(Communicated by the President's Spokesperson)
President Reuven Rivlin, this afternoon (Wednesday, 13 August 2014), at the President's Residence in Jerusalem, met with New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo in the framework of the latter's solidarity visit to Israel and told him at the start of their meeting:
"Well Mr. Governor, I really would like to express my appreciation for your visit to our state in these days, in these very hours, and we appreciate very much the delegation that really gives us the atmosphere of politics in the United States of America, of the unity and the ability of both sides of the political system to be here together, which shows a lot of appreciation and support for Israel. We have a war; actually we don't have war, not with the Palestinians and not with the Islamic world.
We have, unfortunately, real problems with terrorist organizations. We have the duty, not only the right, to protect our people. I really would like to say to you, Mr. Governor, in these very moments, we have a sort of negotiations in Cairo, negotiations that actually go between the Egyptians and the Hamas organization and the head of the Palestinian entity, the representative of Abu Mazen, the president.
We don't know yet whether we will see the end of the hostilities and the end of the fighting in the next few hours. No-one knows, but we are certain that if we are forced into another round of fighting, you will support us and give us what we need to say to the terrorists – there is no way that you will bring down Israel. I would like to take the opportunity of your visit to Israel, and the [state] senators and the Speaker, to convey our deep gratitude to the President of the United States and to the Secretary of State, Mr. Kerry, about their support and their efforts in order to bring this crisis to an end. In the past they have supported us and we are sure that they will support us in the future because we are on the right side. Thank you so very much Mr. Governor."
New York Governor Cuomo replied:"
"Mr. President, let me say first of all thank you very much for your hospitality and your courtesy. Your entire team has been extraordinary in their courtesy to us and we want to thank you very much. We know you're going through a very difficult time and that's precisely why we are here. This is a somewhat unprecedented delegation from New York. It shows total solidarity, bipartisan solidarity. We have the Speaker of our Assembly. We have the [state] senate leadership in Senators Skelos and Klein. We have representatives of the business community and Mr. Morton Zuckerman from US News & World Report and the [New York] Daily News. So really we want to convey that all of New York stands with you. The United States has always been a strong ally of Israel on many levels. We've felt that especially strong in the State of New York. We have so many connections and so many ties. There are 1.7 million Jews in the State of New York, more than anywh ere else besides Israel. Our history goes back a long, long time. We know that these are difficult days and we want to say that we stand with you in solidarity. We understand your need and your right to defend yourself. We understand the attack that you are under. Everyone wishes for peace and that's our eternal hope, but we also understand your need to do what is right by your people in defense and we're here to support you in that."
PM Netanyahu meets with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo
(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)
Following are the statements by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo made prior to their meeting this afternoon (Wednesday, 13 August 2014):
Prime Minister Netanyahu:
"Governor, I want to welcome your delegation to Israel. It’s a pleasure to see you all here, especially at this time. I just said to you that the first thing I want you to do is to send warmest regards to your father. I remember him fondly from my days in the UN. At that time in the UN, I had to address the question of the constant attempts to force a moral asymmetry on the world or a false symmetry on Israel. That's what you do in the United Nations if you are the ambassador of Israel. And I remember how strongly, firmly and clearly Governor Cuomo, Mario Cuomo, stood with Israel at the time and this is a tradition that continues with you and your delegation.
I want to thank you for coming here, for standing clearly with Israel, representing the American people and the people of New York, and also representing the rejection of this false symmetry that is, has made. Just as you wouldn't put America and ISIS on the same moral plane, you'd never put Israel and Hamas on the same moral plane. Remember that Hamas celebrating 9/11; they celebrated the murder of thousands of innocent people, including thousands of New Yorkers. They celebrated! They were standing on the roofs cheering while all the people of Israel grieved with the United States. When the United States killed Bin Laden, they accused the United States and condemned the United States of committing crimes. This tells you where Hamas is and Israel is on the other side.
Hamas continues to do these horrible things that ISIS does: They persecute Christians, they persecute gays, they persecute women, they basically reject modernity and there are a terrorist tyranny that is imposed on their people. And where their people reject being used as human shields, you know what they do, Governor? They execute them. This is the kind of moral divide that is evident today in the world, and on one side you see Israel and the United States representing democracies committing to human rights, committing to a real future for our people; and on the other side, you have the likes of ISIS and Hamas, Islamist tyrannies that have no inhibition and pursue their grisly creeds and their grisly deeds.
I thank you for coming here and standing on the right side of the moral divide."
New York Governor Cuomo:
"Thank you. Thank you very much. Well, Prime Minister, it's our pleasure. We know that you're going through a very difficult time right now and Israel is going through a very difficult time. And that is precisely why we're here: Because we want to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel, we want to stand in solidarity with you. The delegation that has come forward is unprecedented in some ways. We have both sides of the legislature, the Assembly and the Senate. It's a bipartisan delegation. We have business representatives, [unclear] leaders, and we all wanted to come as one, in solidarity, in unity, to say to Israel: We understand the situation you're in, we understand what you are facing and we support your right, your leave to defend your people against terror.
The United States has always been a strong ally of Israel on many, many levels. As New Yorkers, we have many connections, family connections, cultural connections, historic connections, so our relations go very deep. And I speak for all New Yorkers when I say: We stand in solidarity with Israel. The fight that you fight is the fight against terror. Unfortunately in New York, we've had a rude awakening to the pain and suffering that terror can cause in 9/11. So we have a special sensitivity in our hearts for what you're going through now.
We wish you peace, everyone hopes that the killing will stop and we can get to a place of peace. I know that's your hope. You've been quite articulate and eloquent on the subject, but we understand that Israel must defend itself. The discovery of these tunnels I find very troubling indeed. It shows the extensive approach of the enemy, the constant rocket fire and the Iron Dome is successful, but it must stop and we understand that also. So, we pray for peace. We stand with you in defense."