Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu referred to the “Submarine Affair” during his visit to Hungary on Wednesday evening.
The investigation into what is known as Case 3000 began in November after allegations that David Shimron, the personal attorney and second cousin of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, convinced Netanyahu to purchase the subs from ThyssenKrupp rather than through an international tender.
Police suspect a series of crimes was committed surrounding the purchase of three submarines from the German company ThyssenKrupp, including bribery, fraud, tax evasion and money laundering.
Netanyahu currently is not a suspect in Case 3000, police have asserted.
The submarine deal, which would take about 10 years to fulfill, is meant to replace three older submarines in the Israeli Navy’s fleet.
Netanyahu told reporters in Hungary that he believes the deal will be signed soon, despite the investigation.
“There’s now an asterisk in the deal,” Netanyahu said. “As soon as things clear up, I assume that the deal will go forward. I have no idea [how the current investigation into the matter will end] but believe it will go ahead.”
“I had no idea about Shimron’s involvement,” Netanyahu asserted. “When this whole story is over I will say what I think about it. The allegations against Shimron will turn out to be ;baseless nonsense,'" he said.or
“I don’t know what is considered ccorruption and what is not corruption in the Submarines Affair,” he continued. “The decisions the security establishment took were transparent and matter-of-fact. I don’t judge people; people are entitled to the presumption of innocence. I don’t know what will or will not come of it.”