Israeli President invites his Ukrainian counterpart to visit Israel

KYIV. Oct 5 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Israeli President Isaac Herzog has invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to pay a visit to Israel to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of relations between the states.

"Mr. President, if you have such an opportunity, I would be very happy to host you on a visit to Israel. I am very glad that you agreed in principle to come on the occasion of this important event in the history of our countries," Herzog told media representatives after meeting with Zelensky in Kyiv on Tuesday.

He recalled that at the end of 2021, Israel and Ukraine will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of relations. "I remember very well the warm and exciting meetings between my father Chaim Herzog, the sixth president of the State of Israel, and the Hero of Ukraine, its first president, Leonid Makarovych Kravchuk, during the establishment of relations between our two states, as well as during the state visit of President Kravchuk to Israel. This relationship with the country, which is one of the great friends of our country, was very important then and much more important today," said Herzog.

The Head of the State of Israel noted that the Jewish people have a glorious past in Ukraine, where many Jewish religious and spiritual leaders, statesmen, prominent Zionist thinkers and cultural figures were born and raised. He also thanked the government of Ukraine for helping Jews during the Rosh Hashanah celebration.

Herzog pointed out that at the same time, the Jewish people had difficult and painful pages of history in Ukraine. He added that on Wednesday, he will attend a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the Babyn Yar shootings with the President of Ukraine.

"I believe that the past leads us to the present. Today, it is important and praiseworthy that Ukraine feels responsibility for the memory, history and cultural space of the Jewish community that has lived here for many years, maybe more than a thousand years. Starting from the preservation of Jewish cemeteries, which is so necessary, to the creation of memorial centers in memory of the murdered Ukrainian Jews," the President of Israel emphasized.

He drew attention to the fact that all this is an important basis for a bold partnership in the fight against anti-Semitism, as well as for building a common fruitful, successful and promising future. He thanked the President of Ukraine and the Verkhovna Rada for promoting the law on confronting and combating anti-Semitism, as well as for Ukraine’s decision to refrain from attending the Durban conference.

"We must learn from history. Humanity in general and Europe in particular cannot tolerate manifestations of anti-Semitism in any form: neither in demonstrations, nor in the erasure and denial of history, nor in the glorification of bloody figures from the past, whose actions were motivated by anti-Semitism and hatred," Herzog said.

The President expressed hope that his visit to Ukraine would contribute to the strengthening, deepening, and prosperity of the partnership between Ukraine and Israel.