Authors: Map – Jędrzej Błaszczak, Analysis and information collection – Kasjusz Matyjasek, translation – Dominik Wereszko
In 2025, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held approximately 100 meetings and phone calls. B. Netanyahu’s diplomacy in 2025 was primarily based on American-Israeli relations. The Prime Minister hosted numerous delegations of members of Congress and the Senate. He met with key American politicians, such as Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson. Particularly important were the meetings with the Special Envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, who in practice served as a parallel negotiation channel in regional matters. The frequency of these contacts testifies to the importance of cooperation between the countries and fosters constant coordination of positions on issues crucial to their strategic partnership.
In the case of Europe, Prime Minister Netanyahu maintained regular communication with France (President Emmanuel Macron), Germany (President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Minister of Foreign Affairs Johann Wadephul) and strengthened ties with Central and Southern European countries (Hungary, Greece, Cyprus, Czechia). Meetings with Viktor Orbán in Budapest and Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Jerusalem show that Netanyahu seems to be investing in political alliances going beyond traditional partners from Western Europe. During the UN General Assembly in September, he also met with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, which indicates at least some interest in the Balkans.
Prime Minister Netanyahu also expanded contacts with Latin America – the Israeli Prime Minister hosted the presidents of Ecuador, Paraguay, and Argentina in Jerusalem. He also met with the leaders of Argentina and Paraguay in New York. Prime Minister Netanyahu repeatedly spoke with the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, which shows that despite the war in Ukraine and constant tensions between Russia and the West, Israel maintains a relatively stable working dialogue with Moscow.
In the Asian region, India remains a key partner. Benjamin Netanyahu maintained contact with the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, hosted the Indian Ambassador to Israel at his office in Jerusalem, and held meetings with the ministers of foreign affairs and of commerce and industry. Also significant was a phone call with the Prime Minister of Qatar, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, which took place after the IDF attack on a government housing complex in the capital of Qatar, Doha.
Despite Israel’s observed engagement in Africa, in 2025 it was impossible to find examples of direct meetings between Prime Minister Netanyahu and representatives of sub-Saharan African countries; nevertheless, Israel became the first country in the world to recognize the statehood of Somaliland.
It is worth noting that Prime Minister Netanyahu’s diplomatic activity since November 2024 has been largely shaped by the arrest warrant issued against Benjamin Netanyahu by the International Criminal Court in The Hague. This significantly limited his mobility – most meetings took place in Jerusalem, and the few foreign trips were almost entirely limited to the United States and multilateral formats. His absence in Western Europe and Asia was not accidental, but reflected the real risk of detention in countries that are parties to the Rome Statute.
As a result, Israel shifted to a diplomacy model in which foreign leaders come to Jerusalem for meetings with Prime Minister Netanyahu, while he himself chose only “politically safe” travel destinations. Netanyahu’s activity in multilateral formats in 2025 was limited, but symbolically significant. The most significant example was his participation in the UN General Assembly session, where he delivered a speech and held a series of bilateral meetings. Earlier, he received the Secretary-General of the OECD and the Executive Director of the World Food Programme in Jerusalem, which signaled Israel’s desire to maintain its position in global structures.
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