Foreign Ministry Faces Massive Cuts

Jerusalem, 8 January, 2018 (TPS) -- Israel’s Foreign Ministry may be forced to close 22 overseas delegations by 2021, according to a letter sent by the Finance Ministry Monday to all government ministries detailing cuts to their respective budgets. The cuts are part of the 2019/2020 state budget, which will be presented to the Knesset on Thursday.

According to the Treasury document, the closure of the overseas delegations would save the state NIS 176 million. The budget also proposes the termination of 140 employees at the foreign ministry’s Jerusalem offices, a move which that would save NIS 40 million.

In response to the letter, Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely issued a stern statement where she accused the Treasury of sabotaging Israel’s foreign relations.

“This is a scandalous move that we will not let pass. The Treasury Department chose to carry out a targeted assassination on Israel’s foreign service during a time that Israel is expanding its foreign relations and the foreign ministry requires a higher budget”, the statement read, ending with Hotoveli vowing to meet with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in order to prevent the budget cut.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Emanuel Nachshon wrote on Twitter that “Israel’s foreign relations are a part of our national security and its important that the Treasury realize that.”

Homeland Security Minister Gilad Erdan, whose portfolio includes combating BDS, also tweeted his displeasure with the expected cut. “It’s utterly delusional that during such a diplomatically challenging time the Treasury is trying to cut the budget of the foreign ministry, which already suffers from low manpower.”

Erdan added that he is certain that Netanyahu, who also heads the Foreign Ministry, will not allow this move “which would damage Israel’s standing in the world.”

Labor MK Nachman Shai, a member of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee said there was no other way to describe the proposal than as “utter madness.”

“Israel’s foreign relations are its lifeline. They create its legitimacy and its place among the nations,” Shai added.