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Poland, Israel agree on youth trips

17.03.2023 06:00
Poland and Israel have reached an agreement to resume visits by organized groups of Israeli youth to Poland, the Polish foreign ministry has announced.
The Polish foreign ministry building in Warsaw.
The Polish foreign ministry building in Warsaw.Photo: PAP/Tomasz Gzell

"On 16 March 2023," negotiations were held in Warsaw on an "agreement between the Government of the Republic of Poland and the Government of the State of Israel on cooperation in the field of study visits of organized youth groups," the Polish foreign ministry said in a statement.

"An initial agreement on the issue has been reached," it added.

The announcement came after the Polish foreign ministry's spokesman, Łukasz Jasina, said earlier this month that "Poland invariably remains ready to welcome and host Israeli citizens ... travelling individually and in organized groups, based on existing agreements between our countries."

Jasina added at the time: "We are in favour of promoting people-to-people contact between Poles and Israelis, especially regarding the younger generation, as it is crucial to increase the understanding between our peoples."

That statement came after an Israeli official said in January that the disagreement between the two governments over Jewish educational trips had been nearly resolved.

Young Jewish Israelis traditionally take summer trips to Poland, including visits to former Nazi-built death camps to study the Holocaust and pay tribute to those murdered, The Times of Israel has reported.

The trip has long been considered a rite of passage in Israeli education and, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, some 40,000 Israeli students participated each year, according to the timesofisrael.com website.

However, in June last year the tours were halted due to a dispute over their content and security issues, according to news reports.

(gs)

Source: IAR, PAP, gov.pltimesofisrael.com