French President Emmanuel Macaron sent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a letter on Thursday congratulating him on the decision by President Reuven Rivlin to appoint him to form the next government, according to Walla.The French president also called on the prime minster to maintain dialogue with the Palestinians on security issues and expressed hope that the two-state solution would be achieved. Netanyahu was appointed by Rivlin to form the government on Wednesday night, for his fifth time as prime minister.German Chancellor Angela Merkel called to congratulate the prime minister on Monday, also stressing her country's hope for dialogue between the Israelis and Palestinians and for a two-state solution.Just days before Israel was to hold national elections, Netanyahu vowed to annex settlements and evacuate the illegal West Bank herding village of Khan Al-Ahmar, if he wins another term.“We are dealing [with the Americans] on exercising Israeli sovereignty on Ma’aleh Adumim and other things,” Netanyahu told Channel 12. “Everyone understands the next term will be fateful for guaranteeing our security and our control over key territory in Judea and Samaria.”The European Union rejected the idea of Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank, a move its foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini told the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Tuesday would create chaos and violence in the Middle East.
Gil Hoffman and Tovah Lazaroff contributed to this report.
