PM Netanyahu Meets with the Foreign Ministers of Romania and New Zealand
(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today (Thursday, 17 November 2016), met
with Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu, who is on an official visit
to Israel. They discussed the excellent state of bilateral relations and the
need to expand the areas in which the two countries have a policy of
cooperation, especially economic and commercial matters.

Prime Minister Netanyahu thanked Romanian Foreign Minister Comanescu for his
country's support in international organizations against the Palestinian
initiatives that render the region's hoped-for peace more remote. He added
that a solution to the conflict will come through direct negotiations
between the sides and not via initiatives on the part of various countries
and international organizations. The Prime Minister also discussed with the
Romanian Foreign Minister the regional challenges that Israel is currently
facing.

Afterwards, Prime Minister Netanyahu met with New Zealand Foreign Minister
Murray McCully, who is also on an official visit to Israel. They discussed
expanding bilateral cooperation in areas of mutual interest. The Prime
Minister showed the New Zealand Foreign Minister a map of the challenges
currently facing Israel and emphasized the fact that any diplomatic progress
between Israel and the Palestinians would be the product of direct
negotiations between the sides on the basis of the principle of two states
for two peoples.

Prime Minister Netanyahu added that the Palestinians must halt their
unproductive efforts to avoid direct negotiations with Israel as well as
their efforts to promote the politicization of professional international
organizations such as UNESCO and Interpol. The two men expressed their
satisfaction over the excellent state of bilateral relations along with the
aspiration that they continue to advance.