by Erez Linn, Daniel Siryoti and Shlomo Cesana
Trump, Mexican president, hold "very, very friendly" hour-long phone call over disagreement on who will pay for wall • Netanyahu: I built wall along southern border, stopped all illegal immigration • U.S.-Israel relations repaired, Trump says.
A border patrol drives along the U.S.-Mexico border in California,
Thursday Photo credit: AFP
U.S. President Donald Trump told Fox News' Sean Hannity in an interview Thursday that in light of Israel's successful southern border wall, he projects his ambitious plan to erect a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border will succeed as well.
"Look, the wall is necessary," Trump told Hannity. "That's not just politics, and yet it is good for the heart of the nation in a certain way because people want protection. And a wall protects. 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."
"I'm talking about a real wall. I'm talking about a wall that's got to be, like, serious. And even that, of course, you'll have people violate it. But we'll have people waiting for them when they do."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed with Trump's assessment on Facebook Saturday. "President Donald J. Trump is right," Netanyahu wrote on his Facebook account. "I built a wall along Israel's southern border. It stopped all illegal immigration. Great success. Great idea," he wrote, followed by an Israeli and American flag. Trump was quick to share Netanyahu's post on his presidential page.
After Netanyahu's post, Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon tweeted an explanation clarifying the nature of the statement: "[Netanyahu] referred to our specific security experience which we are willing to share. We do not express a position on U.S.-Mexico relations." This was not an apology, according to sources on behalf of Netanyahu, rather an explanation, as some may misinterpret the message.
Still, Netanyahu's comment was swiftly rejected by leaders of the Jewish community in Mexico, and prompted an unusually blunt statement from Mexico's Foreign Ministry.
"The Foreign Ministry expressed to the government of Israel, via its ambassador in Mexico, its profound astonishment, rejection and disappointment over Prime Minister Netanyahu's message on Twitter about the construction of a border wall," the ministry's statement said.
"Mexico is a friend of Israel and should be treated as such by its prime minister," it went on, noting that Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray expressed his deep affection for Israel in an event marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Friday.
At the same time, Trump's statements on the construction of a border wall have strained relations with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto. On Thursday, Pena Nieto canceled a planned meeting with Trump -- a response to Trump's repeated insistence that Mexico will pay for the border wall.
The two spoke for around an hour on the phone on Friday, however, seeking to resolve the issue. Trump described the conversation as "very, very friendly." He also said that he has "great relationships" with Mexican people, and that he has "great respect for Mexico." Mexico described the conversation as fruitful and positive. The two countries released statements that said the two leaders would work to resolve their differences, and the Mexico emphasized that they decided to not make additional statements on funding the wall.
Trump's interview with Hannity also described a fundamental shift in relations between Israel and the U.S. over the past week, following the strained relationship under former U.S. President Barack Obama.
"It's repaired," Trump told Hannity. "Got repaired as soon as I" was sworn in, he said.
"Within five minutes?" asked Hannity.
"Yes," Trump said, "It's repaired. We have a good relationship. Israel has been treated very badly. We have a good relationship with them."
Trump was careful, however, in his answer to the question of moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. "I don't want to [talk] about it yet," he said.
This comes after a statement by White House press secretary Sean Spicer that said the Trump administration had already begun looking into the matter last week.
Trump also declined to speak about reports he would hold back money Obama gave the Palestinian Authority right before the end of his term. "We're going to see what happens. Yes, I don't want to talk about it," he said in the interview.
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=39937
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