Israel’s Defence Minister has called on the Israeli government to work on improving its relations with the United States to protect Israel’s legitimacy and fight attempts to “de-legitimise” the Zionist state. During a visit to the Tzeelim military base in the south of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Ehud Barak stressed that it is imperative to strengthen Israeli-US relations in order to fend off such efforts by some countries and strengthen Israel’s security. A strong stand against “de-legitimisation” will, he added, maintain Israel’s “political clout in the world”.
Mr. Barak also stressed that it is the Israeli government’s responsibility to make every effort “to follow a political process and initiative, on the Palestinian issue and at a regional level”, focusing on the negotiations between Tel Aviv and Ramallah, which have been stalled for more than three months.