(IsraelNN.com) Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu says that his ultimatum still stands: He will resign from the government if Prime Minister Sharon does not agree, within nine days, to conduct a national referendum on the disengagement plan.

Netanyahu delivered the ultimatum, in the name of himself and several other Likud ministers, last week. Since then, however, the others Ministers Livnat, Katz and Naveh - have dropped out, leaving Netanyahu alone in the fray. It was widely thought that he would also seek a way to "climb down" from his threat, but he put to rest this speculation last night with his announcement. Netanyahu is scheduled to return today from a short visit to the United States.

The Netanyahu situation is complicated by the fact that as Finance Minister, he is scheduled to present the national budget for a Knesset vote this very week. He has already announced that he plans to meet with several Knesset factions in order to promote the plan.

Prime Minister Sharon, who has been Netanyahu's political rival for several years but who has been allied with him on economic issues, is said to be willing to have Netanyahu remain in the government. Political analysts say that Sharon knows that Netanyahu will be more of a political threat to him if he quits the government and then openly opposes Sharon. Netanyahu has significantly more support among the Likud Central Committee membership than does the Prime Minister.