Obama, Peres meet on variety of issues

U.S. President Barack Obama, after declaring an "unbreakable bond" between the two countries, met Wednesday with Israeli President Shimon Peres. Peres was expected to thank Obama for the U.S. investment in the Iron Dome anti-missile system, tell him Israel and the United States are united in facing down Iranian development of a nuclear weapon, and demand the United States cooperate with Israeli efforts to contain Syria's chemical weapons caches, Haaretz reported from Jerusalem. Before the meeting, Obama, shovel in hand, and Peres walked through the presidential garden to plant a magnolia tree brought from the White House as a gift, Haaretz said. Earlier in the day, Obama said he considers his first visit to Israel as president a chance to reiterate the "unbreakable bond" between the two nations. "I see this visit as an opportunity to reaffirm the unbreakable bond between our two nations," Obama said at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, where he began his 3-day visit to the U.S. ally in the Middle East. "We share a common story." Obama also said peace must come in the Middle East and ended his remarks reaffirming an "eternal alliance" between the United States and Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, noting Obama chose to travel to Israel as the first foreign trip of his second term, said, "I come here today with a simple message for you and the people of the United States: Thank you ... for standing with Israel." Netanyahu, whose relationship with Obama has sometimes been frosty, thanked the American president for military aid, supporting Israel at the United Nations and for the "unbreakable U.S. bond." Welcoming Obama, Peres said his visit was a "demonstration of the profound relationship between our two countries. ... Thank you for (the) way you are, thank you for what you do. Thank you for the hopes you carry with you." Obama deplaned Air Force One to an honor guard from all branches of the Israeli military and small crowds sitting in bleachers lined with Israeli and U.S. flags and flowers. After Obama and Peres inspected the troops, they and Netanyahu walked a receiving line of civil and religious dignitaries, and members of the new Israeli government. Following the welcoming ceremony and remarks, Obama inspected an Iron Dome battery and other air defense systems outside a hangar on the tarmac. The White House said the Iron Dome is a short-range rocket and mortar defense system developed by Israel and produced with U.S. assistance that is part of a multi-tier missile defense structure devised as a countermeasure to the rocket threat against Israel's civilian population. The state visit includes trips to the Yad Vashem holocaust memorial, Mount Herzl and the Israel Museum, as well as bilateral meetings with Netanyahu, Peres and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. In Jerusalem, Obama will attend a reception at the President's Residence, followed by a meeting with Netanyahu at his residence. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Israel Tuesday. His schedule indicates he will spend time on the Israeli-Palestinian diplomatic process, the Post said. Haaretz reported Palestinian groups were organizing a demonstration Thursday in Ramallah, West Bank, to protest Obama's visit. "Obama is coming to strengthen Israel, which means continued occupation and settlement," one of the organizers, Hazem Abu Hilal, said. Obama travels to Jordan on Friday to meet with King Abdullah II.