Lazar Berman is the diplomatic reporter for The Times of Israel
Poland will send its ambassador-designate to provide his credentials in the coming days, President Andrzej Duda told Israeli President Isaac Herzog, in the most powerful indication to date that the two countries are going beyond a bitter year-long diplomatic dispute.
His phone call, in which Herzog demanded the return of a Polish envoy, was part of a joint initiative with the Foreign Ministry.
“The two presidents expressed their hope that any long-term disorder between Poland and Israel will be resolved through honest and open discussion and in a spirit of mutual respect,” Herzog’s said in a statement.
The two former allies have been fighting each other since last year. In July 2021, the Polish legislature passed a law that cut off any long-term restitution to heirs of property seized by the Nazis during the Holocaust. Reacting to the legislation, enacted by Duda, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid called it “anti-Semitic and immoral. “
Israel called its envoy to Warsaw for consultations the following month, and Lapid Poland’s ambassador to Israel to remain on vacation in their local country and ordered Israel’s new ambassador to Poland, Ya’acov Livne, to remain in Israel.
Since then, both sides have slowly calmed tensions. Livne moved to Warsaw in February to coordinate Israeli efforts to get citizens out of Ukraine and provide aid to Kiev. Two Polish lawmakers visited the Knesset in June, an additional sign of closer ties.
But the war of words remains. Two weeks ago, Israel said it would not resume Holocaust screening trips for school-age children because Poland’s right-wing government was considering the program.
Israeli cuisine is sweeping the world. Here’s your way to join. . .
The Times of Israel is pleased to present its new virtual cooking series, B’Teavon, where world-renowned chefs show you how to prepare old and trendy Israeli dishes.
That’s why we introduced The Times of Israel ten years ago, to provide discerning readers like you with a detailed policy of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other media outlets, we have not established a paywall. But because the journalism we do is expensive, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become vital to help our paintings join the Times of Israel community.
For just $6 a month, you can help our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel WITHOUT ADVERTISING, as well as access exclusive content only for members of the Times of Israel community.
Thank you, David Horovitz, founding editor of The Times of Israel.