into two nations — the Czech Republic , with a population just over ten million and a landmass slightly smaller than South Carolina , and Slovakia to its east and southeast .
Moreover , there are few countries anywhere better disposed toward Israel . Indeed , some refer to the Czech Republic as Israel ’ s very best friend in Europe today .
The Federation of Jewish Communities , with which American Jewish Committee ( AJC ) has a longstanding relationship , estimates that there are 3,000 registered Jews in the country , about half of whom live in Prague . ( Prague ’ s prewar Jewish population was about 52,000 .) Some are wartime survivors . Their care and maintenance represent a challenge for a small community . And the younger people are the children or grandchildren of this Holocaust generation . To meet any local Jew is to know that there is quite a story — or perhaps several stories — that help explain the family ’ s survival , first through Nazism , then through Communism .
And as in Hungary , Poland , and other neighboring countries , there is inevitably a question about how many more Jews there are outside the self-declared community . In some cases , people are belatedly discovering their Jewish roots , which were hidden from them by their families in the postwar era . Madeleine Albright and Tom Stoppard , both born into Czech Jewish families , are two such examples .
In 1999 , the Czech Republic , together with Hungary and Poland , and with energetic AJC support , joined NATO . And in 2004 , the Czech Republic entered the European Union . In essence , the country had officially moved from East to West — from the Warsaw Pact to NATO , from Comecon to the European Union . The Czech Republic was finally at home . It had been a long journey .
For Jewish and other visitors , there ’ s a great deal to see , beginning with Josefov , i . e ., the Jewish Quarter in Prague , and Terezin .
Moreover , there are few countries anywhere better disposed toward Israel . Indeed , some refer to the Czech Republic as Israel ’ s very best
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