Thirty WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps members from across North America gathered in Washington, D.C. this week for a regional meeting focusing on the state of global antisemitism, the need to oppose the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement against Israel, and the urgency to adopt and implement a national strategy to combat antisemitism. During the three days, members of the WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps attended meetings with various embassies, the State Department, and the White House.
Among several other highlights of the regional meeting was the delegation’s visit to the White House, where they met with Shelley Greenspan, the White House Liaison to the American Jewish Community. Greenspan spoke about the administration’s priority to tackle antisemitism, specifically addressing the Biden administration’s recent roundtable on antisemitism and the newly announced formation of an interagency group to create a national strategy to counter antisemitism.
Similar points, specifically the need to address the rise of antisemitism across the world via the drafting and implementing of national strategies to counter antisemitism, were emphasized during meetings with several Permanent Delegations. Members of the WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps met with representatives from Australia, Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Luxembourg, Moldova, Hungary, Spain, Sweden, and Uruguay.
In a separate highlight, WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps Members met with the Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States, H.E. Oksana Markarova, at the Ukraine House in Washington, D.C. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy opened the Ukraine House in September 2021, which has served as a crucial location of diplomacy over the past year.
Addressing the delegation, the Ambassador spoke of the situation on the ground in Ukraine, the humanitarian impact of the war, and her hopes for peace. The Ambassador spoke on the future of Ukraine and noted that the conflict does not truly stop when the battles stop but that the real work comes afterwards.
Other noteworthy speakers and meetings took place with Deputy Assistant Secretary for Regional Security at the State Department Mira K. Resnick, who spoke about the importance of a strong Israeli-American relationship, founder and publisher of the Jewish Insider, Max Neuberger, and a panel featuring Jewish diplomats from the United States and across the world who spoke about how their Jewish identity impacts their diplomatic work.
The regional also featured training sessions led by Head of WJC Strategy & Programs and Executive Director of the WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps, Daniel Radomski, Deputy Director of the WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps Gabriel Rosenberg, WJC Operations Manager for the WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps for North America and Latin America, Isaac Choua, and WJC International Legal Associate, Veronica Machtey, about the purpose of the WJC Jewish Diplomatic Corps, the goals of the regional meeting in Washington, D.C., the mission of the World Jewish Congress, and how to conduct a diplomatic meeting.
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