Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel on Monday.
The Greek premier underlined Israel’s right to self-defense according to International Law, but also the need to protect civilians, to free the Israelis held hostage by Hamas and to avoid a humanitarian crisis.
Welcoming Mitsotakis, Netanyahu expressed his content over the Greek prime minister’s visit to Israel. “I always say that the best thing besides standing with Israel, is being in Israel. I appreciate your solidarity, that of your government and the Greek people, in this dark hour. It is a battle of civilization against barbarism. We are on the side of civilization and we must all unite against Hamas, which is the Islamic State (ISIS).”
On his part, Mitsotakis emphasized that “I come here not only as an ally, but as a true friend. What happened was truly horrific. From the first moment, Greece defended and supported Israel’s right to self-defense, according to International Law.”
“We made a very clear distinction between Hamas and the Palestinian people. We will continue to support you and hope that whatever happens must happen without great humanitarian cost. You can count on our support, our help,” he added.
Mitsotakis is accompanied by Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis arrived in Israel earlier on Monday. His visit to Israel had not been made known. The prime minister was originally expected to travel to Israel last week, but his visit was postponed due to security concerns.
It is recalled that Mitsotakis participated last Saturday in the proceedings of the Cairo Summit, where he underlined that “no military intervention can replace a sustainable political solution.”
