Persona Grata: A Podcast on Israeli Diplomacy

Two years ago, Israel & the world were taken by storm with the spread of a new & dangerous virus known today as COVID 19. While the virus continues to spread (this time with variants like Delta and Omricon), Israel is using its own experiences curbing the virus to help other countries around the world fight the pandemic. On this episode of Persona Grata, we're speaking to some of the leading governmental, diplomatic and medical professionals in Israel and around the world who are working together to combat the Coronavirus. Thank you to all of the individuals who shared their perspectives in this episode including: Ambassador Daniel Meron, COVID-19 Project Manager at the Israel MFA Dr. Dorit Nitzan, Europe Regional Emergency Director, at the World Health Organization Raed Arafat, Head of the Department of Emergency Situations, at the Romanian Ministry of Internal Affairs Dr. Krunoslav Capak, Director General of the Croatian Institute of Public Health Galit Peleg , Director of Overseas Programs at Mashav - Israel's Agency for International Cooperation Dr Asher Salmon, Head of the Department of International Affairs at the Israel Ministry of Health Ambassador Sharon Bar-Li, Deputy Director General at the MFA and Head of the Africa Division A special thank you to our producer Jonathan Hauerstock, assistant producer Shir Avital and our entire digital diplomacy team for making this episode possible.

On August 16, Israel and the United Arab Emirates made history with the announcement that the two countries would establish diplomatic ties. This episode of Persona Grata gives our listeners a sneak peak into what peace looks like almost a year after the signing of the Abraham Accords & what this new era means for Israel, its neighbors and the entire region. The episode features audio from: Elkana Marziano & Wallid Aljasim (credit: Gili Masami) Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra I24 News Khaleej Times

10,000 young Israelis stranded abroad, dozens of countries and airports locked down, hundreds of embassies shuttered, 90 repatriation flights and one major epidemic. On this episode of Persona Grata we get an inside look at how our Israeli diplomats in Israel and around the world worked around the clock to bring Israelis home and keep diplomacy alive abroad during the height of the Coronavirus. Featuring: Peleg Levi, Israel’s Consul General in Guangzhou Rodica Radian Gordan, Israel's Ambassador to Spain Ziv Shalvi,Deputy Manager of Israelis Abroad Department Ohad Shary, Operator, Israel MFA Situation Room A special thank you to I24 news for news coverage featured in this episode.

On this episode of Persona Grata, we’ll meet the people behind Israel's humanitarian missions which have come to the aid of more than 140 countries and thousands of people since Israel's founding. From a devastating typhoon in the Philippines, to an earthquake in Haiti which killed over 200,000, to assisting Syrian refugees on the Greek Island of Lesbos, here's how Israel is making sure that no matter, how far, no one is left behind. On this World Humanitarian Day, we salute the thousands of men and women around the world continue to place themselves in harm's way to create a better and safer world for all. You can follow Mashav on Twitter at twitter.com/MASHAVisrael, and Israaid twitter.com/israaid. News coverage on Syria was provided by I24 News and features correspondent Jonathan Regev.

(This episode of Persona Grata is a special edition in Hebrew, which discusses the Israel MFA's elite Cadets Course, which trains future Israeli diplomats.) רילוקיישין או מעבר למדינה אחרת, מחייב אותך ללמוד ולהכיר שפה נוספת, להתרגל לתרבות חדשה, ולהתאקלם למקום זר, בהרבה מקרים יחד עם משפחה. אז מה המניע שגורם למאות דיפלומטים ישראלים לעשות את זה כל שנה ולמה כדאי להצטרף לשירות החוץ? פרק זה הוא פרק מיוחד העוסק בקורס הצוערים, קורס הליבה של משרד החוץ, המספק כלים חשובים לדיפלומטים העתידיים של מדינת ישראל. בפרק זה, נשמע משתי צוערות מהמחזור הנוכחי של קורס הצוערים, אורלי גולדשמידט ומייזי אליאש פילקובסקי שצפויות להתחיל את שליחותן הראשונה בקרוב, וכן מאלדד גולן, סגן מנהל מחלקת זכויות האדם וארגונים בינלאומיים באגף ארגונים בינ"ל במשרד החוץ. אתם מוזמנים לעקוב אחרי החוויות של הצוערים באמצעות עמוד הפייסבוק של הקורס (https://www.facebook.com/mfa.training) ובטוייטר דרך: https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23mfacadets35&src=typd. להגשת מועמדות לקורס הצוערים - https://tinyurl.com/Tzoarim2019. מועד אחרון להגשת מועמדות - 18 ביוני..

From the Arab Spring in 2011, to the US Presidential election in 2016, to clap backs on Twitter between countries like Israel and Iran in 2018, world leaders, MFAs and diplomats have realized that what they share online can shape events offline. According to Twiplomacy, 93% of all UN member states have an official presence on the platform and between May 2017 and May 2018, world leaders sent more than 250,000 original tweets. It takes a lot less than 280 characters to realize that digital diplomacy is here to stay. This special episode of Persona Grata features Yiftah Curiel who heads the Israel MFA's Digital Diplomacy department which manages more than 30 social media channels in 5 languages including English, Arabic, Farsi, Spanish, Russian and Hebrew and Ilan Manor, a PHD student at Oxford University specializing in Digital Diplomacy. Ilan and Yiftach sat down to discuss the challenges and opportunities for diplomacy in the digital age and what the future holds for the ever evolving field that is digital diplomacy. You can follow Yiftah on Twitter at https://twitter.com/yiftahc and Ilan at https://twitter.com/Ilan_Manor.

Israel's relationship with the African continent began in the years following Israel's independence. When many African countries including Rwanda established independence in the early 1960s, Israel which was a young country at the time, viewed these countries as partners and was eager to share its experiences in development and capacity building. More than six decades later, ties between Israel and the African continent continue to reach new heights. Earlier this week (Monday, April 1), Israel and Rwanda made history with the inauguration of a new Israeli embassy in Rwanda. While Israel and Rwanda re-established diplomatic ties in 1994, the inauguration of the embassy marks the first time that Israel will maintain a resident ambassador in Kigali, Rwanda's capital. The inauguration of the Israeli embassy in Kigali, brings the total number of Israeli embassies in Sub-Saharan Africa to eleven. We sat down with Israel's new ambassador to Rwanda, Ron Adam, to discuss the historic milestone and the potential for Israel-Rwanda ties. You can follow Ambassador Adam on Twitter here: twitter.com/AmbRonAdam

On this episode of Persona Grata, we'll hear from the trailblazing women at the center of Israel's diplomacy efforts, who are challenging stereotypes, combating violence against women, and creating the conditions for a more equal world. While women in Israel and around the world continue to break glass ceilings, there is still a lot of work to be done. If we wish to bring about true and genuine gender equality, we have to start at the source by educating the next generation of men and women. This episode features Avivit Bar Ilan, Head of Bureau at the International Organizations Division at the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Shelly Hugler Livne, Director of the Israel MFA's cadet program, and Shuly Kurzon Van Gelder, the director of Planning, Evaluation, and Partnerships at Mashav, Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation. You can follow them on Twitter here: twitter.com/AvivitBarIlan twitter.com/ShellyHuglerLiv twitter.com/MASHAVisrael

With 88 foreign embassies in Israel, a diplomatic community which numbers 5,000, and hundreds of diplomatic visits to Israel by prime ministers, presidents, and ministers annually, there's no such thing as a quiet day for the Israel MFA's Protocol and Official Guest Bureau. The Bureau handles everything from hotel bookings, to official ceremonies for the world's most powerful leaders, to catering to foreign diplomats daily needs. The man behind the MFA's one stop shop for diplomats and dignitaries? Ambassador Meron Reuben, the Chief of State Protocol for the State of Israel. So what happens when a foreign diplomat's staff are caught smuggling weapons and how can cultural etiquette prevent diplomatic faux pas? All this and more on this week's episode of Persona Grata. To learn more about foreign diplomats in Israel visit mfa.gov.il/MFA/AboutTheMinistr…/Pages/default.aspx. Listeners can follow Ambassador Reuben on Twitter here: twitter.com/AmbMeronReuben

You know that saying big things come in small packages? That is definitely the case when it comes to Israel and Singapore, two relatively small countries with a lot to offer. So what do two countries with very different cultures, languages, and geography have in common? A lot more than you might think. As Israel and Singapore gear up to celebrate 50 years of Independence, we sat down with Simona Halperin, Israel's ambassador to Singapore to discuss the historic and growing cooperation between the two countries. Listeners can follow Ambassador Halperin on Twitter @halpst.

Bollywood stars Sonama Kapoor, Tanuj Garg, Amitabh Bachchan & Jacqueline Fernandez have already discovered the magic of Israel. What happens when a billion dollar film industry and one of the world's most innovative countries come together? Magic worthy of the big screen. On this episode of Persona Grata we'll explore the growing cooperation between Israel and India in the field of Bollywood, through the lenses of Israel's Consul General to Mumbai, Yaakov Finkelstein, and one of Bollywood's leading film executive's Tanuj Garg. Listeners can follow Consul General Finkelstein and Tanuj Garg on Twitter @Yaakov_FINKLSTN & @Tanuj_Garg.

The United States, is one of Israel's most important and closest allies. As Israel's representatives who are on the ground, Israeli diplomats play a central role in strengthening ties between Israel and the United States. This week we'll hear from Dani Dayan, who plays a central role in these efforts as the Consul General of Israel in New York, Israel's largest diplomatic mission worldwide and serving the United States' largest Jewish community. Consul General Dayan will discuss some of the issues and topics at the forefront of the US-Israel relationship and how his consulate is working to enhance US-Israel ties on the local and international level. We’ll also hear Dayan’s view on the current state of antisemitism in the US, in the aftermath of the deadly Pittsburgh Synagogue shooting on October 27 in which eleven members of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community were brutally shot dead.

In November of 1948, as Jews in Israel and the western world celebrated the establishment of the State of Israel, hundreds of thousands of Jews throughout the Middle East began packing their bags, preparing for a dark period in which more than two millennia of Jewish life in Arab lands and Iran would come to an abrupt end. This week as we commemorate the expulsion of Jewish refugees from Arab countries and Iran on November 30th, we'll hear from Linda Menuhin, a Jewish refugee from Bagdad who was forced to flee Iraq in 1969. Today, Linda who lives in Israel, is pioneering Israel's diplomacy efforts in Arabic on social media, building bridges between millions of Arabic speakers around the world and the Jewish State. Between 1948-1979, more than 850,000 Jews were forced to leave their homes, possessions and loved ones behind, as a wave of unprecedented violence and bloodshed targeted Jewish communities across the Middle East. This would eventually lead to the culmination of Jewish life in countries such as Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Algeria, and Egypt. Many of these Jews (close to 600,000), found a new home and purpose in the State of Israel, where they rebuilt their lives and heavily shaped the young Jewish State. To learn more about the expulsion of Jews from Arab Lands and Iran visit: mfa.gov.il/MFA/ForeignPolicy/I…-November-2016.aspx

This week, we'll hear from Polina Kempinsky who is currently serving as Israel's UN Youth Delegate in New York. UN Youth delegates are responsible for representing their countries at the United Nations on issues related to youth. During her time at the United Nations, Paulina will participate in important meetings, non-formal negotiations, and sessions, in which she will advocate for young people in Israel and around the world.

This week we'll hear from Mr. Emmanuel Nahshon, the Israel MFA's spokesperson. Mr. Nahshon, a veteran diplomat who has served in Venezuela, Ankara, and Berlin, is responsible for sharing Israel's diplomatic efforts with local and international media. Nahshon, who is known for his personable and direct approach, has emerged as one of Israel's leading diplomatic and governmental voices, both online and offline. But serving as Israel's spokesperson in an age where news travels faster than the speed of light has its own unique challenges and opportunities. Nahshon who has been particularly successful at harnessing Twitter to communicate with millions of people around the world, will discuss his perspectives on diplomacy in the digital age. You can follow Emmanuel Nahshon on Twitter: https://twitter.com/EmmanuelNahshon