Israel, Central European alliance deepen cooperation at summit
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met separately Wednesday with Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico and Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka on the sidelines of the Visegard Group summit in Budapest.
During a joint press conference with the three leaders and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Netanyahu said Israel and the four countries face the common threats of militant Islam and terrorism. Israel serves Europe's interests as "a bastion of European and Western values in the heart of a very, very dark area", Netanyahu said, calling on Europe to reassess its relations with the Jewish state. He added that Israel has much to offer the Visegard Group in the fields of security, technology and innovation, among others.
The Hungarian prime minister said during his statement that the four countries of the alliance will promote cooperation between the EU and Israel. "If Europe does not cooperate with Israel, it is punishing itself", he said.