cohen kiev

FM Cohen visits Ukraine & Babi Yar

  •   For the first time since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, an Israeli Foreign Minister is visiting Kiev
  • 2/17/2023
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    Foreign Affairs Eli Cohen visited Babi Yar, a site of massacres carried out by Nazi Germany's forces during its campaign against the Soviet Union in World War II. Nazi soldiers killed 33,000 Ukranian Jews here in the space of two days.​

    Israel's Foreign Minister arrived yesterday in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital for what is the first visit of an Israeli minister and a minister from the Middle East to Kiev since the outbreak of the war. 

    He met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his counterpart, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to discuss cooperation against the Iranian threat, as the latter continues to supply Russia with arms. He is also scheduled to reopen the Israeli embassy in Kiev for continuous activity.

    At the launch of his visit, FM Cohen visited Bocha, one of the suburbs of Kiev that was severely damaged at the beginning of the war. 

    "It is impossible to remain unmoved in the face of the harsh sights and horror stories that I have heard and been exposed to here," he said. "Israel condemns any intentional harm to innocents."

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    At Babi Yar, Cohen said, “The Holocaust is a dark stain on human history, and we must remind everyone that the systematic murder of Jews, wherever they are, will never be repeated!

    “Standing here today as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel and a representative of the Government of Israel, I can guarantee that we will do everything to protect our people and provide security against those who sow evil against us.

    “Thus saith the LORD: A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children; she refuseth to be comforted for her children, because they are not. Thus saith the LORD: Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears; for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come back from the land of the enemy. And there is hope for thy future, saith the LORD; and thy children shall return to their own border.” (Jeremiah 31: 14-16)

    Over the course of the Nazi occupation of Ukraine, between 900,000 and 1.6 million Ukrainian Jews were murdered.