) I'm willing to make painful compromises to achieve this historic peace. As the leader of Israel, it's my responsibility to lead my people to peace. (Applause.)

So now, here's the question. You've got to ask it: If the benefits of peace with the Palestinians are so clear, why has peace eluded us? Because all six Israeli prime ministers since the signing of the Oslo Accords agreed to establish a Palestinian state, myself included; so why has peace not been achieved?

Because so far, the Palestinians have been unwilling to accept a Palestinian state if it meant accepting a Jewish state alongside it.

You see, our conflict has never been about the establishment of a Palestinian state; it's always been about the existence of the Jewish state. (Applause.) This is what this conflict is about. (Extended applause.)

That line was so succinct and really says it all in one single sentence and it is worth repeating:

"Because so far, the Palestinians have been unwilling to accept a Palestinian state if it meant accepting a Jewish state alongside it."

And this statement had to be made:

In recent years, Israel withdrew from south Lebanon and from Gaza. We thought we'd get peace. That's not what we got. We got 12,000 rockets fired from those areas on our cities, on our children, by Hezbollah and Hamas. The U.N. peacekeepers in Lebanon, they failed to prevent the smuggling of this weaponry.

So if Israel simply walked out of the territories, the flow of weapons into a future Palestinian state would be unchecked, and missiles fired from it could reach virtually every home in Israel in less than a minute.

I want you to think about that, too. Imagine there's a siren going on now and we have less than 60 seconds to find shelter from an incoming rocket. Would you live that way? Do you think anybody can live that way? Well, we're not going to live that way either.

PM Netanyahu has made his intentions crystal clear and a return to the 1967 borders isn't happening on his watch.

So now the ball is back in the court of the Quartet (Russia, US, UN, EU) and the "Palestinians".

It will be very interesting to see what the next move will involve. In the next few days there will be numerous statements by various leaders.

What may be even more interesting, if you take a step back and look at the big picture is this:

Israel is indeed the center of the world's attention right now. And within that epicenter lies the relatively small city of Jerusalem which also happens to receive equal attention.

Approximately 2,500 years ago God's prophets spoke of this era. An era in which this tiny country called Israel would be regathered from having been scattered throughout the nations, and then come back to the same land as a nation - even to the point of describing that this event would "happen in a day".

And then, prophecy foretold that following the miraculous regathering, in the same generation, Israel would become the center of the world's attention - and that the nations would align against her. Prophecy even dictated that the relatively small city of Jerusalem would be the epicenter within the epicenter and indeed that is the case today.

At times like this, we should feel closer to God for so many reasons. We get to see confirmation of His very existence in prophecy fulfillment - a constant reminder that He is very much alive and well and involved.

His words were meant to comfort us and to remind us that He is indeed in complete control and He has a plan for His Son's Church.

He gave us the warning signs of this generation - not to scare us - but rather to draw us closer to Him and look towards Him and the glory that awaits us.

And whether it is the gathering up of the Church or the battle of "Gog-MaGog", God is on the verge of making His presence undeniably known to the world.

Meanwhile, we see Israel as the epicenter of the world - exactly as the prophets stated.