UK’s Foreign Minister meets with Israeli to discuss Iranian issue
Jerusalem, Sept 11 (EFE).- British Foreign Office Minister James Cleverly met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen in Israel on Monday to discuss Iran’s role in the Middle East and the world, and strengthening ties between Britain and the Jewish state.
Cleverly began his official stay in Israel with a visit to the Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem, where, as is customary for visiting dignitaries, he laid a bouquet in memory of the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis.
“We must never forget the atrocities of one of the darkest moments in our collective history,” said the British minister.
“The UK will always support Israel in the fight against anti-Semitism,” he added.
Cleverly’s visit will last three days, and he will also visit on Tuesday the city of Ramallaht, de facto capital of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in the occupied West Bank, where he will meet with its Prime Minister, Mohamed Shtayeh.
Cleverly is in the region to reiterate London’s support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which in 2023 has seen its bloodiest year since the Second Intifada (2000-2005).
The Iranian issue was central to his meeting with Netanyahu, who stressed “the importance of preventing Iran’s nuclearization” and asserted that “its actions to undermine regional and global stability” must be prevented.
At the same time, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s office, both addressed “the strengthening of cooperation in the security, technological and economic fields between the countries, and in particular, at the level of artificial intelligence.”
On the other hand, the Israeli Foreign Minister thanked Cleverly for the “UK’s commitment to stop Iran’s nuclear program,” which he assured both countries “are united.”
He also stressed that the UK is Israel’s leading trading partner in Europe, to which Cohen asked Cleverly to work “to promote a free trade agreement between the two countries.”
Israel and the UK have close historical ties, in addition to the British relationship with the region, since London maintained direct control over it from 1917 to 1948, with the British Protectorate of Palestine before the founding of the State of Israel itself. EFE
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