MAYIM MAGAZINE
STRATEGIC ANALYSIS
Ambassador Oryan acknowledges, “Israel is well aware of the tragic past of many of the nations during WWII, and in many cases there is a lot of sympathy and close feelings coming out of this mutual suffering. We shouldn’t forget this.”
The Balkan wars of the last 20 years have left their imprint on societies that are still recuperating and trying to modernize after much oppression. Accordingly, he says, “We believe that many of the people of the Balkans can understand and relate to the situation of Israel today, surrounded by many countries that are not ready to accept the existence of the Jewish State in the Middle East.”
Another issue which is on the agenda has to do with radical Islam. Ambassador Oryan explains, “We see radical Islam’s growing influence all over the world, but also in the Balkans. We have a lot of cooperation with governments and organizations tackling this issue, as we see youngsters going from the Balkan countries to Syria to volunteer, and some of them coming back.”
There are many possibilities for economic cooperation in the Balkans. Israel can offer its expertise to the countries that were under Yugoslavian dominance. In Macedonia, for example, Israel already has projects on the ground. Elbit, one of Israel’s defense industry companies, is helping with border control, and is training skilled pilots. This project is expected to involve other Balkan States. Israel is also lending a hand in science, education and other fields.
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