Rivlin and Hanegbi attend Independence Day event for foreign diplomats
Rivlin and Hanegbi attend Independence Day event for foreign diplomatsMark Neyman (GPO)

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin has urged foreign diplomats to stand firm with the State of Israel, opining that their countries share a common cause with the Jewish state.

Speaking at a special Independence Day event at the president's residence, Rivlin expressed his pride in what his country had achieved in the 67 years since its founding, and his hopes that Israel's neighbors will one day succeed in achieving the same.

"I know that liberty, that democracy, are not to be taken for granted," Rivlin told the gathered diplomats, including foreign ambassadors. "Israel’s independence is the fulfillment of a two thousand year old dream."

"I look around me with such pride at all that we have achieved, from literature to film, technology to medicine, agriculture to academia.  Israel is a beacon of democracy in a pained region.

"In the Middle East today, we see women, men and children on the frontline in a fight for their basic rights, giving their lives for the sake of freedom.  It is my hope and prayer that in our days, those who are fighting against fundamentalism, will also taste liberty and freedom."

But the president warned that those rights - even in already-free countries - are under threat from the rise of radical Islam, and urged a united international front to combat the threat, which included the prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran.

"We are one family, a family of nations," he said. "We all face many similar challenges: The rise of fundamentalist groups, bringing death and destruction, spreading hatred, and spilling innocent blood; a nuclear Iran, is a threat to Israel, as it is to Saudi Arabia, Jordan, France, Denmark, to all of us. 

"In the face of these and other challenges, Israel cannot, should not, and does not, stand alone."

"On this day, we not only celebrate our independence, but our true partnership, with our friends around the world, with you," Rivlin continued. 

"Together, side by side, we will find the way, we must find the way, to make this world a safer place, a more promising one, a place of freedom. This is our duty to our people and to our children."

Deputy Prime Minister Tzachi Hanegbi delivered a similar message, hailing Israel's burgeoning international partnerships and calling for even greater cooperation in a wide range of fields.

"The expanding scope of cooperation between Israel and your countries is unprecedented, in agriculture, hi-tech, security, combatting terror, promoting trade, medicine, academia and many other fields, Israel is assisting and being assisted," Hanegbi said.

"In the coming years we will continue to broaden and upgrade these cooperative undertakings to new heights for the benefits of our peoples."