The long-time transportation minister and newly-appointed acting foreign minister slammed the government of Iran for calling for the destruction of the State of Israel."This will not happen thanks to the Israel Defense Forces," he stated. "We will be here forever. But this is certainly a challenge and requires us to carry out many overt and covert activities in order to thwart Iran's intention to build a terror front on the Golan Heights.," he said. "We are working on all fronts to prevent the danger of war. Only those who are strong can prevent war," Katz added.
He contrasted Iranian aggression with the ties Israel is building with Arab countries as highlighted by last week's Warsaw Conference. "Representatives of many countries sat together to oppose Iran," Katz said. "The Indian ambassador met with me two days ago and treated Israel as an equal partner."
He also praised Israel's technological advances, specifically the Beresheet spacecraft, which was launched to the moon Friday.
"The State of Israel is a strong country in the fields of hi-tech, and scientific discoveries," he explained, "placing us at the forefront of the world stage."
Katz said Israel was experiencing "a historic revolution of infrastructure and transportation... anyone who visits from abroad is amazed when comparing to what was here before," he said.