Minister Touts Dubai Expo as Big Chance for Israel

YERUSHALAYIM (AP) —
israel dubai
Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the worlds tallest building, is illuminated during festivities marking the one-year countdown to Expo 2020, on October 20, 2019. (Giuseppe Cacace/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel’s commissioner to Expo 2020 in Dubai says next year’s world fair offers the country an opportunity to present a fresh face to the Arab world.

Elazar Cohen said Monday he’s sure Israel will draw much interest from the Emirati hosts and various Arab visitors, particularly regarding the country’s technological prowess, to be on display at its national pavilion. He says the goal is to “alleviate” any existing concerns about Israel.

“There is curiosity, mixed with concern, about this thing called Israel and we want to alleviate that concern,” he said in a briefing at the Foreign Ministry. “We want to project that Israel is an open country, that Israel is a democratic country, that Israel is a country that respects all its citizens, that everyone finds their place in it.”

The comments came a day after the Israeli government officially confirmed its participation and allotted a budget to its planned pavilion. Prime Minister Netanyahu said the Israeli delegation reflects the country’s “continued progress in normalization with the Arab states.”

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