Bilateral relations

Bilateral relations

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    Poland's democratic transition has had a profound and multifaceted impact on Polish-Jewish and the Polish-Israeli relations, leading primarily to the restoration and normalization of interstate relations. Resumption of diplomatic relations took place in February 1990, but already in 1986 a specific type of institution, the so-called offices for interests’ representation, was opened in Tel Aviv and in Warsaw. Mordechai Palzur took the position of the first Israeli ambassador in Warsaw.
     
    Already during the first term of the Polish ambassador to Israel in May 1991, Polish President Lech Walesa visited Israel and appeared in the Israeli parliament with an important speech outlining the new Polish approach to the Polish-Jewish relations. Many visits of officials in both countries have followed over the years and today the political relations between Israel and Poland are so deep, that the Prime Ministers have decided to conduct annual inter-governmental consultations. The first inter-governmental consultations between Israel and Poland which were based on this mutual decision took place in Jerusalem on February 2011.​
     
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  • Commercial exchange

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    The commercial exchange plays an important role in the bilateral relations as well. A significant deepening and broadening of economic cooperation took place in the decades which followed the renewal of the relations. Since 1991, several agreements were signed, supporting the Polish-Israeli trade. In 1991, an agreement on promotion and reciprocal protection of investments was signed, as well as an agreement on avoidance of double taxation. An important free trade agreement was signed in 1997, improving conditions for economic exchange. This agreement had been in force until 2003, when the Polish party terminated the contract.
     
    Israeli companies seek investments in Poland. For example, in 2006 alone Israeli companies invested in Poland around 30 million USD, mainly in the construction industry, and pharmaceutical manufacturing. Israeli export included agricultural technologies, food and high technology. Poland exported to Israel on the other hand products of the food industry, shipbuilding and other based on natural materials.​

  • Tourist traffic

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    Since the early nineties a considerable revival of the tourist flow took place. In 1991 national airlines opened regular flights between Warsaw and Tel Aviv. The number of Poles visiting Israel and Israelis coming to Polish has steadily increased since then. According to the Israeli Central Statistical Office Israel was visited by over 150,000 Polish tourists in 2008, which puts Poland in fifth place in Europe in incoming tourists flow to Israel. Tourist traffic in the opposite direction has been increasing as well. According to the report of the Polish Ministry of Sport and Tourism in 2007 Poland was visited by over 78 thousand Israelis.​

  • Cultural relations

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    During the visit of President Walesa in 1991, two agreements were signed, concerning youth exchange and cultural, scientific and educational cooperation. While the issue of youth exchange was relatively difficult to implement at that stage, the cultural and scientific co-operation developed quite rapidly from the beginning. The agreement provided the governmental support for translation and publication of books, exchange of artists and cooperation of scientists. An important issue was co-operation of museums, especially dealing with Polish-Jewish history and the Holocaust of the Jews.
     
    The new millennium has seen a significant intensification of cultural exchanges between Israel and Poland. In 2000 the Polish side opened the Polish Institute in Tel Aviv. Subsequent years brought a steady increase in exchanges in the fields of literature, music, theater, dance and cinema. The highlight of this cultural cooperation was the realization of The Polish Year in Israel between April 2008 and June 2009. During this time, Polish culture was presented in Israel in 140 projects from all fields of art. It is estimated that the Polish Year events were watched by over 180 thousand viewers. At the same time Israeli culture was presented in Poland in 100 different events, including in major cultural festivals. Many projects established cooperation between artists and institutions in Israel and Poland, creating relationships that lasted beyond the frame of time of this project.​

  • People to People relations

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    Israel and Poland are doing efforts to promote not just the political relations between the countries, but also the people to people relations. An extensive program of youth meetings is realized between the two countries. Each year thousands of Israeli high school pupils go on an educational excursion to Poland which follows the Holocaust sites. However those trips of the youth delegations to Poland include also introduction to contemporary Poland as well as to the historical Jewish life in this country. Moreover, many Israeli youth delegations choose to include in their visit program meeting with Polish high-school pupils. Until 2010 more than 15,000 youngsters from Israel and Poland met in this way. Israel doesn’t have such an extensive program of youth meetings with any other country. In May 2009 an agreement concerning youth exchange was signed, in order to deepen the relations between youth, and to encourage exchange which will be reciprocate in the sense that Polish delegations will arrive to Israel as well.​