European right gathers at Israeli government event on antisemitism

The right-wing government of Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel and his Likud party are intensifying efforts to deepen cooperation with the new right in Europe.

Representatives of various parties affiliated with the “far-right” Patriots for Europe (PfE) bloc, which has become the third-largest group in the European Parliament (EP), attended an international conference on “combating antisemitism” in Israel last week.

The conference, organized by Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli, was promoted as a meeting to discuss the fight against antisemitism. Participants included Jordan Bardella, President of the French National Rally (RN).

Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party had previously been granted observer status in the PfE group. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar instructed Israel’s diplomats in France and other countries to normalize relations with various far-right parties.

Minister Chikli opened the International Conference on Combating Antisemitism, organized by the Israeli government at the International Convention Center in Jerusalem, by apologizing to the far-right European politicians due to the controversy surrounding their participation.

In his opening remarks, Chikli stated, “First and foremost, I want to thank our friends and allies who chose to come to Israel during wartime, especially our friends in the European Parliament. I apologize for the lies spread against you by those who defame the State of Israel worldwide. Thank you for being here with us in Jerusalem, the eternal capital of Israel.”

Speaking at the conference, Netanyahu praised Trump for his “decisive steps against antisemitism” and blamed the protests on US campuses against Israel’s war in Gaza on a “systemic alliance between the extreme progressive left and radical Islam.”

Netanyahu argued that antisemitism is “a disease carried by barbarians” and is “seen in all civilized societies.”

At the international conference on combating antisemitism held in Jerusalem on March 26-27, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Likud) and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar (New Hope) also delivered speeches.

Other notable speakers included former Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša, considered a close supporter of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, and Jordan Bardella, as well as Marion Maréchal from the far-right Identité-Libertés party in France, Charlie Weimers of the Sweden Democrats (Vice-Chair of the European Conservatives and Reformists group in the EP), and three leading MEPs from the Patriots for Europe (PfE) group in the EP: Kinga Gál from Orbán’s Fidesz party; Sebastiaan Stöteler from the PVV, led by Geert Wilders; and Hermann Tertsch from the Spanish Vox party.

The PfE brings together far-right parties that “centrist parties” in the EP still classify as forces needing containment via a “cordon sanitaire” within the EU.

Bardella delivered a speech blaming immigration and Islamism for rising antisemitism in Europe. “Islamism is the totalitarianism of the 21st century. It threatens to destroy everything that is not like itself,” Bardella declared.

David Friedman, who served as the US Ambassador to Israel during Trump’s first term, also attended the conference. When asked by the moderator about Trump’s plan to deport Palestinians from Gaza, Friedman responded, “I loved it! I loved it. And I think it’s doable.”

For European politicians and right-wing parties, an invitation to a conference by the Israeli government is seen as a significant gain in several respects.

Firstly, it allows them to divert attention from their origins, which were previously associated with “antisemitic” circles. Many of these parties stem from neo-Nazi traditions in several instances.

It is noted that the Israeli government legitimizes these parties and individuals, effectively giving them a clean “political bill of health.” Consequently, “far-right” politicians have actively sought invitations to Israel in recent years. For example, Santiago Abascal, leader of Spain’s far-right Vox party, managed to visit Israel at the end of May last year to meet with Chikli and Netanyahu.

Secondly, despite the persistence of “antisemitism” within these circles, the European far-right views Israel as a strategically important ally in their “struggle against Islam.” An integral part of this “struggle against Islam” is the fight against immigrants.

Additionally, as this conference demonstrated, dialogue with Israel offers representatives of the “far-right” opportunities to build broader international connections.

A key figure in this regard is Matt Schlapp. As Chairman of the American Conservative Union (ACU), which organizes the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), and former White House Director of Political Affairs, he was present at the conference organized by Chikli.

On February 20, CPAC adopted a resolution supporting Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank. Schlapp also announced last month that they would establish a “center to combat antisemitism” within CPAC.

For the Israeli right, the conference provides an opportunity to establish and expand relationships with like-minded political forces in Europe.

This implies the event was not solely about “antisemitism.” The parties forming the Israeli government appear to share a common ideological position with the transatlantic “new right.”

For instance, according to the British conservative publication The Telegraph, conference speeches referred to “climate activist” Greta Thunberg as “stupid,” while Black Lives Matter was described as “no better.”

The Telegraph also reported that Trump supporter Karys Rhea warned against “woke” movements “as if they were a fundamental problem for Jews worldwide.”

Likud and the Israeli government aim to build new international cooperation structures on this basis. An example was seen after the PfE general assembly in Madrid on February 9, when Likud announced it now holds observer status within the group.

According to a report in tagesspiegel in March, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar instructed Israeli diplomats in France, Sweden, and Spain to abandon previous practices and “establish direct contact with far-right parties, namely the RN, Sweden Democrats, and Vox.”

Likud’s move appears significant at a time when Trumpist movements in the US are also building and intensifying ties with right-wing groups in Europe.

Just before the PfE summit in February, Kevin Roberts, President of the Heritage Foundation, which has close ties to Trump, traveled to Madrid to meet with PfE politicians.

Furthermore, first Elon Musk and then US Vice President JD Vance announced their support for the Alternative for Germany’s (AfD) campaign in the German federal elections.

The AfD is increasingly aligning itself with both Republican circles in the US and the Israeli right. In a post on X the day after the federal elections, Chikli declared that the party taking the clearest stance against “anti-Israel” groups was “surprisingly” the AfD.

In April 2019, the AfD introduced a bill in the Bundestag to ban the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, and another bill in June 2019 to ban all Hezbollah-related activities in Germany.

Although Chikli notes the presence of voices within the AfD that “still cause concern,” such as former MEP and current Bundestag member Maximilian Krah, who downplayed the historical legacy of the SS, he underscores that he sees no problem working with other leaders, particularly AfD Co-Chair Alice Weidel.

The Israeli minister added that he “hopes” the AfD can distance itself from individuals like Krah.

The AfD leads the Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN) group within the EP. The party was previously a member of the Identity and Democracy (ID) group, led by Marine Le Pen in the former EP, but was expelled after controversial incidents.

Currently, it appears that the RN and similar parties are making particular efforts to avoid association with the AfD, but it is understood that the bricks in the “cordon sanitaire” built by the right against the further right are slowly being removed.

The close cooperation between the Netanyahu government in Israel and the European far-right also puts more pressure on Berlin to open up to the “far-right.”

Felix Klein, the outgoing German government’s antisemitism commissioner, announced he would not attend the Jerusalem conference, citing the presence of far-right extremists.

However, Friedrich Merz, leader of the CDU and expected to be the next Federal Chancellor, has declared his “almost unconditional” willingness to work with Netanyahu. Merz stated he would invite Netanyahu to Berlin, challenging the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant for the Israeli Prime Minister for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Responding to questions about Netanyahu’s Likud party being granted official observer status in the “far-right” PfE, Merz insists this will not hinder Germany’s deep cooperation with Israel.