President Shimon Peres complimented the former head of the leftwing Meretz party calling him a "fearless warrior for peace". He also said that just because Beilin is in the minority doesn’t make him wrong. The Meretz party received three seats in the last elections.

The President made the comments at a ceremony in which the French Ambassador granted Beilin the French Legion of Honor. Peres has been criticized in the past for using the neutral position of President to push a political agenda.