London, Sep 11 (IANS): British Prime Minister David Cameron met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Number 10 on Thursday.

The two leaders welcomed the growing economic ties between Britain and Israel, Xinhua reported.

A spokesperson of Downing Street said the two countries made progress in a wide field after Cameron's visit, including research and science, with an additional three million pounds of new funding for bilateral medical research projects in 2017.

During their talks, they agreed that cyber security was a vital issue, and that it had to be considered both in terms of threats and opportunities.

"They agreed to collaborate further, with a new package of cooperation covering training and joint exercises to prepare against cyber attacks," the spokesperson said.

Britain was to send a cyber business delegation to Israel in December to further strengthen this cooperation.

The spokesperson said, both leaders reiterated their commitment to a two state resolution as the only way to secure lasting peace in the Middle East, and the Prime Minister emphasised the importance of improving daily life for the people of Gaza.

Cameron and Netanyahu also talked about the threat of Islamist extremism and agreed that both political and economic security was required for long term peace, and pledged to continue to work together to support fragile countries in North Africa.

Before the journey of Netanyahu to Britain, protesters gathered outside Downing Street on Wednesday to protest against his visit, according to local media reports.

Media reported a petition for his arrest for alleged war crimes have received more than 100,000 signatures.

In response to the petition, London government said "under the British and international law, visiting heads of foreign governments, such as Prime Minister Netanyahu, have immunity from legal process, and cannot be arrested or detained."