"Zakhor: The Imperative of Documenting Israel's Black Shabbat"
The ICFR hosted a webinar on Zoom to discuss the importance of documenting the crimes of Hamas and the global reaction to and effects of the war. The two speakers were Sam Kassow, Professor of History at Trinity College, Connecticut, and Havi Dreifuss, Professor of History at Tel Aviv University and Director of the Center for Holocaust Research, Yad Vashem.
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Nickolay Mladenov
Foreign Minister of Bulgaria, who spoke on "EU Policy for the Middle East: A Bulgarian Perspective."
"Why Israel Was Caught Off Guard and Where We Go From Here"
The ICFR hosted a webinar on Zoom to discuss how the October 2023 Hamas assault on Israel began and speculate on its possible consequences. The two speakers were Dr. Jonathan Spyer, ICFR Board Member and Director of Research at the Middle East Forum, and Prof. Chuck Freilich, Senior Editor of the The Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs and Former Israeli Deputy National Security Director.
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Juan Orlando Hernández
President of Honduras
“German–Israeli Relations: Quo Vadis?”
A conference on this topic was held jointly by the Council and the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Israel. Speakers included Susanne Wasum-Rainer, Ambassador of the Federal Republic
of Germany to Israel, Roderich Kiesewetter, CDU/CSU faction spokesman of the Foreign Affairs Committee at the German Bundestag, as well as scholars on the topic including David Witzthum, Gisela Dachs, Moshe Zimmerman, and Peter Lintl. The panel was chaired by Marcus Sheff, CEO of Impact-se.
Algirdas Butkevičius
Prime Minister of Lithuania
Jerusalem Model United Nations Conference
The Council co-sponsored the inaugural international Model United Nations conference at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Daniel Ayalon
Deputy Foreign Minister of Israel, who spoke on "Challenges to Israeli Foreign Policy."
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Konstanty Gebert
Gebert, a journalist, associate fellow of the European Council on Foreign Affairs and a former Solidarity activist delivered a lecture titled "From Round Tables to Divided Societies:
Poland and East Central Europe 30 Years After the Fall of Communism."
Robert Serry
UN Special Coordinator for Middle East Peace Process, who spoke on "Israel, the UN and the Peace Process."
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Anatoly Viktorov
The Ambassador of the Russian Federation
spoke on the topic “Russia and the Middle East: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow."
Angel Tîlvăr
Minister Delegate of Romanians Abroad
Film Screening: "A Voice among the Silent"
In cooperation with the Menachem Begin Heritage Center, the ICFR screened this film on the legacy of James M. McDonald and invited director Shuli Eshel and Holocaust historian Rafael Medoff for a panel discussion afterward.
Rachida Dati
French Minister of Justice (in cooperation with the IDC Herzliya European Studies Center) who spoke on "France in the Process of Change: Law, Reform and Society."
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Dimitar Mihaylov
The outgoing Bulgarian Ambassador to Israel delivered a lecture on developments in the Middle East.
Enver Hoxhaj
Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Relations, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs (2011–2014), Republic of Kosovo, who spoke on “The Foreign Policy of Small States: The Case of Kosovo.”
Chrystia Freeland
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada spoke on "Perspectives on Canada–Israel Relations."
Salam Fayyad
Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, whose speech on "The Current State of Affairs Between Us" was delivered by Riad Malki, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Information.
László Trócsányi
The Minister of Justice of Hungary spoke on "Unity and Diversity in Europe: Different Views, Common Goals."
James P. Kreindler and Steve R. Perles
James P. Kreindler, Kreindler & Kreindler, New York City and Steve R. Perles, Perles Law Firm, P.C., Washington, DC, who spoke on “Terror Litigation in the US Courts.”
Deborah Lyons
The Ambassador of Canada joined a panel discussion on the topic “Are Ministries of Foreign Affairs Passé?” as part of the Israeli Association for International Studies conference on “International Relations: Between Nationalism and Globalism.”
Jimmy Carter
Thirty-Ninth President of the United States, who spoke on "My Study Trip to the Middle East."
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Kyai Haji Yahya Cholil Staquf
The General Secretary of the Indonesian Muslim Organization “Nahdlatul Ulama” spoke on "Shifting the Geopolitical Calculus: From Conflict to Cooperation."
Lubomír Zaorálek
Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic, who spoke on "Reflections on Czech–Israeli Relations in Light of EU Policies."
Rumen Radev
President of the Republic of Bulgaria
Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka
Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, who spoke on "The Current Political Situation in Sri Lank and a Vision for the Future." The event was sponsored by Ms. Rina Pushkarna, proprietor of the Tandoori chain of Indian restaurants.
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Emanuele Giaufret
The Head of the EU Delegation to Israel spoke at a panel discussion on the topic "Whither Europe: Has the Death Knell of Liberalism and Tolerance been Sounded?"
Ditmir Bushati
Foreign Minister of Albania, who spoke on “Reflections on the Past and the Present in Albanian Foreign Policy."
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Luis Almagro
Secretary-General of the Organization of American States (OAS)
Adrian Miahi Cioroianu
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania, who spoke on "The Eve of the Bucharest Summit: The New Romania, NATO and Israel." The event was sponsored by Bank Leumi.
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Peter Maurer
The President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
Plamen Oresharski
Prime Minister of Bulgaria, who spoke on "The Strategic Dimension of the Bulgarian–Israeli Partnership."
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Linas Linkevičius
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania spoke on "Modern-Day Challenges in International Relations: A Lithuanian Perspective."
Karel Schwarzenberg
Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic, who spoke at a roundtable discussion on "The Middle East as Seen from Middle Europe."
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Zoran Zaev
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Macedonia spoke on "Enhancing Security, Improving Economy: Joint Efforts of Israel and Macedonia."
Gregor Gysi
Chairman of DIE LINKE faction, head of the opposition in the German Bundestag and former Chairman of the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS), who spoke on "Europe and the Crisis in Ukraine: Is the International Community Facing a New East–West Conflict?"
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Mladen Ivanić
The Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Victor Yushchenko
President of Ukraine, who spoke on "Ukraine and Israel: A Dialogue for the Future."
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Andrzej Duda
The President of Poland and a panel of scholars spoke on "Poland and Israel: Confronting Global and Regional Challenges."
Frans Timmermans
Foreign Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, who spoke on "Israel and the EU: Beyond the Horizon."
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Horacio Cartes
President of Paraguay
Sali Berisha
Prime Minister of Albania, who spoke on "'Righteous among the Nations'—Albania's History of Friendship with Jews and the Jewish State."
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Katharina von Schnurbein
European Commission Coordinator on Combating Antisemitism
Tzipi Livni
Foreign Minister of Israel, who spoke on "Israel and the Middle East at a Crossroad."
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Kamal Thapa
The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nepal spoke on Relations between Nepal and Israel
Leonel Fernández Reyna
President of the Dominican Republic, who spoke on the challenges to statecraft in the modern era.
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Nikola Poposki
The Foreign Minister of Macedonia spoke on “Developments in the Middle East and their Reflection in South East Europe: The Macedonian Perspective.”
Joschka Fischer
Former Vice Chancellor and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany (in cooperation with the IDC Herzliya Center for European Studies and the Heinrich Böll Stiftung), who spoke on "The German Foreign Ministry and the Nazi Past."
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Didier Reynders
The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium spoke on “The Fight against IS: A Challenge for Both Europe and the Middle East.”
Moshe Zimmermann
Professor of German History and Member of the Historical Commission of the German Foreign Ministry, who spoke on "Secrets and Revelations: The Wartime History of the German Foreign Ministry."
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Miro Kovač
The Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia spoke on “Foreign Policy Cooperation between Croatia and Israel.”
Vaira Vike-Freiberga
President of Latvia, who spoke on "Latvia and Israel."
Daniel Mitov
Foreign Minister of Bulgaria, who spoke on “The Tectonic Changes in the Middle East and How They Resonate in Europe: A View from Sofia.”
Miguel Angel Moratinos
Foreign Minister of Spain, who spoke on "The Peace Process: Facts and Expectations."
Péter Szijjártó
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary, who spoke on “The Crisis in Europe: The Hungarian Perspective.”
Mohammad Afzal Khan
Lord Mayor of Manchester, who spoke on "Muslims in the UK and Europe."
