Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Tuesday held talks with visiting Italian counterpart Mario Draghi to discuss a deal on exporting Israel's natural gas to Europe.
They discussed "the cooperation necessary to ensure that Israel's natural gas can also be used in Europe," which is "good news for Israel, Italy and Europe," Bennett said in a joint statement issued by the two sides.
The two leaders held a private meeting followed by an expanded meeting between Israeli and Italian officials with the participation of Israeli Energy Minister Karine Elharrar.
Bennett's office said in a separate statement that the leaders talked about boosting Israeli gas exports to Europe in the wake of the crisis in Ukraine.
The talks were part of a recent bid by the European Union to strengthen its energy cooperation with Israel in an attempt to decrease its dependence on Russian oil and gas.
