When in February 2019 Viktor Orbán visited Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu drew attention to the strong ties between Israel and Hungary, directing his words to Brussels and the global community. This bond According to Netanjah it follows from the "many aspects" which "merged" and "merged" both countries. Netanjahu noted that Israel and Hungary are "two tiny nations, democracies that unite a community of values and interests."
Alliance between Israel Netanjah and Hungary Orbán shows Israel's fundamental turn towards a right-wing populist non-liberal power that perfectly ranks with European far-right populist parties and governments. Under Netanyahu, Israel strengthened its ties with European populists, applauding a wave of national-interest-based Euroscepticism, thus guaranteeing its unwavering expansion in occupied Palestinian territories while pursuing a broad abroad and national policy.
United to Fight Islam
When Netanjah came to power for the first time in 1996, Jews were not threatened by any widespread persecution in Europe, and Israel had a good diplomatic reputation across the continent. However, Netanyahu and his Likud organization made efforts to establish close relations with populist far right parties and governments — successors, in direct line, of European historical anti-Semitism. It did not take long for these fresh alliances to be reciprocated.
The case of the Belgian organization deserves attention Vlaams Belang (VB, Flemish Business). Although its founders collaborated with the Nazis, and earlier leadership characterized skepticism towards the Holocaust, this organization now belongs to the ardent supporters of Israel. erstwhile VB leader Philip Dewinter claims that Vlaams Belang “very often...is the only 1 standing up for Israel”, though critics They're accusing her. about the betrayal of “the ideals of nationalism in exchange for judaic money” and “the trampling against global Zionism”. Since the early 2000s, the organization has been accused of anti-Semitism highly seldom – it creates itself as a defender of judaic interests. Dewinter believes that "Jewish and Flemish nations share a common interest, namely the fight against Islam in Europe" and encourages Jews“ The Jews are our comrades in the fight against muslim extremism... They belong to European culture. What cannot be said about Islam."
The organization posing as a “socidal [Israel] in the fight against extremist Islam” joined the delegation of another European populist groups that went to Jerusalem in December 2010. The activists met with the Deputy Minister in Kneset and with leaders of judaic settlers in occupied Palestinian territories. During the visit, Dewinter and his organization colleagues issued the Jerusalem Declaration, in which they expressed support for “the existence of the State of Israel” and its right “to self-defense in the face of any aggression, especially against muslim terror”.
Following the massacre of Hamas on 7 October and the beginning of the war in Gaza by Israel, VB members openly expressed their support for Israel. In July 2024, the organization expressed serious concerns that a immense influx of Palestinians to Belgium could possibly go hand in hand with Muslim fundamentalism and anti-Semitism. Van Rooy himself, a associate of the Belgian Parliament from the VB Party, stated that he was going to face this issue with the future Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration. Van Rooy He'd like to understand, "why so many Palestinians choose Belgium and how they scope our country from Gaza". He cited studies that propose an increase in support of Hamas among Palestinians: supposedly 72% of them support the 2023 attack.
An Unexpected Ally from Germany
Israel’s relations with Germany Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) were somewhat more restrained due to the openly proclaimed anti-Semitism and links with neo-Nazis. Nevertheless, any Israeli public life figures occasionally called for a closer relation with this group. In August 2019 in Israel Hayom, the Likudu tube journal, there was an appeal calling for an authoritative dialog with the AfD, motivated by the belief that Israel should prosecute its own national interests by bringing allies together wherever possible. paper argued, that "now the biggest threat to Israel and European Jews is not the right, but the left and its solidarity electorate from arabian and Muslim immigration communities".
In May 2020, Prime Minister Jair Netanyahu's boy became the face of AfD by means of a tweet in which he urged the overthrow of the EU. In consequence to the EU delegation in Israel tweeted: “The Schengen area is dead. Soon, a akin destiny awaits your wicked globalist organization. Europe will be free, democratic and Christian again!" Joachim Kuhs, a erstwhile associate of the European Parliament from AfD utilized this tweet and created graphics with the image of Jair Netanjah next to his post. In mid-October 2023, after the October 7 massacre, Alexander Gauland of AfD
in the Bundestag that “the joyful manifestations in honour of Hamas on German streets are unbearable”. The organization demanded the removal of German citizenship to Hamas supporters.
“Israel is us”
Granted, the Netanjahu government is cautious in its dealings with AfD, but in its relations with the Italian organization Lega It is vain to search akin restraint. Her leader Matteo Salvini believes Israel This "reaffirms the safeguarding of safety in Europe" and "bastion of Western rights and values", while at the same time sparing criticism by the EU's "unbalanced" position against the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and condemning Israel's "every 4th of an hour" by the Union. This companionship of each other’s adoration is especially evident erstwhile Salvini speaks of himself as “O friend and brother of Israel” (a Netanjah He calls him “a large friend of Israel. ” On the another hand, erstwhile Israeli Minister for Public Security, strategical Affairs and Information Gilad Erdan pointed out common objectives"We are partners in the fight against extremist muslim panic threatening Europe and Israel".
Salvini shares this view by putting a sign of equality between anti-Semitism and anti-Israeli sentiments and attributing European anti-Semitism to muslim extremists. He promised to fight “anti-Israeli trends” in the EU. In mid-October 2023 Salvini stated that Hamas attacks in Israel were “not [war], but barbarity.” A period later in Italian media Salvini stated that "Hamas uses civilians as human shields" and added that "this proves the savagery of these people. [...] However, I hope that Israel's reaction, which after what happened, is inevitable, will nevertheless be very prudent."
Israel under the regulation of Netanjahu established a unique relation with Geert Wilders and his organization partyj voor de Vrijheid (PVV, organization of Freedom), known for his anti-Islamic attitude. Unlike another European far right parties, Israel does not see PVV as an anti-Semitic or fascist group. Wilders spent 18 months in Israel as a volunteer in 1 of the judaic settlements, later visited the country for tens and openly expressed his admiration for the Israeli authorities. "Israel is the guiding light, the only democracy in this dark, tyrannical region," he said. "It is part of us and our European identity. Israel is fighting in our war. War against Israel is war against us. Israel is us."
Wilders seems to be captivating Likudu's leadership with his ideological rhetoric. He argues that “the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not territorial, and those who think so have no thought what they are talking about. Even if the West Bank and part of Jerusalem were returned to the Palestinians, this would not mean the end of this conflict. It'll be a small time, a month, a year, a decade, and they'll want the remainder of the land, due to the fact that we're dealing with an ideological conflict. Therefore, the solution must besides be ideological alternatively than territorial." Following the attack on Israeli football fans in Amsterdam in November 2024, by groups allegedly targeting Jews, Wilders stated that the attackers were “only Muslims”, “mostly” Moroccans, adding that “we became [the Netherlands] Gaza of Europe”.
Wilders openly admires Likudu's leadership. He admits that like him himself, the erstwhile Prime Minister Ariel Szaron besides “was powerfully demonized by the West, but he was a large statesman, who is simply a model for me.”
EU undermining
Netanjahu besides took measures to bring together the Visegrad countries (V4), i.e. Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. In July 2017, he visited Hungary during the V4 summit. This was the first visit of the Israeli Prime Minister to Hungary since the restoration of Hungarian-Israeli diplomatic relations in 1989, which went back to past due to an unexpected "eavesdrop incident". During a gathering behind closed doors with V4 leaders, individual inadvertently recorded Netanyahu erstwhile he criticized the EU and sought support to undermine the EU's consensus on Iran and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Netanyahu's strategy was to make a diplomatic alliance in which Israel will share its experience and competence in security, cyber, advanced tech, agriculture and technology with its associate States in exchange for V4 support. This proved to be a bull's-eye and led to a increasing bond between Israel and the V4 nations.
In February 2019, the first V4 summit outside Europe was to be held in Jerusalem. However, he was dismissed due to the diplomatic dispute between Israel and Poland, caused by comments by the Israeli minister of abroad affairs in office on Polish anti-Semitism, which did not prevent Prime Minister Netanyahu from hosting in his residence the Prime Ministers of Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. At the time of the cancelled summit, V4 members expressed their support for the Netanyahu government through various diplomatic activities. Contrary to the authoritative EU guidelines for Jerusalem, the Czech Republic opened the Czech Institute in that city, Slovakia announced plans to open a cultural and trade representation, and Hungary opened a commercial representation, recognising it as the Jerusalem branch of its embassy in Israel.
The V4 countries, in peculiar Hungary Orbán, strong relations with Israel aid to defy criticism of alleged anti-Semitic and xenophobic political actions, and Netanjahu's approach correlates with their interests. V4 leaders, who advance ento-nationalism in their homestead, admire the assertive implementation of diplomatic interests and steps for Israel's safety by Netanyahu as well as its political solutions to preserve Israel's cultural character. Breaking out of the EU's fundamental position, V4 leaders support the Israeli authorities' approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and share the Israeli view of the disputed issues specified as migration, safety or threat assessment.
In August 2018 Netanjahu visited Lithuania during the summit of the Baltic States. As with the Hungarian visit a year earlier, the Israeli Prime Minister besides came there for the first time, which was a historical moment, highlighting an always closer relation between the 2 nations. However, the importance of the visit went far beyond bilateral relations, marking the territory of a broader European policy. Upon arriving in Vilnius Netanjah, he mostly acknowledged that Israel under his regulation had taken a populist, Eurosceptic course, utilizing relations with V4 and another east European countries to influence strategically EU abroad policy. Netanjahu stated: “I want a balance to guarantee a fairer relation between the European Union and Israel, not always friendly. [...] To this end, I usage contacts with blocks of countries [EU], east European countries, and now besides with the Baltic countries, although of course it is not over.”
Closing your ears to the concerns of European Jews
In 2015, the Israeli Ministry of abroad Affairs (MFA) introduced "Guidelines for communication with populist far-right parties in Europe". The paper is classified, but it is known that there are 3 main assumptions. First: Israeli government ministers and government authorities are prohibited from contacting anti-Semitic and neo-Nazi far-right populist parties, whose leaders and/or members demanded the demolition of Israel and European judaic communes. Second: the Israeli government will not engage in dialog with the utmost right-wing organization if the local judaic community opposes it. Third: the Israeli government will take into account the ratio of "countries of akin mentality" to a peculiar far right party.
Netanjah's current government not only ignored the MFA guidelines, but officially abolished them. Diaspora Minister Amichaj Szikli clearly and clearly announced the end of the Israeli boycott of far-right parties in Europe.
Pragmatic interests and ideological sympathy
The Arab-Israeli conflict has shaped relations between Europe and Israel since 1967. Israel consistently sees Europe's view of the conflict as hostile to safety interests and uncritically overlapping with the arabian perspective. Over the years, Europe has attempted to mediate in this tense situation as part of multilateral initiatives specified as the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (EMP) or its successor, the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM). However, Israel's isolation in the structure of specified an EMP as UfM has paradoxically pushed this country into the arms of European far-right and populist parties and governments. How ironic! The EMP, the UfM, the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) were designed to build dialog among the Mediterranean partners, while 1 of the most crucial but unintended effects of these initiatives was to mobilise Israel to join the far right of Europe.
The alliance between Israel Netanyahu and the European populist forces of the far right goes beyond purely "realist" interests and includes common ideological values and sympathy, which are frequently openly contrary to fundamental EU social and political standards. At the pragmatic level, their relation is based on the rule of "something for something": European far-right populist parties and governments usage their relation with Israel to counter allegations of anti-Semitism, xenophobia and of opposing human rights, while gaining access to the Israeli treasurer of security, cyber technology, agriculture and the high-tech industry. Israel uses its populist and non-liberal allies to justify colonial activities and push its interests in national parliaments, EU institutions, UN bodies and another global forums.
Behind this applicable exchange lies a deeper ideological marriage. Ironically, these partnerships reflect common values and objectives which are intended to undermine liberal standards, traditionally the foundation of EU policy.
Israel's alliances with European far-right populists are primarily intended to undermine the basic standards of "Europe as a normative power". And since these standards are besides being contested within the EU, Brussels' ability to enforce an approach based on the concept of a "normative power" in intra-EU and abroad policy is decreasing, which besides limits the opportunities of the Union to influence Israel. Under Netanyahu, populism and Euroscepticism have become strategical tools for achieving Israel's political objectives and transforming EU abroad policy into Israeli interests.
Netanyahu's approach ensures common legitimacy in this arrangement: European populist far right parties and governments overlook Israeli colonial aspirations in occupied Palestinian territories, and even advocate Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, Israel in turn disregards their neo-Nazi ideological roots and modern anti-Semitic tendencies.
Netanjahu, like European far-right populists and non-liberals, identifies the European left and community of Arab-Muslim immigrants with the basic challenges on this continent, identifying them as a major European threat to Jews in Israel and Europe. European far-right populist parties and governments, proclaiming their commitment to combat anti-Semitism across Europe, service Israel as ideological allies on an cultural level of nationalism in an overarching fight against “global Islam”. Both sides are fundamentally opposed to immigration, with peculiar emphasis on arabian and Muslim migration.
This common position was peculiarly evident during the Netanjah gathering with Orbán in Jerusalem, where The first 1 said“We both know that the threat of extremist Islam is real. It could endanger Europe. He could endanger the full world. [...] Being here, in the front line of the fight against extremist Islam, Israel in many ways defends Europe.”
The Likud of Netanyahu and its European far-right populist allies have the same basic ideological assumptions: rejection of multiculturalism, opposition to media criticism, hostility towards minorities and contempt for global law – as evidenced by the Netanjah's disrespectful reaction au arrest warrant issued by the global Criminal Court. It is an alliance that is based on profoundly rooted racist-nativistic views.
Hub countries
Netanjahu and his far-right populist allies in Europe search to make what Hungarian historian Andrea Pető called "non-liberal hub countryIt’s okay. ” Huba is simply a parasitic fungus that grows on trees and accelerates their bloating. It is hard to have a better metaphor for this kind of political transformation. Like a fungus devouring its host Israel Netanyahu and European far-right populist governments parasitise the resources gained by their liberal Democratic predecessors, creating dependent state structures. This kind of governance model absorbs existing liberal democratic institutions, mechanisms, backing channels, redirecting resources from secular, modern civilian societies to non-liberal supporters in order to warrant and deepen influence.
In this sense, the relation between Israel Netanyahu and far-right populist forces in Europe goes far beyond specified instrumentalisation to counter external pressures and to introduce divisions among EU countries and UN bodies. They reflect the deep ideological relation and community of values with the hubs of Europe.
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Jonathan Touval – abroad policy analyst, specializing in resolving conflicts and aspects of regional diplomacy in Mitvim (The Israeli Institute for Regional abroad Policies).
Sharon Pardo – Jean Monnet Chair ad personam and elder investigator at Simone Veil investigation Centre for Contemporary European Studies at Ben-Gurion University in Negew.
