Prime Minister Netanyahu at the ceremony:
"It's a moving moment to have you here, with your ambassador, your staff, your delegation, our foreign minister, deputy foreign minister and all the friends who've gathered here at this important moment.
First of all, only one time you can be seventh. Then comes eighth, ninth; seven is an important number, it's a symbolic number in our tradition.; You're opening an embassy in the 'City on the Hill,' the city of Jerusalem.
Here, next to the walls of our ancient city, the prophets spoke, the kings of Israel ruled, and some of the greatest insights of human faith and values were inscribed here. They were etched in our hearts and in the hearts of people all over the world.
When I listened to your anthem just now, I heard words that came from Zion, from Israel, from here – from Jerusalem. The words that came from here. So we have a common bond, a common civilization, even though you are on the other side of the Earth in the middle of an ocean, happily surrounded by water. As long as it doesn't rise, it's very good.
But we are together over the years, in many instances, in many great issues, and the first one is peace. You mentioned it. You were a soldier of peace. You were in a peace-keeping force. The idea of peace, peace between nations, peace between men and women around the world. That idea that all human beings are endowed with the right to live, the right to be free, the idea that slavery wasn't permanent. Three thousand years ago, that was a crazy idea, that people are basically important in themselves, every individual. That is a bedrock of our common faith and our common values. So this is more than a political moment. It's a sharing of great values and great purposes.
These values are challenged in our region. We have just been engaged for close to two years in a seven-front war against those who don't accept anything that I've just said. They celebrate a cult of death, they wish to extinguish the life of the Jewish state, but they threaten the lives of all who share our values and all who share the core of our civilization. It's very important that we brothers help one another. I'm proud of the fact that we have been involved in the development of Fiji. We talked today about many other things we can do and we intend to take this on with much vigor and much enthusiasm.
But the most important thing is what we're doing now.
The fact that you have come here, and you have put your embassy in Jerusalem and you recognize a truth that everybody should recognize, but few governments have so far. That this has been our capital for 3,000 years, since the days of King David, and in many ways, you spoke about the fact that you enabled, you're very proud of the fact that the first ambassador, you accepted him into your house. Welcome to our house, Mr. Prime Minister, which is your house and the house of the people of Fiji."
Video: GPO
