Katz shares Israel’s COVID-19 exit strategy with foreign ministers around the world
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz participated on Monday in a video conference on the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic with other foreign ministers including Australia’s Marisa Payne in a meeting initiated by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz at the Transportation Ministry in Jerusalem on June 23, 2019. Photo by Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90.
Foreign ministers from Brazil, South Korea, India and Japan also participated in the conversation.
The top diplomats discussed the challenges of dealing with the virus, various exit strategies, collaborative research, foreign aid, and day-to-day assessments, including international air travel and tourism.
Katz presented Israel’s exit strategy and the achievements of Israeli researchers on the virus.
Schools in Israel have returned to partial activity, malls and parks have opened, but many restrictions still remain in place.
The ministers agreed to continue their dialogue and cooperation.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participated in several such international online conferences, and most recently in a conference on Thursday hosted by Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong were present at the meeting.
“The leaders sought to learn from the Israeli model for dealing with outbreak zones, “red zones” (restricted areas), in order to allow for the continuation of routines in other areas where infection is minimal,” Netanyahu’s office stated.
