Young Russian speaking Jewish leaders were trained to fight the de-legitimization of Israel during a conference held this weekend in Maastricht, Holland, organized by The Jewish Agency for Israel and the Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Ministry.

November 25, 2012 / 11 Kislev 5773 4 pm Israel Time

Young Russian speaking Jewish leaders were trained to fight the de-legitimization of Israel during a conference held this weekend in Maastricht, Holland, organized by The Jewish Agency for Israel and the Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Ministry. During the conference, young Jewish leaders from 12 countries across Europe were trained in public diplomacy skills in the age of new media. The educational conference is intended to help develop a young Russian speaking Jewish leadership across Europe.

The closing sessions of the four day conference were held today (Sunday 25.11). The conference was attended by over 200 Russian speaking young Jewish leaders between the ages of 20 and 30 who have been involved in Jewish Agency programs in recent years. The Jewish Agency estimates that hundreds of thousands of Russian speaking are currently living in central Europe. Most Russian speaking Jews are not involved in traditional community organizations or activities. This conference was intended to strengthen their connection to the Jewish people and the state of Israel.

The participants left the conference equipped with the knowledge and practical skills to promote Israel’s image in Europe and respond effectively to the extensive anti-Israel activity which takes place in the new media. The conference organizers also hope to unite young Russian speaking Jews, who share a common language and culture, by involving them in Europe wide group activities.

During the conference, the participants developed technical skills for working with online and social media through lectures and practical sessions. The training was conducted in English, German and Russian by leading experts in public diplomacy and new media.

Yuli Edelstein, Minister for Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs, said “One of the aims of the Conference is to train these young Jews to be the nucleus of a young Jewish leadership in Europe. We also hope to strengthen their connection to the State of Israel and to involve them in the Ministry’s new media efforts to enhance our capability to get our message across in the fight against the de-legitimization of Israel.”

Natan Sharansky, Chairperson of the Executive of the Jewish Agency said “The attempts to de-legitimize Israel in recent years have underscored the importance of developing young Jewish leaders across the globe and strengthening their connection to Israel.”