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On January 16, 2017, NATO Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller and Israel's Ambassador to the EU & NATO Aharon Leshno-Yaar officially inaugurated the offices of the Mission of Israel at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels, in the presence of Deputy Chief of Staff of the Israel Defence Forces Major-General Yair Golan.
US DCM to NATO Litzenberger and other representatives from NATO member states and partners attended the ceremony. Major-General Golan greeted them: “It is a heart-warming experience to see you all here. Let’s work together for a better future.” Deputy SG Gottemoeller welcomed this step towards further strengthening the cooperation between the strategic partners: “Israel is a like-minded friend and belongs here. It has been an active and constructive partner for NATO and Israeli representatives are frequent visitors to our Headquarters. I also look forward to the opportunity to visit Israel soon.”
For more than twenty years, Israel has been an active NATO partner through the 'Mediterranean Dialogue'. In May last year, Israel and NATO have taken the cooperation a step further with the decision to open for the first time an official Israeli Mission at NATO headquarters. Israel's Ambassador to the EU & NATO Aharon Leshno-Yaar was the first Israeli ambassador to be accredited to NATO and presented his credentials to Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in September 2016.
Ambassador Leshno-Yaar emphasised: “Israel and NATO share the same values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law and stand united against hate and terrorism. The instability in the region of the Middle East and North Africa affects not only Israel and its neighbours but also NATO and its allies and should be tackled jointly.”
The Israeli Mission will facilitate sharing of best practices in order to promote security and stability in the Mediterranean region and the international arena and will enhance cooperation with the North Atlantic Alliance.