Russian immigrants as "hardest core" groups against peace.
Clinton said: "This presents a staggering problem. It's a different Israel. 16% of Israelis speak Russian. They've just got here,"
Bill Clinton: Russian immigrants are obstacle to peace
Bill Clinton has caused anger in Israel by describing Russian-speaking immigrants to the Jewish state as a significant obstacle to a peace deal with the Palestinians.
The former US president claimed that the million-strong community of Jews who emigrated from former Soviet states after the collapse of Communism was generally more opposed to the creation of a Palestinian state than other Israelis.
Portraying Russian youngsters as one of "the hardest core" groups against the division of the Holy Land, Mr Clinton said: "This presents a staggering problem. It's a different Israel. Sixteen per cent of Israelis speak Russian. They've just got here," he told reporters in New York.
There was also condemnation from the ultra-Zionist Israel Beiteinu party led by Avigdor Lieberman, Mr Netanyahu's hawkish foreign minister. The party, which draws the vast majority of its support from Russian speakers, criticised Mr Clinton for meddling in Israel's internal affairs and dismissed his comments as "crude generalisations".
Yet observers say there is little doubt that the wave of immigration from the former Soviet Union has shifted the Israeli political landscape to the right. Yisrael Beiteinu swept to third place in last year's general elections on a platform that some critics said was racist towards Israel's Arab minority. The party has criticised the latest round of negotiations with Palestinian leaders.
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