Mr. Speaker of the Knesset,
My friends, Members of Knesset,

This government began its tenure seven weeks ago at the height of an unprecedented, severe global economic crisis, which hadn’t yet been dealt with.  Our goal was first and foremost to bring about stability.  Our goal was to pass the Government Budget within six weeks – and we did so.  Our goal was to pass a budget for the next two years to convey that same stability – and we did this as well.  Our goal was to obtain an economic package deal with the employers and the Labor Federation – and we did so – in order to unite our forces and prevent crises and work conflicts at a time when the economy was under attack.  Our goal in the government was to quickly pass historic reforms in the Israel Lands Authority – and we did this too.  I will ask for your assistance later in terms of legislation.  Our goal was to create broad unity – as broad as possible – with those who wanted unity, and we did this as well.  All these were the right things to do in order to produce stability and growth in the Israeli economy in the face of the previously untended global economic crisis.  However, we had another goal, and I think those people who were in the government ministries, in the corridors of power, knew how hard it was.  Our goal was to achieve the right balance at this time between two enormous and opposing needs: the needs of society and the economy on the one hand, and our security needs on the other.  Both these needs stem from unique situations.  We had to introduce this balance in this budget – and we did so.

My friends, Members of Knesset,

We do not live in ordinary times.  You all know this, even if you do not say so, even if you only cry out in your hearts, you know – these are not ordinary times.  Because we do not just face an unprecedented economic crisis, as all the nations of the world do – and we are weathering it better than most countries.  I am not the only one who says this.  I suggest that you speak with the Governor of the Bank of Israel, but also with other experts.  In addition to the economic crisis that we and other countries face, we also face special security challenges that no other country has to face. 

I believe that, especially now, unity is needed.  It obligates us all, coalition and opposition, to rise above our normal factionalism.  There is everyday factionalism; there are also extraordinary moments during which we need to unite our forces, and we will have to do so in the future because we have a shared responsibility for the future of the State of Israel.  I said it before and I will say it again – the most dangerous thing a peace-loving people can do is not recognize an existential danger in time.  Many peoples in history have disappeared as a result of this shortcoming, and our people also paid an unbearable price for this.  The leadership, any leadership, must first and foremost recognize the dangers and prepare for them.  My responsibility is first and foremost to take care of Israel’s security and ensure its future.  This obligates determining orders of priority and making decisions, and at times these decisions are not easy ones.  My duty as prime minister is sometimes to subordinate the orders of priority – not just sometimes, but always to subordinate the orders of priority to the existential needs of Israel, and I will not hesitate to do so.
 
Just as we must recognize the dangers and prepare for them, we must also recognize opportunities and act to realize them.  Today, for the first time in all our lives, the Arab governments – or most of them in any event – recognize that they face the same threat as Israel.  On the eve of my visit to Washington, it was clear to me that the most important mission at that moment was to reach agreements with the new president of the United States and the new administration in Washington regarding the nuclearization of Iran – and we met this goal as well.  In my meetings in Washington, my position was that the greatest danger Israel and the entire world faces is Iran’s efforts to develop military nuclear capability, and I greatly appreciate the fact that the Obama administration accepted this position with understanding.  Furthermore, I would like to tell the members of Knesset that we reaffirmed understandings with the United States regarding the most essential matters of our national security, and we also reached concrete and important achievements in the field of security.