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Netanyahu Says Defense Pact With U.S. Would Deter Enemies

Netanyahu Says Defense Pact With U.S. Would Deter Enemies

(Bloomberg) -- A defense pact with the U.S. would act as a strong deterrent to Israel’s enemies, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu Says Defense Pact With U.S. Would Deter Enemies

Netanyahu’s comments on Sunday came a day after Donald Trump said in a tweet that he had discussed with the prime minister the possibility of moving forward with a mutual defense treaty. The two leaders will continue that discussion at a meeting of the UN General Assembly, Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu rejected claims that the treaty would limit Israel’s freedom to act.

“This adds an enormous layer of deterrence against our enemies, while preserving our ability to act and our forces’ freedom of action,” Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting. “We will always insist on this and this will always be part of a defense treaty, just as it is part of other defense treaties.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Alisa Odenheimer in Jerusalem at aodenheimer@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shaji Mathew at shajimathew@bloomberg.net, Andrew Blackman, James Amott

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