Prime Minister says Israel’s economic growth is set to outpace that of the United States
Israel will experience a massive increase in immigration from Western countries, including the United States, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told cabinet ministers on Sunday.
According to Israel Hayom, the prime minister predicted that Israel’s economic growth is set to exceed that of the United States. Netanyahu also suggested that Israel’s future entry into the U.S. Visa Waiver Program combined with the Jewish state’s strengthening economy will attract many more Jewish American immigrants.
“Israel’s economy is getting stronger; we will overtake the United States, and we have already overtaken Europe,” the prime minister said.
“We will arrange Western aliyah (immigration of Jews to Israel) for prospective immigrants wishing to improve their (financial) well-being. Of course, there is also the rise of antisemitism, but this will not be the only driving force for settling in Israel,” he assured.
Netanyahu touted his foreign currency market reforms in the mid-1990s, arguing that liberalizing the market would not only fuel economic growth, but would also increase immigration to Israel.
“Look at what we did with these reforms. At the time, you couldn’t get money out of Israel, and it was said that our measures would open the floodgates. But the exact opposite happened: foreign currency has entered Israel,” he said.
“We cannot safeguard Zionism by fencing it off or restricting citizens’ movements,” he further stressed.
Israel is currently negotiating with the United States to join the Visa Waiver Program, which would allow Israeli passport holders wishing to visit the U.S. to enter the country without first obtaining a visa in Israel. Washington and Jerusalem have been in talks for years to reach an agreement allowing Israel to join this program.
To comply with Washington’s requirements, Israel will have to share certain travelers’ information. It is also necessary that the number of rejections of visa applications for the United States over the past year are less than 3 percent, which should be the case, according to the estimates of Israel’s Interior Ministry.
