In his faction meeting, Liberman addressed the coalition talks directly. "I hope that as soon as possible we will succeed in forming a stable government for the next four years," he said. "I want to remind everyone what flags Yisrael Beiteinu went out with in the election campaign."
Liberman listed three red lines: ending the Netanyahu era, refusing a minority government relying on abstention by Ra'am and the Joint List, and not sitting in a coalition with Shas and United Torah Judaism.
"I was clear and unequivocal about these three issues, and anyone who voted for Yisrael Beiteinu knew very well who they were voting for and what they were voting for," he said. "I hoped the change bloc would reach a majority of at least 61 mandates, but the voter decided otherwise."
Liberman said the new reality required redefining goals and priorities. "It was clear that in order to prevent another round of elections, we had to show flexibility and willingness to compromise," he said.
"For me, the red lines are very clear: first, to put an end to the Netanyahu era. Second, to prevent another election. Third, not to form a minority government relying on Ra'am and the Joint List. To achieve these goals, we were forced to compromise. But compromise is not going back on promises and is not giving up on values and principles."
On the draft law, Liberman acknowledged a shift from his campaign position. "In the election campaign we presented a maximalist model on the draft law, out of a belief that there is an absolute majority in the nation supporting that bill," he said. "But the political reality that was created is different from what we hoped for. Therefore, in the new reality we will work to advance a normative model — that is, a bill that will stand up in the High Court."
