Israel–Kazakhstan relations
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Israel–Kazakhstan relations refers to the current and historical relations between Israel and Kazakhstan. The countries established diplomatic relations on April 10, 1992. The embassy of Israel in Astana, Kazakhstan opened in August 1992. The embassy of Kazakhstan in Tel Aviv, Israel opened in May 1996. In 2004, Chamber of Commerce and Industry Israel-Kazakhstan was established in Israel in order to develop and expand trade and economic relations.


History

The Kazakhstan Secretary of State met with Moshe Kamkhy, Israel's ambassador to Uzbekistan in August 2004 to discuss social and economic ties between the countries and moving the Israeli Embassy to Astana. The two countries maintain close contacts in the defense and intelligence sector. Ninety-five Kazakh farmers, managers, and scientists have trained in Israel. In April 2009, Kazakhstan's National Security Committee claimed that the country's Ministry of Defense knowingly bought faulty artillery and defense systems from Israeli weapons manufacturers. Kazhimurat Mayermanov, a deputy defense minister, and Boris Sheinkman, an Israeli businessman, were arrested in connection with the case. In June 2009, Israeli President
Shimon Peres Shimon Peres (; he, שמעון פרס ; born Szymon Perski; 2 August 1923 – 28 September 2016) was an Israeli politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Israel from 1984 to 1986 and from 1995 to 1996 and as the ninth president of ...
visited Kazakhstan, as he had a number of times as foreign minister.Kazakhstan: Israel's Partner in Eurasia
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (JCPA) is an Israeli research institute specializing in public diplomacy and foreign policy founded in 1976. Currently, the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs's research portfolio consists of five primar ...
, September–October 2009
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attended the Kazakh-Israeli business forum in Astana in December 2016. Netanyahu's visit to Kazakhstan was the first by an Israeli head of government. Some Israeli commentators have signaled that Israel's relations with the Central Asian states, including Kazakhstan, are part of the country's involvement in " The Great Game" for control over the strategic natural resources in Central Asia. In a similar vein, the Islamic Republic of Iran both publicly fumed about and privately tried to cancel Kazakhstan's ties to Israel, to no avail; Iran had earlier tried and failed to have the newly independent former-USSR Muslim majority states ally with them instead of Saudi Arabia and the U.S. in the aftermath of the fall of the Soviet Union, and their anti-Israel moves have been fairly similar in both style and results.


Economic collaboration

Over 25% of Israel's oil purchases are from Kazakhstan, and Kazakhstan is seeking to increase oil sales to Israel. Israel and Kazakhstan launched the Israel-Kazakhstan Irrigation Demonstration Center in the
Almaty Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the List of most populous cities in Kazakhstan, largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to ...
region. In 2004, Israel established the Israel-Kazakhstan Chamber of Commerce in order to develop and expand trade and economic relations. The Chairmen Chamber of Commerce Israel-Kazakhstan - Michael Roee.


Jewish community in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan's Jewish population surged dramatically when Stalin exiled thousands of Jews from the former Pale of Settlement. An additional 8,500 Jews escaped during the Second World War and fled to Kazakhstan. Since 1989, approximately 10,000 Kazakh Jews have relocated to Israel. The Beit Rachel synagogue in Astana, opened in 2004, is the largest in Central Asia. In 1999, all of Kazakhstan's Jewish communities were brought together under the All-Kazakhstan Jewish Congress. The country's first synagogue was opened in 2001 by Chabad Lubavitch, and a community center featuring a Jewish day school and summer camps, was also set up. Today, Kazakhstan's Jewish community of 3,300 has more than 20 Jewish organizations and 14 day schools. Over 700 Jewish students attend 14 Jewish day schools across the country and
The Jewish Agency for Israel The Jewish Agency for Israel ( he, הסוכנות היהודית לארץ ישראל, translit=HaSochnut HaYehudit L'Eretz Yisra'el) formerly known as The Jewish Agency for Palestine, is the largest Jewish non-profit organization in the world. ...
also sponsors several youth centers across the country where Jewish teens are taught Jewish culture and Hebrew. The Jewish community of Kazakhstan continues its cultural heritage. In 2007, a youth dance and vocal group Prahim was created in Almaty. The highlight of Prahim's repertoire is the popular
Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...
song, "
Bei Mir Bistu Shein "Bei Mir Bistu Shein" ( yi, בײַ מיר ביסטו שעהן, or yi, בײַ מיר ביסטו שיין, , "To Me You're Beautiful") is a popular Yiddish song written by lyricist Jacob Jacobs and composer Sholom Secunda for a 1932 Yiddish lang ...
", which the band performs in four languages: Kazakh, Russian, Yiddish and Hebrew. In October 2014 the group performed several concerts in Boston and New York City. A reciprocal visit by American Jewish youth performers to Kazakhstan was planned for spring 2015. In September 2016, the central synagogue in Almaty held the twelfth Torah scroll introduction ceremony. It was a tribute to Rabbi
Levi Yitzchak Schneerson Levi Yitzchak Schneerson (April 21, 1878 – August 9, 1944) was a Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic rabbi in Yekatrinoslav, Ukraine. He was the father of the seventh Chabad-Lubavitch Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. Early life Rabbi Levi Yitz ...
, the Lubavitch Rebbe's father, after which the Jewish centre of Kazakhstan, Chabad Lubavitch, was named.


Israeli Ambassadors to Kazakhstan

# Ben-Zion Carmel (1993 - 1996) # Israel Mei-Ami (1996 - 2002, 2008 - 2012) # Moshe Kimkhi (2002 - 2004) # Michael Lotem (2004 - 2006) # Ran Yishai (2006 - 2008) # Eliyahu Tasman (2012 - 2015) # Michael Brodsky (6 September 2015 - 2018) # Liat Vekselman (since 2018)


See also

* Foreign relations of Israel *
Foreign relations of Kazakhstan Foreign relations of Kazakhstan are primarily based on economic and political security. The Nazarbayev administration has tried to balance relations with Russia and the United States by sending petroleum and natural gas to its northern neighbor a ...
*
Jews in Kazakhstan The history of the Jews in Kazakhstan connects back to the history of Bukharan and Juhuro Mountain Jews. Kazakh Jews have a long history. There are approximately several thousand Jews in Kazakhstan right at present. Most Kazakh Jews are Ashk ...
* List of ambassadors of Israel to Kazakhstan


References


External links


Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the relations with Israel

Kazakh embassy in Tel Aviv

THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE INDUSTRY AND INNOVATION ISRAEL - KAZAKHSTAN
{{DEFAULTSORT:Israel-Kazakhstan relations Kazakhstan Bilateral relations of Kazakhstan