Speaking at the renaming ceremony for the Shimon Peres Negev Nuclear Research Center, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his long-stated position of not allowing Iran a military foothold in Syria and act against its enemies.

“We will continue to take strong and determined action against Iran‘s attempts to station forces and advanced weapons systems in Syria,” Netanyahu declared. “Whoever threatens us with destruction puts himself in similar danger, and in any case will not achieve his goal,” he added.

Netanyahu described that while former President Shimon Peres strove for peace, he understood that the ability to sue for it came from a position of strength. Without the ability and willingness to use force, national opponents would attempt to take advantage of such a situation. “In the Middle East,” said Netanyahu, “and in many parts of the world, there is a simple truth: There is no place for the weak. The weak crumble, are slaughtered and are erased from history while the strong, for good or for ill, survive.

In his address, Netanyahu emphasized that Israel’s goal was to prevent Iran establishing a military presence in Syria. He underscored that Israel would not relent in pursuit of this goal, in the same way that he tackled the “bad” nuclear deal. “In the military sphere, the IDF will continue to take strong and determined action against Iran’s attempts to station forces and advanced weapons systems in Syria,” he said.

The prime minister also referenced Israel’s increasingly normalized relationship with many states in the Arab world, in a way that would have been unthinkable only a few years ago. He cautioned that despite seeds of peace being sown, the road to the full completion of that cycle is a long and bumpy road.