Outgoing Foreign Minister Eli Cohen summarizes his time in the ministry in an exclusive interview to be published this weekend. Cohen says he does not regret his short term, after which he is expected to be replaced by Yisrael Katz and serve as energy minister. However, he accepts the criticism of the way the rotation will be conducted. "This political arrangement of a year or two or a year is a dirty curve, and it was right to divide the period into two years at a time," he says. "I think I've proven that even in one year you can achieve very significant achievements. That is why I am not sorry, on the contrary. I leave the Foreign Ministry with a great sense of satisfaction."
Eli Cohen in the European Parliament (Archive) | Courtesy of the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and the Fight against Antisemitism
During his tenure, Cohen made achievements, registering 36 state visits, four embassies expected to go to Jerusalem, four new embassies in Israel, two of them belonging to Muslim countries – Azerbaijan and Chad, the inauguration of a new embassy in Turkmenistan, a free trade agreement with the United Arab Emirates, the opening of Oman's skies to flights from Israel and a near-agreement with Sudan.
Street in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Cohen claims that a normalization agreement is imminent, Photo: Reuters
However, there are things that have not yet come to an end, including the normalization agreement with Saudi Arabia. According to Cohen, normalization with Saudi Arabia has not been shelved: "It's not a question of if, but when. There is great potential for signing an agreement in the third quarter of this year. Saudi interests are clear. They see the United States standing with Israel in the war in Gaza, and they expect the same support from them. President Biden, for his part, will want a political achievement ahead of the presidential elections that will contribute to regional stability and lower oil prices."
Ad Cohen officially refers to Iran's involvement in the October 7 attacks with the goal, among other things, of stopping the agreement with Saudi Arabia. "Iran saw with horror the regional progress. This alliance would threaten them from a security standpoint vis-à-vis Saudi Arabia, which sees Iran as its greatest enemy."
The outgoing foreign minister also referred to information that was missing before the Black Saturday attack and the forecasts presented over the past year. "Over the past year, there has been increased preparation vis-à-vis the Iranian arena. There was a demand by the defense establishment to receive an additional NIS 12 billion that was also given, in order to be prepared for any scenario in the Iranian context, and also on the northern front."
There were assessments that Hamas was deterred, and the recommendations were to allow the economy in the Gaza Strip to be strengthened as a moderating factor. As Bennett said, the previous government also increased the number of workers entering Israel, and this is also what was presented to the political elements as part of the intelligence assessment."
Regarding criticism of the government since October 7, Cohen said the chain of failures that led to the massacre would be investigated by a state commission of inquiry. "I support a state commission of inquiry to investigate how this failure happened, to bring those who failed to justice and to ensure that something like this does not happen again."
On the Likud's crash in the polls, he said: "I understand the frustration after that very difficult Shabbat that touched every home in the country. At the same time, the policies of the Likud and the right-wing path are the right one, and wartime polls are not representative. I hear more right-wing opinions among centrists and leftists as well. Therefore, I have no doubt that the Likud will become stronger." However, he adds: "There are also things that need to be fixed. The Likud party must also write a new contract with the public," Cohen concludes.
The full interview will be published on Friday in the "Israel This Week" supplement
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