President Rivlin speaks with Mexican counterpart in wake of wall spat

President Reuven Rivlin spoke today with his Mexican counterpart Enrique Peňa Nieto in the wake of the spat between the two countries after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted in support of Trump’s proposed wall spanning the Mexican border, saying a similar plan along Israel’s southern frontier had been a success.

Mexico had demanded an apology for the comments.

“The security situation Israel and the Middle East brought us to the important decision to build a fence on our borders. We have no intention to compare between Israel’s security situation and the situation of any other country in the world,” Rivlin said in long conversation today with Peňa Nieto, his office says.

“The ties between our countries are important and close and we need to leave behind any misunderstandings,” he says.

The call is described as “warm and friendly”

Peňa Nieto thanked Rivlin for his efforts to clear up the situation and reiterated his desire for close ties with Israel, Rivlin’s office says.

Netanyahu did not apologize, saying he had not been commenting on US-Mexico relations in the tweet. He added he had a “long, fruitful and very friendly relationship” with Peňa Nieto.

Earlier, Netanyahu continued to downplay the spat with Mexico, saying the countries’ relations were stronger than a “passing” quarrel. Netanyahu wrote on Twitter that Israel “will continue to have good relations” with Mexico.