(Communicated by the Foreign Ministry Spokesperson)
The 2008 Foreign Ministry's Conference for Policy and Strategy will open on Sunday, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and will convene for three days (5-7 October 2008).
- Video of opening addresses
The conference will be attended by Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni, who will deliver the opening address, and Director General Aaron Abramovich. Among the expected participants are French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, PA Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki, former Foreign Minister of Germany Joschka Fischer, Second Permanent Secretary at Singapore's Foreign Ministry, Kausikan Bilahari, French Head of Policy Planning, Pierre Levy, the new US Ambassador to Israel, James Cunningham, and others.
French FM Kouchner, FM Livni and Palestinian FM al-Malki
attend Foreign Ministry Conference for Policy and Strategy 2008
Photo: MFA
Members of the subcommittee of the Knesset Committee for Foreign Affairs and Defense will also attend the conference.
On the first day of the conference, top officials of the Foreign Ministry, together with thirteen Israeli ambassadors serving in embassies abroad, will discuss issues relating to Israeli policy and strategy for the year 5769 (2008-2009).
The Foreign Ministry's Conference for Policy and Strategy is intended to be an annual review of Israel's policies and strategies, taking into account three parameters:
• The intelligence situation and the international arena
• Israel's policy - goals, interests and diplomatic-strategic options
• Concrete resources for realizing Israel's defined goals (budget, human resources, etc.)
Prior to the conference, Foreign Ministry Director General Abramovich appointed 17 working teams responsible for different subjects, primarily:
• Security/political threats, especially from Iran.
• The Middle East diplomatic process
• The international system and agenda, changes that are occurring there and how the international arena affects Israeli foreign policy
• The global economy, its impact on Israel, and the Ministry's role in this arena
• Public diplomacy and the branding of Israel
The conclusions and recommendations of the working groups will be discussed at various professional panels throughout the conference.
The conference will open on Sunday, 5 October, at 14:00, at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem. Speeches will be delivered by Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni, Deputy Foreign Minister Majalli Whbee, Director General Aaron Abramovich, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, Palestinian Foreign Minister Dr. Riyad al-Malki, and former German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer.
Opening addresses - Video
After the opening remarks, a panel will be held on the topic, "Diplomatic Challenges in the 21st Century", chaired by Dr. Oded Eran, with the participation of Prof. Uzi Arad, Efraim Halevy, Pierre Levy (head of Policy Planning in the French Foreign Ministry), and Kausikan Bilahari (Second Permanent Secretary at the Foreign Ministry of Singapore).