The head of the Government of Slovenia, Janez Jansa, moved this Wednesday his congratulations to his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, whom he attributed the "victory" in the legislative elections, despite the bloc led by his party, the Likud, having lost the parliamentary majority and it still not being clear whether he will have the capacity to form an Executive.
"Congratulations to Netanyahu and the Likud on your victory. It is not easy to fight on two fronts and come out victorious," he pointed out on his social media profiles, before also extending his congratulations to what he described as "the only democratic State" in the Middle East for the high levels of turnout recorded in these elections.
"We value our dialogue and the long friendship that unites our countries. We sincerely wish peace and security for the people of Israel and a better future for the entire region," added the ultra-conservative leader, underscoring the rapport between Ljubljana and Tel Aviv.
With 90% of the count completed, Netanyahu's list is consolidating itself as the most-voted force, with 26 seats, although the 53 deputies that his bloc would add up to fall short of the 61 needed to push through a stable government in the Knesset.
For its part, the alliance led by Gadi Eisenkot would obtain 48 seats and could only reach an absolute majority through agreements with the Arab formations, the United List and Raam, which have achieved a historic result by winning 12 and 7 parliamentarians, respectively.
In this scenario, Eisenkot has explained that he has had "a long day of meetings, conversations and preparations aimed at fulfilling the will of the voters", according to what he published on his social media, where he detailed his contacts to articulate an alternative majority.
"We have many more long days of work ahead of us, but we remain focused on the important task entrusted to us: bringing change to Israel and establishing a Zionist government committed to universal (military) service," the former Chief of the General Staff emphasized, presenting his project as a break with the current Executive.
In the same message, he maintained that "the people have expressed a vote of no confidence in the Government of October 7," in reference to the attacks carried out by Hamas and other Palestinian militias more than three years ago, which triggered the Israeli military offensive on the Gaza Strip.
In this line, he has emphasized that the electorate has punished "a Government characterized by evasion of military service and the 'bloc of evaders' as a whole; a bloc that has reached its low point in two decades", in allusion to the ultra-Orthodox parties opposed to compulsory military service for yeshivah students.
"I feel the full weight of the responsibility and the trust placed in me by hundreds of thousands of citizens who believe in the State of Israel and in Zionism," Eisenkot stated, who thanked the support received by his formation, Yashar, which he described as a "truly national force that constitutes a worthy and state-level alternative for government."
"We will rise to the great challenge before us. We will act and we will prevail. You have my word," he concluded, asserting his leadership in the contest to head the next Israeli Executive.