Address by Reuven RIVLIN, President of the State of Israel, during the formal sitting&nbsp; of the EP in Brussels.

Brussels

EU - Israel (T)

speech

formal sitting

peace process in the Middle East (T)

RIVLIN, Reuven (IL)

Address by Reuven RIVLIN, President of the State of Israel: extracts from the Formal sitting

Arrival of Reuven RIVLIN, President of the State of Israel, to the hemicycle, accompanied by EP President Martin SCHULZ.

SOUNDBITE (German), Martin SCHULZ, EP President, We have trust in your unconditional belief in peace. Your presence today, together with the presence of President Abbas tomorrow, are strong signs that the will for a sustainable peace between Israel and Palestine continues to live.

EP President Martin SCHULZ gives the floor to President RIVLIN who goes to the tribune.

SOUNDBITE (Hebrew), Reuven RIVLIN, President of the State of Israel, Regardless of the perspective with which we look at this, our past, our present, and the future we are awaiting, intrinsically linked, Israel and Europe, in an unbreakable bond. Just as humanity could not be what it is without Europe, so Europe could not be what it is without the Jewish People.

SOUNDBITE (Hebrew), Reuven RIVLIN, President of the State of Israel, The European Union, and within it this distinguished parliament, is an audacious endeavor of politics and statehood. Tomorrow this endeavor will be put to a complex test in the United Kingdom, while day in day out it stands the test of refugees and migration on an historic scale.

SOUNDBITE (Hebrew), Reuven RIVLIN, President of the State of Israel, One should bear in mind the most fundamental trait of Israeli Palestinian relations today which is to my deep regret a total lack of trust between the parties on all levels; between the leaderships and yes, between the peoples as well.

SOUNDBITE (Hebrew), Reuven RIVLIN, President of the State of Israel, If Europe is interested in serving as a constructive factor in striving for a future agreement, it will be incumbent upon you its leaders, to focus efforts at this time in a patient and methodic building of trust. Not through divestments, but through investment; not by boycotts, but by cooperation.

SOUNDBITE (Hebrew), Reuven RIVLIN, President of the State of Israel, On behalf of the people in Israel, I wish all Europe&rsquo;s Muslims and the Muslim believers throughout the entire world Ramadan Karim, Kul Am Wa Antum Bikhair. Ladies and gentlemen, 'Pray for the peace of Jerusalem, may all who love her prosper. Peace be within thy walls and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions&rsquo; sake, I will now say, Peace be within thee. (Psalm 122, 6-8). God bless you all.