Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu spoke out Tuesday on the recent diplomatic flap with the Mexican government, regarding a tweet by Netanyahu widely perceived as an endorsement of President Trump’s proposed barrier along the US-Mexico border.
Speaking at CyberTech conference in Tel Aviv, the Prime Minister said he wished to “clarify” his tweet, noting that he had not addressed Mexico, America’s relationship with Mexico, or his own government’s ties with that of Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto. Netanyahu said that his comment had merely affirmed the success of Israel’s own border barrier, which Trump has often cited in his arguments in favor of an American border wall.
“I take this opportunity to explain or clarify what I did and did not say in my tweet the other night,” said Netanyahu. “I thought you'd be interested in that. I did point out the remarkable success of Israel’s security fence. But I did not comment about US-Mexico relations.”
“We've had, and will continue to have, good relations with Mexico. And I believe our ties are much stronger than any passing disagreement or misunderstanding. And in fact, I've had a long, fruitful and very friendly relationship with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and it will continue.”
In an interview last week with Fox News, Trump pointed to Israel’s use of physical barriers on its border with Egypt to reduce illegal immigration.
"It's not just politics, and yet it is good for the heart of the nation,” Trump said. “All you have to do is ask Israel. They were having a total disaster coming across, and they had a wall. It’s 99.9% stoppage.”
"A proper wall...I'm talking about a real wall...and even that, of course, you'll have people violate it, but we'll have people waiting for them when they do."
On Saturday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu responded in a tweet, affirming the efficacy of Israel’s border wall and wishing the US good luck in building similar a barrier.
"The wall I built all along Israel's southern border stopped the illegal immigration from that direction. Good luck, it's a great idea."
Netanyahu’s tweet sparked a diplomatic backlash from the Mexican government, which has criticized Trump’s plan to build a wall on the US-Mexican border.
Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray later demanded an apology from Netanyahu, saying the tweet “felt like an aggressive act”.
The Prime Minister refused, but after reportedly being pressed by Interior Minister Aryeh Deri (Shas), agreed to “clarify’ his Twitter post.