Outgoing national security chief says Israel’s challenges ‘mostly global’

In what is likely his last speech as interim national security adviser, Yaakov Nagel tells foreign diplomats that the challenges once faced mostly by Israel are now “global,” though the Jewish state’s unique situation made it especially capable to face those threats.

Nagel spoke at the launch event for the Israeli Defense Expo and Conference, which begins in June.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday that Nagel would retire from his position as interim head of the National Security Council by the week’s end.

Nagel says, with the threats facing countries around the world, it is “no coincidence” that this year is slated to be the expo’s largest. “The use of non-conventional weapons has become common in conflicts in Syria and Iraq,” he says.

Iran “despite or because of” the nuclear deal is still working to acquire atomic weapons, Nagel says.

Terror attacks, like the ones in London, Paris and Chechnya, present a threat to the world’s governments. And the developing field of cyber warfare will challenge countries across the globe.

Israel, Nagel says, has been at the forefront of developing solutions to all these security risks, which explains why it garners 20 percent of the global investment in cyber security technology.

— Judah Ari Gross